Dear Gov. Geringer,I was stunned to learn that your state legislature has passed a bill making it expressly legal for parents to leave bruises on their child's body in the name of "discipline," and that this bill now awaits your signature.
I respectfully urge you to veto this bill forthwith. It sends the worst possible message at a time when physical child abuse is still a serious problem resulting in the deaths of hundreds of children nationwide each year.
I teach Human Anatomy & Physiology at the college level, and for years have always taught my students that bruises were injuries. A bruise results from the rupture of capillaries and the coagulation of internally hemorrhaged blood in the victim's interstitial spaces. Physical injuries of any kind have no place in a parent's child discipline repertoir. And laws which explicitly extend to parents the legal "right" to inflict injuries on their children have no place in the statutes of Wyoming or any other state.
Yours sincerely,
Christopher Dugan, M.A.