Free Nobody's Family is Going to Change by Louise Fitzhugh

“We all heard Harrison Carter on television and we’ve joined up.” She looked proud and stalwart.
    â€œTerrific! My name’s Cathy. This is Jim.” She pointed to the sign holder, who smiled. “This is Alice, Nancy, Lisa, and Pippy. We’re glad you’re here. We’re the smallest groupin the whole thing. I don’t know why. It seems like there are thousands of kids on East End. I don’t know what’s the matter with them. Maybe they didn’t see the show, or maybe nobody has contacted them.”
    â€œHas anyone gone around the apartment houses?” asked Saunders. Goldin’s eyes gleamed with gladness that her leader had finally come up with something intelligent.
    â€œWe have to be careful. You see, if it gets out that there is such a thing as the Children’s Army, adults wouldn’t go for the whole idea. In fact, we think they’d hate it. They would put a stop to it immediately. So we can’t just approach everyone, somebody might be a squealer.”
    Emma nodded. Imagine anyone approaching Willie. He’d dance right in and tell his mother, who would tell his father, who would call the police.
    â€œOrder,” said a voice. Emma looked up and saw that a pile of crates had been made into a podium. Harrison Carter was sitting on the top crate banging two pieces of wood together. I wonder where you buy gavels, thought Emma. It would be terrific to get a gavel.
    â€œWe don’t have much time, as you know, because we cannot all disappear for a long time without people noticing. The first thing today is a minute of silence in memory of two innocent victims, Clifford Glover and Claude Reese, shot down in the streets by policemen when they were only ten and fourteen.”
    They all bowed their heads. There was silence in that there was no talking—a little rustling, but no talking.During the minute, Emma kept her eyes closed. She bit her lip in mounting excitement. They’re really doing it! Maybe we can really do something! He’s hitting right where he should, right at the stupidity of adults, right at the fact that children have no rights at all, and not only that, can lose their lives because of stupid adults!
    â€œWe will never forget,” said Harrison Carter. They all looked up.
    â€œToday,” said Harrison, “we are sending out three committees to talk to parents. One will discuss Helen Mason, six times admitted to six different hospitals for fractures of the arms, broken legs, bruises of the abdomen, and a smashed hand. Helen Mason is a battered child. Her parents have been getting away with this. She is six years old. A committee will approach the parents this week to inform them that the police will be notified if Helen has one more bruise. There will be ten in this committee. It will be larger than most committees because of the known violence of the father. If the parents do not respond in a satisfactory way, the committee will go to the police immediately. They will contact Martin Feininger, the father of one of our members, and a fine lawyer, who has prosecuted many parents of battered children. This violence will be stopped.
    â€œThe next committee will go to the home of Charles Tyson. Charles Tyson is being driven crazy by his mother. His father is dead. His mother will not let him out of the house except to go to school and come back. He has no freedom. He is thirteen years old and he is not even allowedto close the door to his room. The committee will inform Mrs. Tyson that an appointment has been made for her to see a psychiatrist about this situation. If she does not agree to go voluntarily, three committee members will escort her personally to the doctor’s office. If she says she will call the police, the committee will say go ahead. If she does call the police, the committee will say they are friends of Charles Tyson’s and they will never, under any circumstances, divulge the fact of the