April was barely 15 when she was married in Missouri to a 22-year-old man who raped her that night and continued to rape her for over a year.
“It was a hostage situation, not a marriage,” April said. “But I am no longer afraid nor ashamed to speak about it publicly, as it is not my shame, but his.”
It is all our shame. Child marriage remains legal in most of the U.S. — and thousands of minors marry here every year, our research found. Most, like April, are girls wed to adult men, typically before the girls are old enough to enter a domestic violence shelter or file for divorce.
Together we can end this human rights abuse. We eliminated child marriage in six U.S. states over the last three years. Only 44 states to go.
WE NEED YOUR HELP! Let’s raise $50k in the last 50 days of 2021, to continue leading the national movement to end child marriage in all 50 states.
“Unchained At Last is the radical wake-up call to a country in denial,” April said, “and they won’t stop until child marriage is outlawed in every state.” (Read April’s full story here.)
Every donation you make before the end of the year will double in value, thanks to a dollar-for-dollar match from a generous donor.
