News: Woman Causes Scene in Wal-Mart; Calls Ear Piercing "Child Abuse"
Sunday July 8, 2007
A heated incident in a Kansas Wal-Mart store has gotten the attention of the entire nation, which may be just the fuel we need to get the piercing gun banned once and for all.
A mother was having her 4 year-old daughter’s ears pierced by a Wal-Mart jewelry associate, when her cries were overheard by a passerby – Marilyn Johnson – who confronted the associate and the mother, accusing them of “child abuse.” She claims the little girl was screaming and holding her hand over her other ear, trying to prevent them from touching it. She then called the police on them, but found herself escorted from the store instead.
Comments
Well we have all done it as a little girl…wanted our ears pierced to only hear the sound of the gun and feel the heat on our one ear and then freak out crying and screaming bloody murder….is it child abuse? Not in my eyes…but I would have either tried to convince my wailing daughter to PLEASE get the other one done…or I would have asked the employee if I could come back another day when my daughter realized how silly she looked with one ear done…and how ‘not a big deal’ it was….I look back at my experience and laugh at it…and I was 9!!! I think it was none of that ladies business…and I also think the cops have something better to do than nab women who are getting their daughters ears pierced!! Although I think escorting her out of the store was a little harsh!! Then again after all we only see one side of the story…maybe the nosy woman was making more of a scene than the little girl was….some ppl are so darn nosy!!
yeah getting your ears pierced does hurt, and people/kids freak out more when they get them done one at a time. if the little girl had both of her ears done at the same time it might have been a different story. she would have felt the sting in both ears, cried for a little bit, then been ok. no freak out, no trying to avoid getting the other ear done, etc. that’s how they did my ears and i was four at the time
…I mean, what’s this lady’s problem? Why is it such a difficult concept for people to just mind their business and worry about issues that matter? Is this same lady someone who lives alone with 42 cats at home? GET A LIFE LADY AND MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS! Assist the police with people who are really committing child abuse/neglect and stop occupying the 911 lines for nothing! RIDICULOUS!!!!!!!
I went through the same thing when I got my ears peirced at seven. I think most kids do. I wanted it done for my birthday and payed for it with my own money ETC ETC, but I find it a little weird when people get their toddlers or babies’ ears peirced without the child saying they wanted it done, yanno? It seems a little unfair to put them through the pain and scariness (I know its not that badbut when youre little thigns seem different) when they may not be mature enough to decide for themselves? And it seems a little superficial to me to ‘decorate’ your baby. I dont know,and I’m not a mom I’m only saying it the way it looks to me.
sounds like tha lady has her own personal issues.n every1 is right people need to mind there own bizz.I peirced my own daughters ears at 2 months old by myself with a kit that i got as a gift for baby earpeircing.she is now 2 yrs old,never had a problem and has diamond screw in white gold earings from littmans…wow,is that child abuse?i think not.lol!
Even though a woman is the child’s mother, she should not be allowed to make a permanent decision like ear-piercing for a small child. When the child is 10 or 12, if she wants her ears pierced and can manage it without freaking out then sure, but not on small children–especially not babies and toddlers. That is just wrong. I applaud the “nosy” lady who was the only person who cared about that little girl that afternoon.
Wow, nosy ass lady, mind your own business. My sister had her daughter’s ear pierced, so what? It’s going to eventually happen.. who doesn’t have their ear’s pierced? If you don’t like that, blame society for making jewelry such a necessity today, not the mother.
Let the kid decide, when she’s able to decide for herself, whether or not she wants her ears pierced.
I think that a person has the right to decide whether they want their ears pierced. Personally I had my ears pierced not once but twice when I was still a child (yes - 4 holes). But, I know some women who never wanted their ears pierced. So if the 4 yr old wanted it done - fine. If she didn’t want the 2nd ear done because it hurt - I would have stopped there and waited until she decided she wanted the other one done (if ever) - she could decide to let the one grow over. About the nosy woman - hmmm if she perceived it to be actual “child abuse” then I applaud her - because too many people don’t want to get involved and frankly bad things happen when good people do nothing. I wasn’t there so I don’t know what was actually happening. She could have been overreacting because of her own issues….
When I was in 5th grade, my parents allowed me to finally get my ears pierced. They said that I was old enough to deal with it by then, and truly decide that I wanted them. When it was done however with the piercing gun, they did both ears at the same time, otherwise I might have gone home with only one piercing as well. xP
It’s not an issue to me. Parents choose if their little boys are circumcised at birth. I’m sure that hurts way worse than ear piercing. I had my daughters ears pierced at age 2 and she loved them and still does. Never gave her any problems. I don’t feel it’s a big deal. I had my ears pierced and it wasn’t bad at all. It’s a beauty thing. I think people can go overboard with holes everywhere but really it’s their business. Kids cry when they get shots but after it’s over it’s not going to be something they remember. My girls were practically bald as babies and toddlers so the earrings helped them look feminine in my opinion. I don’t even think it matters if a baby gets their ears pierced because if they don’t want it later; the hole will grow over.
Here’s an issue that no one has mentioned: sterility. The earpiercing guns that Wal-Mart and way too many other ‘places that have NO business doing piercings’ uses are never sterilized. Any time the skin is violated by jabbing a hole through it, microscopic blood particles spatter all around. Yep….it gets on the ear piercing gun, so the next person to get pierced with this gun gets a little bit of everyone who was pierced with that gun. If you insist in having your child’s ears pierced, please do so at a shop that is Health Department inspected and specializes in body mods (i.e.: a tattoo and piercing shop). This way, you can at least be assured that your child’s safety is not at risk from blood-borne pathogens. The Journal of the American Medical Association did a study of ear piercing guns and found them to be a bit dangerous. Go ahead….look it up.
=) thanx peersur… I was just getting nervous that noone had thought so far… I do think the child should have the right to decide if they whant ear piercings. But when they do, make sure the person who is doing it knows what they are doing and has the right equipment! I dont have pierced ears (but nipples) and I would never let one of those nasty guns close to my own body, even less the body of a child!
I don’t think having a child’s ears pierced is “abuse.” Most babies and young children are going to cry when they have this done. Now, with that being said I think I would wait until my child made that decision to want his/her ears pierced.
Is this same lady someone who lives alone with 42 cats at home? GET A LIFE LADY AND MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS!
I understand where dorona is coming from regarding her comment. But for the record, I am 47, single, and live with 15 cats. I also have two facial piercings and 14 tattoos.
I think child abuse may be stretching it. And I got my ears pierced the same way…but after researching it…I don’t know if I want my child pierced with the gun. Think about it, that little wipe they use doesn’t cover every part of the gun…the earring is only mildly pointed with grooves on it. If the child doesn’t want it done then it should not be done.
I would never get my kids pierced at a store especially Wal Mart. If my kids want to get pierced then I’ll take them to a tattoo shop where it can be done right.
As for the woman I can understand. I work at Wal Mart and I have seen some things that are just disturbing. The way some of these kids are treated by their “parents” is uncalled for. I have seen a young mother of two hitting her 2 year old in the face,shaking him, I see young parents ignoring their kids when they should be paying attention to them,I have even seen “parents” let their young children go to the bathroom by themselves. But all I get from Managment is that there isn’t anything we can do. I find it sick that Wal Mart is too much worried about getting sued then the safty and well being of little kids.
Excuse me but in a world where abuse is far too common many folks just keep quiet because they don’t want to get involved. Personally, I think four is too young for ear piercing and that it is abusive just as I believe that non-medical circumcisition is abusive. Okay so you believe that there’s nothing wrong with either and the “nosy lady needs to get a life”. Where do you draw the line? I was in a WalMart behind a woman in line who hauled off and punched her kid in the face for misbehaving. I told her to stop, she told me to mind my own business so I called the police. No ear piercing isn’t the same as giving your kid a bloody nose but let’s be glad when people care enough to speak up.
i belive that every person is intitled to there own opinuine so she can say it is abuse but another women will say it is fine i have 3 children and they all have there ears pierced of there own choice
IF the child didn’t want it, then OF COURSE it’s abuse.
Forcing a mod onto somebody else’s body is gnikcuf sick.