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ICRW's Saranga Jain Speaks to Seattle's Culture Talk

ICRW’s Saranga Jain, an expert on child marriage, was a guest March 27 on Seattle’s KKNW-AM 1150’s Culture Talk with Kevin P. Henry. Jain spoke about the child marriage epidemic around the globe and what is being done to address this harmful practice.

Culture Talk airs on the Alternative Talk and Afra Genesis networks.

Listen to the interview.


 

ICRW Meets with Girl Scouts to Discuss Child Marriage

ICRW's Saranga Jain recently met with a group of Girl Scouts in Springfield, Mass., to discuss their thoughts on child marriage after viewing the NOW on PBS documentary, Child Brides: Stolen Lives. The girls, ranging in ages from 14 to 18, shared concerns about the health and social consequences of marrying too young, and made connections between the lives of adolescent girls in developing countries and their own.

“I learned a lot from these girls,” says Jain, the lead researcher of the report, New Insights on Preventing Child Marriage. “So many of the aspirations and hopes for the future that these girls expressed are similar to those of girls in South Asia.” For example, Nepalese girls in an ICRW study reported aspirations of finishing secondary school, going to college, getting a job, falling in love and getting married, activities which they hoped would occur in their 20's. The reality for many girls in Nepal, however, is marriage and childbearing before they have reached adulthood. This often means an end to all other future hopes, including education and earning an income.

The Jan. 21 film showing with the Girl Scouts coincided with a screening in Long Island, N.Y. Afterward, experts at each location led a discussion about child marriage, followed by a live video-teleconference between the two sites.

 


The U.S. Senate and House of Representatives have introduced legislation that would curb child marriage.  Learn more.

Bills Now Before Both Houses of Congress

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) introduced a bill to reduce child marriage before the Senate adjourned for its August recess.

The bill, S. 1998, is similar to the one that Sens. Durbin and Hagel (R-Neb.) introduced in July 2006.

"This bill will help ensure that U.S. assistance supports and builds on efforts to help eradicate child marriage in our lifetimes as well as ensure greater success in other international development efforts," says ICRW President Geeta Rao Gupta.

ICRW applauds Durbin for introducing this legislation and encourages the Senate to move quickly to pass it.

Read the text of the bill.


Senate bill 1998 Child Marriage Sponsors

Lead Sponsor:

Dick Durbin (D-Ill.)

Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.)

Co-sponsors:

Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)

Sharrod Brown (D-Ohio)

Ben Cardin (D-Md.)

Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.)

Thad Cochran (R-Miss.)

Chris Dodd (D-Conn.)

Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)

Tim Johnson (D-S.D.)

Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.)

Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.)

Robert Menendez (D-N.J.)

Barbara Mikulski (D-Md)

Patty Murray (D-Wash.)

Olympia Snowe (R-Maine)

Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.)


House bill 3175 Child Marriage Sponsors


Lead Sponsor:

Betty McCollum (D-Minn.)

Co-sponsors:

Tammy Baldwin (D- Wis.)

Howard L. Berman(D-Calif.)

Bruce Braley (D-Iowa)

Lois Capps ( D-Calif.)

Michael E. Capuano (D-Mass.)

Russ Carnahan (D-Mo.)

Yvette D. Clarke (D-N.Y.)

Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.)

Joseph Crowley (D-N.Y.)

Diana DeGette (D-Colo.)

Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.)

Keith Ellison (D-Minn.)

Charles Gonzalez (D-Texas)

Al Green (D-Texas)

Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.)

Alcee Hastings (D- Fla.)

Maurice Hinchey (D-N.Y.)

Ruben Hinojosa (D-Texas)

Michael Honda (D-Calif.)

Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D- Ill.)

William Jefferson (D-La.)

Eddie Bernice Johnson (D- Texas)

Shelia Jackson Lee (D-Texas)

Mark Kirk (R-Ill.)

Barbara Lee (D-Calif.)

John Lewis (D-Ga.)

Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.)

Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.)

Carolyn McCarthy (D-N.Y.)

Jim McDermott (D-Wash.)

James McGovern (D-Mass.)

Michael McNulty (D-N.Y.)

Michael H. Michaud (D-Maine)

James Moran (D-Va.)

Dennis Moore (D-Kan.)

Jim Oberstar (D-Minn)

Ed Pastor (D- Ariz.)

Donald Payne (D- N.J.)

Hilda L. Solis ( D-Calif.)

Janice Schakowsky (D-Ill.)

Louise McIntosh Slaughter (D-N.Y.)

Pete Stark (D-Calif.)

Lee Terry (R-Neb.)

Mark Udall (D-Colo.)

Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.)

Diane Watson (D-Calif.)

Henry Waxman (D-Calif.)

Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.)


Organizations That Endorse the 2007 Child Marriage Legislation

American Jewish World Service
New York, N.Y.

Amnesty International USA
Washington, D.C.

Armenian International Women's Association - Watertown, Mass.

Americans for UNFPA
New York, N.Y

Christian Children's Fund
Richmond, Va.

CEDPA
Washington, D.C.

Center for Women Policy Studies
Washington, D.C.

Coptic Orphans
Merrifield, V.a.

Equality Now
New York, N.Y.

Family Violence Prevention Fund
Washington, D.C.

Feminist Majority Foundation
Arlington, Va.

Friends of the World Food Program
Washington, D.C.

FXB
New York, N.Y.

Girls Learn International, Inc.
New York, N.Y.

Global Action for Children Washington, D.C.

Global AIDS Alliance
Washington, D.C.

Guttmacher Institute
Washington, D.C.

International Planned Parenthood Federation/Western Hemisphere Region
New York, N.Y.

International Women's Health Coalition
New York, N.Y.

National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd
Silver Spring, Md.

National Council of Jewish Women
New York, N.Y.

National Organization for Women
Washington, D.C.

One by One
Seattle, Wash.

Pact
Washington, D.C.

Pathfinder International
Watertown, Mass

Plan USA
Warwick, R.I.

Population Action International
Washington, D.C.

Save the Children
Westport, Conn.

School Girls Unite
Kensington, Md.

Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States
New York, N.Y. - Washington, D.C.

The Grail in the U.S.
Bronx, N.Y.

Tostan,
Washington, D.C. and Senegal

U.S. Fund for UNICEF
New York, N.Y.

Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations
Washington, D.C.

United Methodist Church, General Board of Church and Society
Washington, D.C.

Women's Edge
Washington, D.C.

YWCA
Washington D.C.

Zonta Club
New York, N.Y.

 

 

 

 

 

CHILD MARRIAGE

Legislation | What you Can Do | Tools | Learn More | Coalition and Partners

 

Child marriage is a harmful traditional practice that weds young people, almost exclusively girls to men who are usually significantly older than their new bride. Prevalent in many developing countries, child marriage puts girls, some as young as 7 or 8, at risk for detrimental economic, health and educational consequences.


Pending U.S. Congressional Legislation

Child Marriage Bills
H.R. 3175 and S. 1998

Bills have been introduced in both houses of Congress to help reduce child marriage.

The House pdf and Senate pdf bills.

U.S. House Sponsors | U.S Senate Sponsors

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What You Can Do!

Call your senators and representative to encourage them to cosponsor the child marriage bills: House of Representatives bill H. R. 3175 and Senate bill S. 1998.

Find your senators.
Find your representative.

Calling Congress pdf

Child Marriage Talking Points pdf

 

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Tools and Resources

 

Too Young to Wed: Advocacy Toolkit pdf

How to End Child Marriage: Action Strategies for Prevention and Protection pdf

Too Young to Wed: Seeking Policy Solution pdf

Writing an Op-ed pdf

Writing a Letter to the Editor pdf

Writing Congress pdf

Calling Congress pdf

Congressional Target List pdf

Child Marriage Talking Points pdf

 

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Learn More

 

Child Marriage

Child marriage is a harmful traditional practice that weds young people, almost exclusively girls to men who are usually significantly older than their new bride. Prevalent in many developing countries, child marriage puts girls, some as young as 7 or 8, at risk for detrimental economic, health and educational consequences. ICRW research clearly shows that child marriage hinders development efforts.

 

Girls who marry young are:

  • More likely to live in poverty;
  • More likely to die during childbirth;
  • More likely to experience violence at home;
  • Less likely to continue attending school.

 

There are currently some 51 million girls in the developing world who are married; and in several countries, more than half of the girls are married before they reach their 18th birthday.

The United States spends millions of dollars every year on international development assistance, money that is less effective due to the negative consequences of child marriage.

ICRW'S RESPONSE

ICRW is advocating for more U.S. involvement in curbing child marriage. Current legislation before the U.S. Senate and House of Representative would mandate that the U.S. State Department report on child marriage in its annual Country Reports on Human Rights as well as empower the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to integrate child marriage prevention into existing programs and implement pilot programs to reduce the prevalence of child marriage.

ICRW's communication team also works to raise the visibility of child marriage, both among lawmakers and in the general public through print, electronic and other media. See the recent USA Today article on child marriage.

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Coalitions and Partners

 

ICRW works with many partners to accomplish our advocacy goals. Our partners and coalitions include:

Save the Children

Christian Children's Fund (CCF)

Coalition for Adolescent Girls

U.S. Fund for UNICEF

International Women's Health Coalition

Pathfinder

United Methodist Church, General Board of Church and Society

Tostan

The Population Institute

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For specific questions, please contact Kathy Selvaggio, ICRW's senior policy advocate.

Find your Senators.

Find your Representative.

How to Learn more

• Sign up for ICRW's advocacy alerts to stay up-to-date on important legislative initiatives.

• Sign up for e-mail alerts about ICRW's work.

• Read our fact sheets and speeches.

• Attend an Insight and Action Seminar.

Photo credit: Curt Carnemark