Protection for ALL Animals
Patrick Wardell
Visionary Keto Pet Foods
“Mamma has been in the habit of whipping and beating me almost every day.”
Mary Ellen McCormack was just 10 years old when she uttered those words in court. Her testimony is sadly familiar today.
But this quote is from 1874 - a time when no child abuse laws existed in the United States.
So how did Mary Ellen end up in court? And how did animal cruelty laws help establish child protection measures in America?
Read on to learn the full story...
Mary’s Story
Mary Ellen was raised by her adoptive parents in Hells Kitchen, Manhattan – then a gang-ridden neighborhood awash in violence. But the horrors of Hell’s Kitchen were nothing compared to the daily verbal and physical abuse that Mary suffered at home.
In an era where no laws existed to protect children from abuse, Mary and so many others were helpless. This all changed when Mary’s plight captured the attention of Henry Bergh, Founder of the American Society for the Protection of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA).
Hope for All Children
Bergh viewed Mary as a vulnerable member of the animal kingdom, needing vital protection of the state. He recruited a prominent lawyer who took Mary’s case all the way to the New York State Supreme Court. There, her case forever changed the protections afforded to children in America.
Mary’s was the VERY FIRST recorded case of child abuse in the U.S. Her story ignited a movement and led to the formation of child protection groups in America. These groups fought to enact child protective laws in America, and continue to carry on Mary's legacy today.
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