"People who believe in free-range kids believe in kids and each other and humanity," Skenazy says. "We get into scrapes, and we get out of them." Case in point, she asks, "Which of your neighbors do you think will poison your children's Halloween candy for kicks?" She feels our constant fear is a colossal ingratitude and unawareness of these lucky times in which we live. "The 'stranger danger' obsession of the last 30 years has corroded a lot of what I love about America: people being open, walking outside and meeting your neighbors, doing business with a handshake, sending your kids outside to play. If you think everyone is a potential threat, you've closed off a lot of your life and a lot of your kids' lives."
RESOURCES
Lenore Skenazy Freerangekids.com
Hudson Valley Free Range Kids & Parents Meetup.com/hvkids
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
Free-Range Children Mid-Hudson Valley Facebook.com