Safe-haven Law: Method of Psychological Abuse to Children of Complete Awareness of Their Surroundings

In the state of Nebraska in America, the safe-haven law is in effect. This law allows parents to abandon their children under the age of nineteen, which is the age of legality in Nebraska, at designated hospitals scattered throughout the state. Since the passing of this state law in July, more than thirty children have been abandoned by their parents, some of which were seventeen years old. After the children are left at the hospitals authorized to accept abandoned children, the Nebraskan social services puts them into the foster care system, and the children are never to see their original families again.

Just recently, the Nebraskan legislature proposed a bill that limited the accepted age of abandoned children to seventy-two hours; three days. Final rewrites to the bill occur on Friday, November 21, at nine o’clock in the morning, coincidentally six days before the American Thanksgiving. The revisions to the safe-haven law take effect as soon as the governor signs the final bill.

In my opinion, the unedited, original safe-haven law is just absurd. It is just ridiculous to abandon your children when they have already reached adolescence, and in some cases, adulthood. Those children have lives and for parents to just drop them off at some hospital is just complete irresponsibility and immaturity on the parents’ part. The parents are inflicting excruciating psychological pain onto their children, who have abruptly discovered that their parents do not love them enough to keep them in their lives. If I was put in these unfortunate children’s situation, I would probably commit suicide during the trip to the hospital where I would be given up.

The future bill that might pass would eliminate so many conflicts wandering within the subconscious of children. With the age limit reduced to three days, a child’s attachment to their parents would be lessened, and therefore, it would be easier for them to be given up. The bill that would revise the safe-haven law would turn it into an act similar to putting a child up for adoption. The original safe-haven law is a lot like social services forcefully removing children from their parents’ possession, only with the parents willingly giving up their children. I have high hopes for the bill that will be put on the governor of Nebraska’s desk next Friday. Its passing will eliminate one of the many world issues that we suffer from today.