Child Endangerment?


Maybe things were different back then, but how could the boy's parents leave him alone all night? Wasn't that against the law?

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Yes, the child is endangered . . . analyze the movie further . . . there is much more to this film . . .

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Please explain!

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Not only left him alone, when they knew he was scared, the father locked him in and nailed the window shut.

What if there had been a fire? I know people weren't as careful of their kids in the past, but to trap him in a broken down tenement was unbelievable.



I guess it's like looking at clouds. You see one thing and I see another. Peace.

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I know, I cringed while watching this movie. I thought, wow, these people are horrible; poor Tommy. Afterwards, I thought about it and tried to look at their actions from the proper context.

By today's standards, most people would consider the Woodrys very bad parents; irresponsible, neglectful, and insensitive, but this movie was made a long time ago. In those days, and perhaps for some time later, their behavior would most likely be the norm.

Then, most parents, especially those in the Woodry's circumstances, struggled just to provide their children the basics: a roof over their heads, clothes to wear, food in their stomachs, and, sometimes, an education. This was not long after the Depression. These parents must have experienced it themselves. If their kids could make it to adulthood and were responsible and gainfully-employed, they'd be happy.

Remember also, Mr. Woodry was concerned with keeping Tommy from getting out of the house. That was a far greater possibility than a fire. Outside, there were a lot more opportunities for him to get into trouble. Their home was not the best but it wasn't broken down; that was a neighboring building.

In my opinion, these days some parents are far worse than the Woodry's. Some can't be bothered with their kids at all. They don't have time for them not due to necessity but by choice. Others do get involved, maybe too much. They want their kids to reflect them so they'll create a facade, do their homework so they'll have good grades and buy them lots of unnecessary things.

Often, an artificial environment is created for the kids where they never have to lose or fail at anything, their feelings are all that matter, and at a young age they have everything they want. These are not all wealthy people either. Some will go into debt just so their families can keep up with the Joneses (or has that now officially changed to keeping up with the Kardashians?)

My point is there are some kids who really are neglected, abused and mistreated but there are also a whole lot who grow up feeling entitled yet they know nothing and can't do anything that's of any real use for society. If they're lucky to make it on a reality show great for them but if they can't (and most don't) they're tossed to the side. Some turn to drugs and crime and who knows what else. It's hard at that point to start fresh especially when the foundation hadn't been laid early on.

Ironically, that's what happened to the real life kid that played Tommy. He got the Hollywood pampering until he was no longer of any value to them then he was unceremoniously tossed out. He died young, destitute and under terrible conditions.

Let's not kid ourselves, throughout time there have been and will always be both good and bad parents. A lot of kids weren't raised in the best conditions but their parents loved and cared about them and set them off on a good path. Are kids today necessarily better off because they're given more things or because they live in a gated community and have security systems at home? There may be laws now that dictate what parents can and cannot do but have things really changed? Until something goes horribly wrong, violations of these laws often go unnoticed.

In the movie, Tommy does find a way out and I suspect he would have at least tried to get out had there been a fire. Can we say the same about some kids today? Some can barely walk and chew gum. Ultimately, our values determine how we judge the actions of others but let's be sure to look at the whole picture before we pass judgment.

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The mother in this movie was unbelievably cold. You never leave a child alone in an apartment ! This kid was left to go anywhere and what was the mother doing all day. Didn't look like she was working !!!!!!!

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Ever hear the term "latch key children"? Very popular today. Many parents today have no idea what is going on with their kids. That was not the norm when this movie was made.

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Remember what the cop said. "A few lickings never hurt anyone" hilarious poor kid.

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I'm watching the movie now. I wonder if New Yorkers really left their kids alone like that? I seriously doubt anyone would have nailed the windows though, and certainly wouldn't have locked him in alone. Fires in tenements were common.

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It's a movie!!!!

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What has that got to do with anything?

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It means you're not enjoying it.

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Yes, the world was very different back then.

My mom, born in Brooklyn in 1920, rode the subway by herself at age 5. It wasn't considered odd at all. If she had a quarter, she'd walk to Ebbets Field alone or with friends to watch the Dodgers play.

Right up until the 1970s, kids walked themselves to and from school every day, even if it was many blocks. They'd go outside after school or on a Saturday, and run around free until dark. Parents assumed they were fine - in fact, if they stayed around the house, they might get scolded to go outdoors and out from underfoot.

A scene early in the movie - the kids playing and making bets on the floor of an abandoned building - was consistent with good parenting at the time.

Great book on this is out right now: Julie Lythcott-Haims "How To Raise An Adult". She talks about the growing over-protectiveness of parents (herself included); that as parents got more paranoid and started watching their kids every moment, the crime rate was much lower than they perceived (reacting to a fear that was not fact-based); and how, in other countries, this just doesn't happen.

Which brings us full-circle, because she mentions that in Tokyo, unaccompanied kids as young as four ride the subway.

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