These parents don’t believe that children have rights, so what they are doing isn’t abuse in their mind. My mother once told me in a fit of rage that as long as I lived in her home I wasn’t a human being and had no rights as one beyond what she decided I could have. They believe they should have absolute control over their children, because of course you should have absolute control over your property. I respect my cats boundaries more than these people do their childrens.

In a slightly related topic, check out homeschools invisible children if you want to be horrified. It’s a project by the Coalition for Responsible Home Education and is only a small fraction of what happens at home. This needs to be spoken about more:

www.hsinvisiblechildren.org