ignoring forced marriage doesn't make it go away

Here's a thought - perhaps we don't actually want people who support forced marriage to feel comfortable about it:

Schools in areas feared to have high rates of forced marriage are refusing to display posters on the issue because they are too hard-hitting, according to a government report.

Headteachers are unwilling to put up the posters for fear that they might offend some parents. [...] “In Birmingham, the poster had not been displayed as schools felt that the graphics are ‘too hard-hitting’.

“Some schools in Leeds are displaying the posters but others are concerned that they may offend some of their parents,” the paper said.

Well, it's supposed to be hard-hitting campaign. That's the point.

I have some sympathy for the confusion that arises concerning forced marriage and arranged marriage in some quarters of the media, but I can't imagine the communities involved have any difficulty telling the two apart. And those who can't need to learn the difference right now.

Fortunately, schools are making use of postcards and other material to get the message across, and I'm conscious that the story may have suffered from headline inflation syndrome. However, tip-toeing around this particular issue would seem likely to re-inforce the existing culture of silence that makes forced marriage possible. Yes, it's an uncomfortable issue but turning a blind eye doesn't make it go away. It makes you culpable.

To act on the fear that some parents will be offended is also fairly patronising, given that the vast majority of parents will recognise and support the campaign for what it is. The merit of the campaign far outweighs the possiblity of perceived offence.

Yes, schools need to work in co-operation with their communities, but I think we can easily put this issue on the list of things where we - as a wider community - are fine that a tiny minority of people will be incidentally offended. The alternative - keeping quiet in the specific regions where we suspect forced marriage is a problem - is simply immoral.

Oh, and the tiny, tiny number of people who actively support forced marriage are free to go fuck themselves.