Psychiatric Drugging of Children and Youth as a Form of Child Abuse: Not a Radical Proposition

Although affirming that the psychiatric drugging of children constitutes both adultism (oppression based on treating adult behavior as normative) and sanism (oppression based on prioritizing what are seen as “normal” states of mind), and noting the role of pharmaceutical profit in what is happening, this article argues that in the strictest sense of the term the psychiatric drugging of children is a form of child abuse. It attempts to demonstrate not only that is this a form of child abuse but also that such a claim itself, as radical as it seems, follows from a combination of drug research and conventional understandings of abuse. The article further examines inaccurate claims about psychiatric drugs and the damage which they actually do. It proceeds to demonstrate that what is happening with respect to children constitutes child abuse as conventionally defined. Particularly focal is the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Action recommendations made in accordance with the findings include consciousness-raising and the launching of law suits at all levels.