Preventing Child Marriage

Kathy Selvaggio is Senior Policy Advocate for the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW).

The media images and descriptions of young girls being wed to much older men in places such as Afghanistan, India and Ethiopia have captured the public mind in recent months. These reports tell the story of young girls being sold off, often for a modest bride price, to a life of poverty, social isolation, early and frequent childbearing -- even domestic violence and early death due to higher risks of maternal mortality or HIV/AIDS. The New York Times, National Public Radio, Wall Street Journal, Glamour magazine, and mainstream America get the urgency of eradicating child marriage. But most U.S. policymakers are not reacting. Why?