The real picture of child marriage in the United States
The number of child marriages in the United States, which claims to be advanced, is staggering. Since 2000, about 200,000 underage adults have been married to men. Poverty in rural America has forced many to marry off their minor daughters.
In a country like the United States, there is no minimum age for marriage for girls centrally. However, different states in the United States have different laws. But overall, federal law is essential to stop child marriage in the United States. In South Dakota and Texas, it is still legal to marry a 16-year-old girl. In Tennessee, another state in the United States, the age of marriage for girls is 17 years.In Missouri, however, the marriage of 15-year-old girls is legal. But the most surprising thing is that 25 states in the United States do not have a minimum law to protect underage girls from child marriage. That's why the United States is under pressure from UNICEF that each of its states should have a minimum age of 18 for girls to marry.
Global child marriage situation
According to UNFPA, poverty, financial instability and insecurity are the main causes of child marriage. Every year, around 12 million underage girls get married before the age of 18. In some of the world's poorest regions, such as sub-Saharan Africa, about 4 out of 10 people get married before the age of 18.Child marriage is widespread in the developing countries of South Asia. In South Asian countries, three out of ten child marriages are generally accepted. In other words, family poverty is one of the reasons behind the marriage of a girl below 18 years of age.
Child marriage's past and present
In ancient and medieval societies, girls were married off before puberty. In ancient Greece, girls were encouraged to marry at an early age. Child marriage has been a tradition since ancient times. In addition to family poverty, social pressures lead to child marriage. In ancient Rome, marriage was generally accepted for girls after 12 years and for boys after 14 years. Needed.But if girls are victims of child marriage, they will be deprived of the right to education. Depriving them of this educational opportunity is a major obstacle to improving their financial situation. As a result, the plan to build an educated nation or a healthy nation remains elusive. Although child marriage has been practiced historically, this practice was questioned in the twentieth century when scientific advances were made and people learned about the evils of child marriage. In addition, social media is one of the tools used to campaign against child marriage.
Loss of child marriage
Premature marriage causes physical and mental problems for girls. They become economically dependent. Pregnant women between the ages of 15 and 19 are twice as likely to die as pregnant women over the age of 20. Women who conceive before the age of 15 are more likely to develop fistulas.Children of pregnant mothers at an early age are affected by various diseases. They are born with low birth weight and have low immunity. These children suffer from malnutrition. Moreover, child marriage repeatedly encourages pregnancy. The future of girls who get married at a young age is plunged into a dark hole. If girls get married at a young age, there is a possibility of various harms. In many cases, girls who get married at a young age are deprived of their right to education.
According to UNICEF, marriage under the age of 18 is known as child marriage and is a clear violation of human rights. Poverty puts girls in situations like child marriage. No matter how developed a country is, if there is poverty in the family, girls are at extreme risk of child marriage. It is the problem of the whole human race.
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