# It should be illegal for parent to kick their children out of their homes **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [May 22, 2018, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637 "2018-05-22T22:57:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Marcus\_Flavius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@Marcus\_Flavius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marcus_Flavius)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/1 "2018-05-22T22:57:40Z")
The other day I was reading about a 30 yo man being taken to the supreme court by his parents to have him evicted from their home (recent developments on this matter [here](1517 Chelsea Ave) ) This shouldn’t be legal. The way I see things, if you create a being, if you bring a person into this world, then you are responsible for that person’s well-being **for life,** not just up until some arbitrary age ie ‘18.’ A person should be able to live with their parents for as long as they wish, without paying a single dime towards room and board, or without even having to express a single shred of gratitude. Parents _owe_ this, and more, to their offspring. The only possible exception I would make for parents evicting their offspring from their home is if the offspring were psychotically violent. If I ever became a father (that’ll never happen), I would allow my child to live with me for as long as they wished, and only let them leave if they were absolutely sure that’s what they wanted. Any parent worth their salt would the same, imo. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/2 "2018-05-22T23:04:20Z")
I may not be worth my salt (but then again I’m not roman), but I think that, legally speaking, once a person becomes a legal adult they are legally an individual entity with their own rights and responsibilities. If I were legally mandated to maintain legal custody over an individual unto perpetuity, then I would also expected to maintain legal _control_ over them unto perpetuity, enforcing my own rules which they would be obligated by _the state_ to obey. In other words, they’re my slaves. On the other hand, if I am required to house them, but do _not_ maintain control over them, then I am being required by the state to carry out this job without pay or chance of escape. In other words, I’m their slave. There might be problems with enacting such a law, at least at the federal level. ---
**Author:** ![Marcus\_Flavius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@Marcus\_Flavius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marcus_Flavius)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/3 "2018-05-22T23:30:36Z")
Link in OP doesn’t work, [this](http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/05/22/couple-seeks-courts-help-to-evict-30-year-old-son-from-their-home.html)one does ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/4 "2018-05-22T23:34:43Z")
> [@Marcus\_Flavius](#): > > This shouldn’t be legal. The way I see things, if you create a being, if you bring a person into this world, then you are responsible for that person’s well-being **for life,** not just up until some arbitrary age ie ‘18.’ A person should be able to live with their parents for as long as they wish, without paying a single dime towards room and board, or without even having to express a single shred of gratitude. Parents _owe_ this, and more, to their offspring. > > The only possible exception I would make for parents evicting their offspring from their home is if the offspring were psychotically violent. No, that is just crazy talk. Good parents usually help their kids even into early adulthood but they shouldn’t have to. Most 18 year olds can get a job and a really crappy apartment if they need to just fine or they can join the military or lots of other things. You really want to give someone free room and board for life? What else is on the list? A car, clothes and an entertainment budget? That is how you get really dysfunctional adolescents that just happen to also be over 18 or 21. Room and board is a privilege once you are an adult and being able to take that away is one tool parents can use if their adult child is making the wrong choices in life. You last paragraph is ass backwards as well. Someone that has a true mental illness may be one of the ones that needs that type of care the most and the parents may be the only ones that can do it. You can’t just slap someone in a psychiatric facility for life very easily. It varies on a case by case basis but the parents should not be required to give adult kids anything unless you also propose to strip away the rest of the child’s rights. That is how you end up with basement dwellers that are 35 years old and have never even had a job or been on a date. I already told mine that, not because I don’t love them, but because I do and they are going to have to survive on their own. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/5 "2018-05-22T23:36:06Z")
> [@Marcus\_Flavius](#): > > This shouldn’t be legal. The way I see things, if you create a being, if you bring a person into this world, then you are responsible for that person’s well-being **for life,** not just up until some arbitrary age ie ‘18.’ A person should be able to live with their parents for as long as they wish, without paying a single dime towards room and board, or without even having to express a single shred of gratitude. Parents _owe_ this, and more, to their offspring. You’re not actually serious, are you? ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/6 "2018-05-22T23:47:10Z")
> [@Marcus\_Flavius](#): > > If I ever became a father (that’ll never happen), I would allow my child to live with me for as long as they wished, and only let them leave if they were absolutely sure that’s what they wanted. Any parent worth their salt would the same, imo. Spoken as a true non-parent. In many cases, my step-son’s included, the best thing in the world for his own future potential was to kick him into the street on his own at 18. If we hadn’t, he’d still be lurking in the basement playing video games instead of being a semi-productive member of society. ---
**Author:** ![Marcus\_Flavius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@Marcus\_Flavius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marcus_Flavius)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/7 "2018-05-22T23:48:41Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > No, that is just crazy talk. Good parents usually help their kids even into early adulthood but they shouldn’t have to. Why just up until early adulthood? If you are a parent, you have created a being, a being who never asked to be born I might add, who never asked to be brought into this world. > [@](#): > > Most 18 year olds can get a job and a really crappy apartment if they need to just fine or they can join the military or lots of other things. And they absolutely shouldn’t have to if they don’t want to. > [@](#): > > You really want to give someone free room and board for life? Yes. You brought this person into this world, without their consent. Now you care for them, and provide for them for as long as they wish. > [@](#): > > It varies on a case by case basis but the parents should not be required to give adult kids anything unless you also propose to strip away the rest of the child’s rights. The children should not have their rights stripped. Parents owe their children everything. But children don’t owe their parents anything. ---
**Author:** ![Marcus\_Flavius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@Marcus\_Flavius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marcus_Flavius)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/8 "2018-05-22T23:50:16Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > You’re not actually serious, are you? Serious as a heart attack. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/9 "2018-05-22T23:54:30Z")
I am of the opinion that it’s not good for a human being to go through their lives never learning to be self-sufficient. Letting freeloading brats stay forever is bad for them. I don’t think the state should _legally require_ bad child-rearing. Plus, if the state wants children to be considered children forever, they shouldn’t give them adult rights. Are you okay with children having no adult rights whatsoever for as long as they remain in their parents’ homes? ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/10 "2018-05-22T23:55:24Z")
Maybe you’re confusing “child” with “pet.” ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/11 "2018-05-22T23:55:33Z")
Oh, and what happens when the parents become ancient and want to move to a retirement home? “Can’t - you have to keep changing your kid’s diaper.” ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/12 "2018-05-22T23:56:22Z")
Can I ask whether you are a parent? Whether you have a great relationship with your own parents? And, do you live with them and do they support you? Just curious is all. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/13 "2018-05-22T23:56:26Z")
You might run into a little problem with the 13th amendment, but it would sure put a damper on population growth! ---
**Author:** ![Marcus\_Flavius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@Marcus\_Flavius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marcus_Flavius)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2018, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/14 "2018-05-22T23:58:25Z")
> [@Ulfreida](#): > > Can I ask whether you are a parent? Whether you have a great relationship with your own parents? And, do you live with them and do they support you? > > Just curious is all. No to all three. ---
**Author:** ![Marcus\_Flavius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@Marcus\_Flavius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marcus_Flavius)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2018, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/15 "2018-05-23T00:00:17Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > You might run into a little problem with the 13th amendment, but it would sure put a damper on population growth! I don’t see how making people take responsibility for what they’ve done is ‘slavery.’ And yes, people would probably think damn long and hard before bringing a person into this world if they knew they’d have to care of that person for the rest of their lives. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2018, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/16 "2018-05-23T00:01:10Z")
> [@Marcus\_Flavius](#): > > Why just up until early adulthood? If you are a parent, you have created a being, a being who never asked to be born I might add, who never asked to be brought into this world. > [@](#): > > You brought this person into this world, without their consent. You seem really focused on the “consent” part of this, which strikes me as a sort of silly place to focus, since of course people who don’t yet exist can’t consent to anything. But that’s ok! For one, it’s not as though existence is a horrid prison. It’s kinda fun most of the time. And for another, anyone who doesn’t want to continue on with it is perfectly capable of taking their leave of the rest of us. But, let’s say I agree with you, that I am obligated to provide for my children for as long as they wish. There’s a pretty major problem looming. I’m likely to predecease my children by at least a few decades. What happens to my 50ish year old child who’s never stood on his own two feet when I die? Almost certain misery and ruin. Most charitably, I would call your claim _short-sighted_. I would counter with the argument that I am obligated to do what is in my children’s best interest at every age. Which, for the vast majority of children, involves kicking them out on their ass whether they like it or not once they get to the point that they need to support themselves. Because while I happily change diapers, I ain’t gonna be around to wipe their asses forever. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2018, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/17 "2018-05-23T00:01:50Z")
> [@Marcus\_Flavius](#): > > I don’t see how making people take responsibility for what they’ve done is ‘slavery.’ And yes, people would probably think damn long and hard before bringing a person into this world if they knew they’d have to care of that person for the rest of their lives. I more got the impression that the kids would never reproduce, on account of being basement-dwelling man-children. ETA: Ooh - and if the child somehow does managed to reproduce, can the adults in the house throw the _grandchild_ out? It’s not like they consented to it! (And if they can, can they throw it out immediately? It’s their loser kid’s responsibility to keep the baby alive, not theirs, after all…) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2018, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/18 "2018-05-23T00:05:14Z")
…is this a God-And-Us-And-Tickets-To-Paradise thing? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2018, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/19 "2018-05-23T00:09:52Z")
> [@Marcus\_Flavius](#): > > I don’t see how making people take responsibility for what they’ve done is ‘slavery.’ Of course you don’t! ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2018, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637/20 "2018-05-23T00:10:07Z")
On one hand this is crazy talk. On the other hand there are several states that make people’s adult children legally responsible for the cost of their care and that’s even crazier - talk about a completely unasked for and unfair burden. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/it-should-be-illegal-for-parent-to-kick-their-children-out-of-their-homes/814637.md?page=2)