When I was growing up, a boy who lived in my working class suburban neighborhood aspired to be "either a cop, or a junkie." He made this declaration on a crisp fall day when we were waiting for the school bus, and I remember wondering if he even knew what a junkie was, because so far as I knew, it was the exact opposite of a cop. In theory anyway. And also, not exactly a job.
On Monday, the United States Supreme Court heard the arguments on whether it is a violation of the Eighth Amendment (cruel & unusual punishment) to sentence non-homicide juvenile offenders to life in prison without parole.
This is one of those things that is uniquely American... in a bad way. When did we decide it was okay to lock kids up and throw away the key? We can focus on the vulgar criminality - a thirteen year old boy, for example, who raped a seventy-two year old woman - or we can stop and wonder how that child became a monster. He didn't get there by himself. What punishment would suit his parents? Teachers? Social workers? Clergy?
A long time ago, Hillary reminded us that it takes a village to raise a child, and when that child fails, it is a reflection of our deficiency.
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