The Historical Development of Children's Right to Protection from Harm in Canada
Lori Chambers, Professor, Women's Studies, Lakehead University
Published April 19,
On January 26, 2018, during the Technologies of Justice Conference hosted at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Lori Chambers discussed the state's role in the lives of children and families in relation to the historical development of children's right to protection from harm in Canada.
Chambers discussed a current case of failure in children’s protection from harm in terms of child welfare and child custody decisions. She pointed to red flags of potential lethality being ignored, and the role of controlling behaviour, intimidation and isolation in filicide and abuse.
She illustrated the need to disclose and monitor the occurrence of acts of intimidation and control in custody cases, noting there can be a failure to testify on cases of marital abuse in situations involving coercive control. She showed the correlation and likely chance of there being marital abuse in situations involving coercive control. She presented a case study in which there was evidence of holding the children hostage in threats of abduction, refusal to comply with Children’s Aid, and various other signs of coercive control. She defined the lack of care and involvement of the judges and courts in personal protection cases and cases of coercive control, as well as the willing ignorance of the courts in such cases. She highlighted the need for a recognition of coercive control in the court system, and the need for protection in cases such as the one in her study, to prevent the future abuse or death of children in the child welfare system.
