Parents Still Lose Kids to Discredited 'Shaken Baby' Claims
A Texas couple lost their children for six months after a doctor blamed a fragile infant’s medical crises on abuse.
Parenting
How We Criminalized Childhood
Journalist and activist Lenore Skenazy explains how fear and over-parenting left kids more anxious and less independent, and and how a movement to restore that independence is gaining ground.
Florida Boy Walked to Chick-Fil-A Alone. Police Returned Him Home and Didn't Arrest His Parents.
Five-year-old William woke early and snuck out for Chick-n-Minis. When cops were called, they spared the boy’s parents, breaking from their all-too-common habit of arresting and charging parents with neglect.
Should We Take More Kids From Their Homes or Fewer?
When children are abused, we want government to step in. But Child Protective Services sometimes goes too far.
Child Protective Services Investigated Her 4 Times Because She Let Her Kids Play Outside
A mom who trusted her kids to play outside ended up under repeated investigation.
Kids Don't Want Screens—They Want Freedom
A new poll finds that children crave real-world play with friends, not more screen time. But we’ve made that nearly impossible.
How Portuguese Culture Makes It Easier To Parent
The Portuguese recognize that having children shouldn't relegate people to explicitly kid-friendly spaces.
Aspen Police Department Warns Kids Having Fun Is a Crime
“You could end up with a ticket or a trip to the emergency room.”
A Car Hit and Killed Their 7-Year-Old Son. Now They're Being Charged for Letting Him Walk to the Store.
Letting children walk alone isn’t a crime. But in North Carolina, prosecutors are treating it like one.
Mom Arrested, Facing 5 Years in Prison for Leaving 8- and 10-Year-Old Boys at Home
A new Georgia law could protect Alexandra Woodward's parental decision—but it doesn't go into effect until July.
Mothers Are Losing Custody Over Sketchy Drug Tests
Some hospitals are even reporting women for testing positive for drugs that were given to them during labor.
Will Florida Teens With Sexually Transmitted Diseases Have To Tell Their Parents Before They Can Get Treatment?
These bills would require exactly that—and a lot more.
Trump's New Birth Rate Plan: Menstrual Education?
The administration is reportedly considering government-funded menstrual education, affirmative action for parents, and $5,000 baby bonuses.
Why Women Freeze Their Eggs
It's not to further their careers, says Motherhood on Ice author Marcia C. Inhorn.
Postnatal Drug Tests Turn Mothers Into Felons
A Mississippi mom was charged with a felony years after she gave birth for drug use early in her pregnancy.
Georgia Backs Bill To Reaffirm Independent Kids, Protect Free-Range Parents
"Some people think that this is not one of those things that's super important—until you're affected by it," says David DeLugas.
This Mouse Has Two Biological Dads?!
An experiment with staggering implications for the future of human reproduction.
Review: A Novel About Pronatalist Government Programs
Set in South Korea, Apartment Women reflects real concerns about the country's lagging birth rate.
Virginia Courts Won't Split Ownership of Divorced Couple's Embryos
"The unique nature of each human embryo means that an equal division cannot conveniently be made," writes a Virginia judge.
Surrogacy Is the New Battleground in Reproductive Freedom
Critics on both the left and the right decry surrogacy as exploitative, especially when carriers are compensated.
New Hampshire's Bad Parenting Bill Is a Nightmare
"I happen to be a tax-and-spend liberal," says Richard Wexler, "but this bill provides not one iota of additional help."
Utah Resolution Would Encourage More Free-Range Parenting
"Make childhood great again," says state Sen. Lincoln Fillmore.
Review: Laura Marling Mixes Songs With Snippets of Life as a Mom
The album Patterns in Repeat portrays motherhood in an almost exclusively positive light.
A Shopping List for a Free-Range Family
These products can give kids independence and parents peace of mind.
The 10 Most Infuriating Challenges to Free-Range Parenting in 2024
Here's hoping for a free-range 2025!
Disrupting IVF? Baby Born From Egg Matured Outside of Mother's Body.
The process "reduces the duration of treatment cycles to just three days" and "replaces 80% of hormone injections required with traditional IVF," Gameto says.
CPS Is Investigating an Influencer Because Her Son Flinched in a Video
Hannah Hiatt isn't the first parent to face child welfare investigations sparked by an internet mob.
Mike Lee's App Store Accountability Act Would Make Google and Apple Check IDs
Lee says this is about "sexual and violent content." It goes far beyond that.
Celebrate Thanksgiving by Letting Your Kids Play Outside
"Take a moment to appreciate all that they can learn from trying to complete the task on their own," says Yale University's Julia Leonard.
Kids Are More Anxious. What If We Gave Them Independence?
Giving kids freedom doesn't just help children, says Lenore Skenazy, founder of the nonprofit Let Grow. It helps parents, too.
The Story About THC-Laced Halloween Candy Shifts From Malevolent Strangers to Careless Parents
The change in official warnings and news coverage reflects the dearth of evidence that malicious pranksters are trying to dose trick-or-treaters.
'Let Parents Decide' What Kids Can Do Online, Argue Tech Groups in New Lawsuit
The groups are challenging a Florida law that bans some teens from social media.
The Georgia Case Against a School Shooter's Father Treats an Inattentive Parent As a Murderer
The charges, which could send Colin Gray to prison for the rest of his life, are part of a broader attempt to criminalize parental failures.
Kids Should Be Blindfolded and Dropped in the Woods at Night
In the Netherlands, kids grow up with more independence than in the United States.
The Government Is Taking Babies Away Because Their Moms Ate Poppy Seeds
Unreliable drug tests are sparking unnecessary child welfare investigations.
Season 2, Episode 2 Health Care
Why We Can't Have Nice Things: Who Decides What Health Care Is 'Needed'?
Too often, it's government bureaucrats acting under the influence of special interests and against the wishes of doctors and patients, with sometimes tragic results.
A Georgia Teenager Killed 4 People at His High School. Why Is His Father Charged With Murder?
The case is another example of stretching criminal laws to hold parents accountable for their children's violence.
British TV Star in Trouble With Child Services After Letting a 15-Year-Old Take a Trip
Kirstie Allsopp posted online about her teen son's trip around Europe. Then someone reported her to the government.
The Best of Reason: The Fragile Generation
Bad policy and paranoid parenting are making kids too safe to succeed.
Homeschooling Grows as an Escape from Failing Schools and Curriculum Fights
Turned off by fumbling public schools and curriculum wars, families teach their own kids.
J.D. Vance Wants To Control You With Taxes
People making the same income should be paying the same level of taxes no matter how they choose to live their lives.
The Best of Reason Magazine: A Baby Dies in Virginia
The lethal consequences of a common, obscure hospital licensing law.
Senate To Vote on Web Censorship Bill Disguised as Kids Safety
The Kids Online Safety Act would have cataclysmic effects on free speech and privacy online.
New Jersey Wants Your Baby's Genes
Collecting and analyzing newborns' blood could allow the state to surveil people for life.
The Best of Reason: Child Welfare Systems Are Trapping Innocent Families
Georgia parents were accused of child abuse after they took their daughter to the doctor. Does the state's story add up?
Child Welfare Systems Are Trapping Innocent Families
Georgia parents were accused of child abuse after they took their daughter to the doctor. Does the state's story add up?
