April 29, 2015
By Robert Franklin, Esq, Member, National Board of Directors, National Parents Organization
Last week, Parental Alienation Awareness Day was observed and NPO’s Pennsylvania affiliate convened parents from across the state on the steps of the state capitol in Harrisburg to help raise consciousness of the problem. NPO’s Pennsylvania leader Stephen Meehan is to be congratulated for organizing the rally that was widely reported by state and local news media. FOX43 TV in Harrisburg reported on the rally here and NewsRadio 1020 KDKA, the CBS radio affiliate in Pittsburgh interviewed Meehan.
Here’s Meehan’s statement on the rally and upcoming activities of NPO in the Keystone State:
Parents from PA joined the National Parents Org Committee members on the steps of the Pennsylvania Capitol, April 25th, to raise awareness for Parental Alienation. Surrounded by signs, and banners, empty shoes from children on the steps, they shared their similar stories, both Fathers and Mothers. Fox News interviewed Chairman of the PA Affiliate, Stephen Meehan, and provided local news coverage on Sunday.
PA NPO plans to show the Movie "Divorce Corps" in May/June during a Legislative Session day, and begin soliciting sponsors for bills being drafted to address equality and Due Process problems.
Parental alienation – the act of teaching a child to hate and fear one of its parents – is widely regarded in the mental health community as child abuse. As Dr. William Bernet’s compendium of the state of the science on parental alienation makes clear, psychologists and social workers are increasingly coming to understand both the fact of parental alienation and its many, long-lasting detriments to children. Bernet collected social science from over 30 countries and his book, with a bibliography of some 700 scholarly references, puts to rest previous claims that parental alienation was a figment of the imagination of “fathers’ rights” advocates.
Those who truly promote the best interests of children oppose parental alienation. Thanks to Stephen Meehan and NPO Pennsylvania for helping that vital cause.