Paddle (spanking)
In addition to the device of the same name for paddling , the English term paddle also describes a punishment instrument, mostly made of wood, which is mainly used in the USA at schools and in the family for corporal punishment on the buttocks ( spanking ).
Condition and use
The instrument consists of a wooden board with a handle end; The hardest possible wood is used to make paddles . In the face, which is smoothly rounded and painted on high-quality paddles, some (approx. 5 to 20) smaller holes are drilled to reduce air resistance , which makes the punishment much more painful. Punishment with a paddle is called paddling in English . In schools that use corporal punishment, this is almost always carried out with a (wooden) paddle; For older students, corporal punishment is mostly the last resort. But older students are still affected to a large extent by paddling; Especially in the southern states of the USA, the slow decline in school spankings over the past twenty years is still barely noticeable.
In schools today, paddling is usually done as a punishment for misconduct of different nature on the clothed buttocks of the pupil, either in front of classmates in the classroom or in the less public sphere of the directorate, but also there regularly in front of other witnesses . On average, the pupils receive two to five (in private schools up to eight or for repeat offenses up to twelve) hits with the paddle. In addition, in schools and sports clubs, individual and collective punishments of young athletes for “lack of punctuality”, “lack of commitment”, “lack of team spirit” or the like coram publico by the sports teacher or coach occur very often , whereby the buttocks are usually hardly protected by clothing and the young people also often get a higher number of paddle strokes than in other school contexts. Naked punishments after showering or only wearing the jockstrap required for physical education in US schools are not uncommon for boys , although such punishments, often harsh, due to a misunderstood masculinity and team spirit, almost always go undetected or, despite their sexualized component, the parental ones Find approval and tacit administrative toleration. The paddling by coaches , which is widely accepted in the USA, forms a gray area in which sadistic attacks can also occur unnoticed . In the past, paddles made of heavy leather were used more often in schools (with or without perforations); today their use has shifted more to education homes and camps. At home in the USA, mothers tend to use wooden spoons and hairbrushes , while fathers often use paddles as well as belts for punishment. In rural areas there is a tradition that boys have to make the paddles for their punishment.
Manufacture and distribution
In the past, paddles were mostly made by yourself, as this did not require great carpentry skills. There are now a large number of US companies that manufacture paddles commercially and successfully sell them in the receptive mass market. They are also given away by individual small craft businesses owned by Christians who are faithful to the Bible . There is also a not insignificant market for souvenir and fun paddles with humorous inscriptions such as B. Bald man's hairbrush ( hairbrush for bald people ) or Attitude Adjuster ( behavior adjusters - which are also used by parents with this intention and not "for fun").
It is possible that the paddle originated from the laundry rod , which used to be found in practically every household as a mallet for washing laundry.
Endorsement and Background, Sociological Aspects
While corporal punishment for children is rejected by the majority of the population in most European countries or is even prohibited by law, there are many proponents of these punitive measures in the USA. Evangelical Christians, in particular, propagate, protect and practice what is seen by many as contradicting their religion, corporal punishment even with very young children and with adolescents up to an advanced age . Paddling is currently legal in state schools in the following 20 American states : Alabama , Arizona , Arkansas , Colorado , Florida , Georgia , Idaho , Indiana , Kansas , Kentucky , Louisiana , Mississippi , Missouri , New Mexico , North Carolina , Oklahoma , South Carolina , Tennessee , Texas, and Wyoming (as of July 2009). According to an estimate by the American Federal Department of Education, there were a total of around 458,000 paddlings at all US state schools in the school year 1996/97, which corresponds to around 1% of the students. The percentage of paddling there are in Arkansas and Mississippi (over 10% of the students there receive at least one paddling in the school year) and in the other southern states of the USA or in the Bible Belt . Male-youthful black students are punished disproportionately often with the paddle, both individually and collectively; But these young people also experience significantly more physical punishment than their white counterparts at home, just like young people belonging to other population minorities (e.g. Hispanics ). In all states except New Jersey and Iowa, corporal punishment is not allowed in state, but in all private schools and is usually practiced there as paddling, less often as strapping. In the domestic area, corporal punishments in the USA are predominantly not carried out with a paddle, but with a belt or strap (belting or strapping) .
Other and use in BDSM
Furthermore, paddlings still play an important role in the notorious admission ceremonies of fraternities ( American student associations ) and in the local BDSM area. They have only been known in Europe recently. Despite their great popularity in the US, paddles never caught on here. (In Europe, at the time when corporal punishment was still widespread, the more painful cane was preferred, or especially in Scotland and Ireland the also very painful Tawse , which is usually on the hands in schools, but also - and significantly - with boys more painful than on the hands - on the buttocks. In schools in Germany, blows to the fingers with a stick or ruler (so-called " paws ") were the most common corporal punishment before this was also abolished.)
Individual evidence
- ↑ "During the 2006-07 school year, corporal punishment was used 5,369 times in the 28,000-student district (DeSoto County)"
- ↑ “States in the US that Permit Pupil-Beating” , project “no spank”, accessed August 22, 2008