THURSDAY......................9.00.................."I SMACK AND I'M PROUD"......................

[RTKangaMummy]

THURSDAY 21 SEPTEMBER

Documentary

I Smack and I'm Proud

9:00pm - 10:00pm

ITV1 London

VIDEO Plus+: 8537
Subtitles, widescreen

Documentary looking at and analysing the behaviour of five sets of parents who believe in smacking as an appropriate means of disciplining their children. Experts Dr Miriam Stoppard, Lynette Burrows and Professor Christina Lyons and other parents give their views - both for and against.

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My mother was worse at times my BIL was far worse than these people. I am waiting for the boy of the scary eyebrows woman to hit back. My sister did after a particular bad beating and my Mum never hit her again. If your authority is based on the fact that you are bigger and stronger than your charges then NEWSFLASH you won't always be bigger and stronger.

Many a 13yr old is bigger than their mother and they will have been taught well how to inflict pain. I hope the Police follow these cases up.

Hi all

I've been given permission to post from netmums HQ and just wanted to share with you the NSPCC view on the ITV1 documentary 'I smack and I'm proud.'

The NSPCC viewed a preview copy of the programme and as a result of its content felt that it had to do something to intervene.

The NSPCC went to court to try and get an injunction to stop the programme being shown but the injunction was not granted. The statement about this is below:

'The NSPCC said (21 September) that it was extremely disappointed that an injunction to stop the ITV programme I Smack and I?m Proud being screened at 9pm tonight has not been issued by the High Court.

NSPCC director and chief executive, Mary Marsh said: ?The Society sought an injunction because of concerns about the children involved in the programme. The NSPCC is greatly concerned about the fact that children were filmed and portrayed in this way. The NSPCC will now formally refer the programme to Ofcom for its immediate consideration.?

The NSPCC sincerely hopes that people all over the UK who view this programme tonight will also contact Ofcom to demonstrate their concern that children were filmed and shown to the public in such distressing circumstances.

Mary Marsh continued: ?We believe it was wrong to film the children in this way, and wrong to transmit the programme.?

The NSPCC viewed an advance copy of the programme and asked ITV not to transmit it because of its concerns. Once ITV confirmed that it would not withdraw the programme, the NSPCC believed, regrettably, it had no other course of action than to seek to have the programme stopped by the court.

The NSPCC has not taken action over this programme due to any issue of editorial balance over the physical punishment debate. Editorial balance is an issue entirely for ITV. The NSPCC strongly encourages public debate on the issue.

The NSPCC remains committed to reform of legislation to give children the same protection from assault that adults already enjoy. It continues to campaign for government action to achieve this.

Anyone with concerns about a child can call the NSPCC 24-hour a day Child Protection Helpline on 0808 500 8000. Children and young people can call ChildLine on 0800 1111 at anytime day or night.

To contact Ofcom about the programme:

Ofcom
Ofcom Contact Centre
Riverside House
2a Southwark Bridge Road
London
SE1 9HA
Phone: 0845 456 3000
Fax: 020 7981 3333
Email: [email protected]

Ends

I watched this and felt awful. I have smacked my DD (3) in the past, both my DH and I were smacked as children and were of the opinion 'it never did me any harm'. We both watched how those parents, especially scary eyebrows woman and little Mitchells Dad, used the smacking to instil fear in their children not love.

In hindsight my DD didn't need the smacks we had given her and I truly felt bad that I had ever smacked her but you can't change the past.

I know in furure I am going to try and step back and take a breather, like someone on here has suggested and realise that whilst I may have been smacked as a child, it doesn't mean I have to smack as a parent. For all the bad comments about the programme, and I agree with you all, this programme really did give me a kick up the backside to realise there are other ways of dealing with child who is being naughty!

I find it painful to see children smacked and find even the idea of smacking deeply disturbing now that I am a mother myself.

I wouldn't have had a problem with it before becoming a mother and was smacked myself as a child.

But to me, administering physical pain is utterly unecessary for the discipline of any child. I would agree that discipline is important, but if you love your child why not make the effort to get to grips with effective non violent methods?

I felt physically sick watching this programme. By the end of it, I was shaking. I was smacked like most of those children. My mother genuinely believes that if you spare the rod you spoil the child. I remember as a small child gibbering "sorry" like Mitchell. No idea what I'd done but terrified by the scary look on my mum's face. As I got older I became more like scary eyebrow woman's children where the slaps & wallops with household implements meant very little other than to instill hatred towards my mother.
I just about understand why a parent would smack a child for some incredibly severe transgression, although I would never do it myself & I don't believe it is necessary. However this habitual smacking, which I believe is incredibly common, I find intolerable. That's not discipline it is bullying & unnecessary force. Utterly pointless & destructive.

MrsSpoon - I think you have a fair point, BUT I wonder whether a huge number of people who smack believe they are doing it within a reasonable framework with good results - whereas really, when analysed, it is actually in exasperation - just like the families shown? Mitchell's dad started out with what he thought was a rational considered approach - but the video evidence belied that - as he himself was able to see, and vowed to change his behaviour.

When I hear people talk of smacking, I do imagine the kind of single slap that Mithchell's dad and Aaron'd dad were dealing out - I honestly think this is what is considered pretty normal, not this 'light tap' that people talk about.

I am so glad I watched this programme as I will never smack my child. I have done a couple of times in the past but I am not proud of it, ashamed in fact. That programme was really hard to watch and the people.....The 14 year old boy was close to tears when he tried to get the fish slice off his mum. Mitchell's Dad was a complete bully and equally so with his wife. I just wanted to grab Mitchell and cuddle him.

I watched some of the repeat last night and it was horrible.
Most of the "parents" on the "show" were hitting and doing it out of anger, my heart went out to poor little Mitchell when his hand was squeezed because he was hitting a straw on the table, that (poor excuse for a ) man was a bully and the mother was looking the other way (bet she gets a slap now and then to).
Then we get the god squad (i go to church by the way) hitting their children cause the bible says to.
PLEEEASE!!!
And the woman with the fish slice needed a shrink (as well as some serious eyebrow plucking).
And the least said about the blond woman the better, lets just say her kids have NO chance and will live a live on the state on a run down council estate with endless kids by different daddies if she is their role model.
There is no point hitting a child when they have done wrong and shouting and swaring at them, it dose not teach them anything apart from how to hit (mitchell was hitting his mum and pushing his brother).
It was sickening, the last thing i will say is most of these people should have put a bit more time in to cleaning their houses then beating their kids, they live like pigs.

This morning DP asked DS (5) if he thought mummies and dadies should smack children if they were being really naughty. He said, no, they should ask them to be good. Then DP said but what if they keep on and on doing something they have been asked not to do? What will you do when you are grown up and a Daddy? DS said 'I would give them away to a new daddy'.

(I have very occasionally smacked Ds, felt ashamed, don't agree with it and haven't done it since he was 3. Actually I think if I had seen this programme earlier it would have stopped me ever having succumbed to exasperation / crossness)

On a lighter note, did anyone think the 'singaporian' mother sounded like bubblesdevere on Little Britain?

Blu, I know what you mean. I certainly had my eyes opened last night. I swore I would not smack my children but I have done and probably will do again but what was shown last night was akin to child abuse.

KatieC,

Thanks for that. Focom now been contacted. They said they have received a number of calls.

x

Got too emotional to watch it past the first 10-15 minutes, all that shouting and hitting particularly on the face and without warning left me feeling sick. Had to turn it off.

I have sent an email to ofcom stating my unhappiness at the programme content.

As a nanny of 17Yr+ i have never smacked, as a child i recieved a few smacks for things like runninginto the rd but i don't believe it is an effective tool.

For those of you who say that your smacking is not the same as these families I believe you but, and its a big but. This is how a lot of people smack. This is why the law is so important, it aims to stop this sort of smacking really. Thats the main aim I think. But people get all outraged at their percieved right to smack being taken away, but this programme shows who you are keeping company with iyswim

I agree with some one else further down, most people describe their smacks and "light taps" or something similar but the reality is often different.
Usually parents smack when they have lost their temper, lost control, so use more force than they probably even realise sometimes. They then look back at the incident and justify it to themselves, as the truth is too hard to face.