When children suffer and die for dogma - Part 1

October 12, 2:08 PMAtheism ExaminerTrina Hoaks

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I reported the other day about the sentencing of two parents who stood by an allowed their daughter to die for religious reasons. I have been giving this a great deal of thought - as do I anything that concerns the needless suffering of children. As I said in the article, "Dale and Leilani Neumann of Wausau, Wisconsin could have saved their daughter. But they chose to rely on God rather than take [her] to the doctor. Because they imposed their religious beliefs on their 11-year-old daughter, the young girl died."

"The couple was sentenced... for their part in their daughter's death. They received... one month in jail per year for the next six years and 10 years probation. And in a weird move the judge, according to an MSNBC report, said he wants them to spend the time 'think[ing] about Kara and what God wants [them] to learn from this.' It seems the judge wants them to reflect. After all, why punish people who the judge believes are 'very good people?' ... This 'punishment' does not seem to fit the crime."

"It was reported that the couple could have received up to 25 years in prison for second-degree homicide for allowing their daughter to die of diabetes, which was determined to be treatable."

I wonder, for how long was that little girl made to suffer by parents whose responsibility it was to love and protect her? At some point, it must have occurred to her parents that she wasn't getting better. How long before she died was she unable to walk? How long before she died was she unable to talk? How long before she died was she unable to eat? Yes, all of these things happened to that helpless little girl while her parents stood by doing nothing. I hope she was unaware that her parents were allowing her to die - what a horrible betrayal.

If this little girl, Kara, hadn't died, would we have heard of her? Would we have heard her story? How many children suffer in this way at the hands of their parents who put their right to believe and practice religion as they choose above the rights of their children to be protected, to be cared for, and not to be neglected? How many children, just like Kara, have their rights trumped by their parents rights and are made to suffer at the hands of those they trust the most and those who are supposed to love them? It would seem these people love their religion more than they love their own children.

A while back, I had a conversation with Sean Faircloth, the Executive Director of Secular Coalition for America, and we were discussing this issue. He referred to this as "torture." He said, "...you know what – you mentioned how often you see it – a child dies – and that’s true. Now, think about how many times we don’t hear about it. Because, maybe the child doesn’t die. I mean, if you look at it statistically, the number of times a child is actually going to die is relatively rare compared to, say, they’re very sick and in horrible pain but they don’t die.

"A lot of time you and I as members of the public or the media, are not ever going to find out about that. Think about the torture, and that’s what it is, that these children are subjected to. But because the child didn’t actually die, we never get wind of it. That, I would suggest to you, happens even more frequently. And how horrible! How horrible for that child. And we in the general society would have no reason, or no way of knowing about it.

"As you are alluding to, correctly, there are in most states of the Union laws on the books that say that people who are religious get special rights that you would not have. If you were to, and I know you wouldn’t, but if you were to do this kind of thing to your child, they’d cart the child out of your home. But because of this statute that exists in most states in the Union they, theoretically, have a privileged position in comparison to you in the eyes of the law and that is – one – in violation of the First Amendment, and – two – utterly immoral."

Who stands up for these children when their parents fail them? If the government won't help to protect them, what chance do they have?

Continue reading:
Part 2
Part 3