R emember when it was "good to be a kid?" Remember the quintessential child- hoods of yesteryear, the "leave it to Beaver" images: Healthy and happy children living in nice, clean neighborhoods with white picket fences. The children (who were portrayed as being as white as the fences!) came from tightly knit, intact families. Mom was a full-time homemaker raising the children while father was away at the office. But, when father got home, he always "knew best," particularly about how to handle all those fussy family matters, such as sibling rivalry, child misbehavior, and the like. Indeed, when the children did misbehave, the sternest parental behavior we ever saw on the screen was one of those "I'm surprised at you, Beaver" lectures, which the children would listen to with respect and deference. And when things got a little rough at home, the children would turn to their friends: friends from the neighborhood, friends from school, friends were everywhere. And speaking of school, no problem there-at least not one that could not be resolved in a half-hour segment. And finally, there was the general state of the children themselves: a state of carefree, protected innocence.
It is now widely recognized that the rosy, leave-it-to-Beaver childhood images are not "reality." They probably never were. These images have long been replaced by other, rather appalling but nonetheless more realistic images and stories-images and stories that are prominently and frequently displayed in the media: Stories of sick children. Stories of abused children. Stories of children of divorce. Stories of children who are unduly influenced by peers. Children who have trouble with school. Stories of children with internal pressures and psychological burdens that continue to mount. After being bombarded with so many stories, it is little wonder that the illusion of the blissful and happy times of childhood has long been lost.