A YouTube star set up a social experiment in New York City to raise awareness about child marriages that happen all over the world. Keep reading for the full story!
Most Americans think of child marriage as something that only happens to kids in other countries, but nobody could ever imagine it going on here.
What many people don’t realize is that children as young as 12 actually can marry a much older partner in a few states.
To call attention to the sick reality of child marriage, YouTube star Coby Persin set up a social experiment in New York City.
In the shocking video, Persin sets the scene in Times Square for a 65-year-old man and his 12-year-old bride.
Donning a white dress and a veil, the child bride stares vacantly at the ground as she poses for wedding photos with her much older groom.
At first, the people witnessing the pair’s wedding scene simply shoot the man looks of confusion or disgust.
But it doesn’t take long before the passersby begin to speak up for the little girl, even going as far as demanding to know where her parents are.
“Where is your mom?” one woman asks the scared girl.
When the woman tells the man, “She’s young,” the older man replies: “She’s young, yeah, but the parents, they give me permission.”
Once the bystanders realize what they’re actually seeing, tons of concerned adults jump in to help the girl.
“This is bull****, this isn’t right” one person yells, while another tells the wrinkled groom: “‘you’re a f***ing sick pervert.”
Fortunately, this wedding wasn’t real, but child marriages do happen every single day in countries all over the world.
“New Yorker’s didn’t stand for a child getting married to an older man, and neither should anywhere else in the world be ok with it!” Persin captioned the video.
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