I am old enough to remember the world before it went mad. I read about a child–a baby, really, six–suspended from school for sexual harassment after he kissed a little girl in his class on the hand. Yes, he had apparently given her attention before, and some indications are it was unwanted attention, and correction of behavior may well have been warranted, but SEXUAL HARASSMENT at six?
The school has apparently removed that specific language from his record after an outcry that swept almost from shore to shore. Thank God we are still out-crying against something. Full Op-Ed Piece
Awesome – thank you for sharing.
With regard to the last two paragraphs and iconic image: had this happened today the nurse would make the talk show rounds, crying about how she was publicly violated and must forever bear the deep emotional scars from the event. She would speak before congress about the need for Nurse’s Law, requiring mandatory sentences for spontaneous kisses in Times Square, no matter how extenuating or jubilant the circumstances.
The sailor would have received a Dishonorable Discharge, convicted retroactively of sexual assault and be required to register as a sex offender. Bye bye GI Bill funds, too.
As part of a settlement, Life magazine would pay her an undisclosed sum of money – rumored to be in the millions – and Alfred Eisenstaedt would be relegated to taking family portraits at Sears for the remainder of his career.