Child marriage is still legal in the US
By Nicholas Syrett, Professor of Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies, University of Kansas. Women protest against child marriage in Albany, New York. AP Photo/Anna Gronewold The recent outrage over Alabama Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore allegedly targeting teenage girls for sex has elicited reports that some evangelical churches actually encourage teenage girls to date older […]
‘Sold like cows and goats’: India’s slave brides
The first time Muklesha was sold, she was just 12 years old. Her buyer was a man in his 70s. Marriage and a baby quickly followed. But, three years later, the man died and Muklesha was again put up for sale. This time, her buyer was a horrific abuser. “He didn’t feed me. He’d take […]
What Was the Age of Aisha at time of marriage to Prophet Muhammad?
compiled by Zahid Aziz (Note: The name spelt in this article as Aisha is properly transliterated as ‘Á’ishah) Qualities of Aisha and her role in Islam In any discussion on the age of Aisha (ra: may Allah be pleased with her) at the time of her marriage with the Holy Prophet Muhammad (may peace and […]
AU Sets to End Child Marriage
The African Union would today launch the AU Campaign to End Child Marriage in Sierra Leone at the Bank of Sierra Leone Complex in Freetown. The national launch would be organized by the Office of the First Lady, Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs, UNICEF and other Development Partners with the theme: ‘End […]
Malaysia’s child brides
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Men accused of raping underage girls in Malaysia are marrying their alleged victims to try to avoid criminal charges, a child rights group says. Activists have renewed their calls to ban child marriage in the southeast Asian nation after it emerged that a man charged with raping a 14-year-old girl was […]
Virginia, Maryland weigh raising marriage age to 18 to combat coercion, abuse
They can’t legally vote, drink alcohol or smoke a cigarette, but thousands of underage Virginians, most of them girls, have been pressured into marriage over the last decade. Now there’s a move afoot in the General Assembly to try to head off the disturbing trend by raising the age of consent for marriage to at […]