A group of nearly 30 dancers, dressed in bridal gowns with chained wrists, suddenly broke into dance outside the student center at Rutgers University.
The flash mob – which was choreographed and performed by the talented sisters of Omega Phi Alpha National Service Sorority – was filmed by NowThis.
The Chain-In Flash Mob was made possible by generous support from Lush Charity Pot.
Child Marriage in America
Marriage before 18 is legal in all 50 U.S. states. Laws in 22 states do not specify any minimum marriage age.
Child marriage often is forced marriage, because children face overwhelming legal and practical barriers if they try to leave home, enter a domestic violence shelter, retain an attorney or bring a legal action such as a divorce before they turn 18. Further, child marriage destroys girls’ health, education and economic opportunities and significantly increases their risk of being beaten by their spouse.
We lead a growing national movement to end child marriage in America by passing simple, commonsense legislation in all 50 states and at the federal level.
Some Progress
We’ve made some progress in our national movement to end child marriage. Strong legislation we helped to write to end all marriage before 18 passed this month in the New Jersey senate and is pending in the assembly. Another bill passed last week in the Delaware house and heads now to the senate.
But legislators in other states across the U.S. have rejected or watered down the legislation. Many have insisted a teenage girl who gets pregnant has no choice but to marry, even if she was raped.
The Chain-In
That’s why we invented the Chain-In, at which we gather in bridal gowns and veils, with our wrists chained and mouths taped, to show legislators what life looks like for a girl who is forced to marry. And that’s why now invented the Chain-In Flash Mob.