This family faced a government investigation when they let their children walk home for a local park!
The Meitiv family came under fire from Child Protective Services when they allowed their 6-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son to walk home alone from a local park in December. A neighbor noticed the pair walking alone and called the police. The Meitivs were visited by CPS later that day. The family has been visited by CPS regularly since this occurrence.
This family ascribes to a style of parenting known as “free-range.” This means that they encourage their children to become self-sufficient. The Meitivs have described how they worked up slowly to walking from the park alone, first allowing their children to walk to a store on the corner.
Recently, the Meitivs were cleared of wrong-doing. However, many parents continue to be accused of negligence for allowing their children to venture outdoors alone. Last week, a young boy played in his own yard alone for 90 minutes. His parents were arrested for negligence upon their return home.
What do you think? Is free-range parenting essential for the development of responsibility? Or is it simply a display of the parents’ lack of their own responsibility?
