Teen drama or not?

[Laurelai]

We've all heard about teenagers accusing parents of abuse and what not when they were just being snot nosed teenagers not getting their way, and also teenagers who *have* been abused, so when allegations are made, its always a tangle to find the truth.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/09/03/muslim.convert/index.html

I was on the fence on this one until the last paragraph- the parents reeled me in with the cheerleading line me thinks.

 

[Rob King]

Considering all the first-hand accounts I've heard of people converting away from Islam come from Pakistan, I don't really feel qualified to have much of an opinion for something in Florida. That said, because of all those stories, I would be very hesitant to judge the situation, even if I got to know the characters involved, and even if the parents sound very legit.

 

[elph]

This is funny for the simplistic fact, that by the the time everything is done with, she'll be 18 and none of it will matter (she's 17 now). She'll be considered an adult and not have any state system to fall back on in terms of living arrangements (foster care and such) that wouldn't be available to any normal adult.

The best action for the parents (and the girl really), deal with what they have to and send her on her way if she isn't welcome in the family for whatever small minded, bigoted reason.

 

[Shawn]

Just more proof that Religion is just an excuse for bullshit.

 

[Covar]

I don't drink Coffee

 

[Rob King]

This is funny for the simplistic fact, that by the the time everything is done with, she'll be 18 and none of it will matter (she's 17 now). She'll be considered an adult and not have any state system to fall back on in terms of living arrangements (foster care and such) that wouldn't be available to any normal adult.

I didn't think the State's resources really had much to do with it. I thought it was that the parents wanted her back. Didn't the article say she was living with a pastor? I assumed she wasn't there on the state's dime, but that he had taken her in.

 

[General Specific]

My question is that why did she go all the way to Florida? Surely there was some other ministry or something nearby that would consent to taking her in. Why was it necessary for her to flee all the way to Florida? If her father had really threatned to kill her, why did she not go to the authorities in Ohio?

I'm betting there's an ulterior motive to being in Florida and she's looking for an excuse to stay.

 

[Shakey]

It seems like they threw every single stereotype in the book at the parents to make them look like bad guys, including their church supporting terrorists. Hard to tell with just that article though.

 

[elph]

This is funny for the simplistic fact, that by the the time everything is done with, she'll be 18 and none of it will matter (she's 17 now). She'll be considered an adult and not have any state system to fall back on in terms of living arrangements (foster care and such) that wouldn't be available to any normal adult.

I didn't think the State's resources really had much to do with it. I thought it was that the parents wanted her back. Didn't the article say she was living with a pastor? I assumed she wasn't there on the state's dime, but that he had taken her in.[/QUOTE]

True, she did go to live with a pastor. However see the quote:

Stemberger is asking the court to keep Rifqa Bary in the custody of the state of Florida until she turns 18 in a year.

If she becomes a ward of the state, it'll only be for a year. Then she won't have anything to fall back on. How many 18 year olds do you know that leave their home state that can support themselves on their own. If this goes the way it appears (that the parents are likely to have nothing to do with her) she will be completely on her own in terms of a major support system other then the pastor she ran to. Which, like General Specific questioned, "Why Florida?".

Also if she becomes a ward of the state, whoever takes her in for that final year gets a paycheck to help support her, granted it's not a lot, but it's still support from the state.

My overall point though was, that her being so close to legal age, all the court cases and everything else really won't matter. She'll have the right to do what she pleases with whatever resources she can manage. All this will likely do is create a final rift between her and her family in which she'll be pretty much alone with.

 

[AshburnerX]

If her father had really threatned to kill her, why did she not go to the authorities in Ohio?

As an Ohioan, I can say with absolute certainty that it's because our police are descended from the corrupt, Boss Hog types of the 50-70's and are not only incredibly corrupt but also incompetent.

 

[Rob King]

I'm betting there's an ulterior motive to being in Florida and she's looking for an excuse to stay.

She probably just really likes oranges.

On a more serious note, it could be a matter of pop-Christianity. Different regions grow different churches. In Kentucky, you get your typical baptists, but in Seattle, there are more and more non-denominational, and 'emergent' churches. I don't know what's down in Florida, but it wouldn't surprise me if some movement based out of there (or even the pastor that took her in) might be a major draw factor. I know I was ready to up and move to Vancouver when I was a young Christian, because there are a lot of churches and organizations there that appealed to my view of what Christianity should look like.

Since all I really know about the girl is that she's converting to Christianity, that's the only guess I can offer. Although, the oranges thing probably doesn't hurt.

Regarding the foster care and whatnot, yeah, it seems a bit foolish, if she's only got a few months anyways. What is the law down there on moving out? I'm fairly certain someone can live without a guardian at the age of 16 here, but foster care could go up to 18. I could be wrong. I only know of two examples which I'm drawing on, but I get the impression that's how it works.

If that's the case, and she could be on her own anyways, I would suspect that it's a moeny-grab. But if she can't live guardian-less or whatever for those months, then perhaps bringing it to court is the only way the state won't send her home for those seven months in between? I'm just sort of spitballing here.