Paddle and Soap
Background
MOTAL has two artifacts that remind us of the history of corporal punishment in California. A brief reminder about the meaning of the word corporal: It means physical or bodily, and can include harm done to any part of the body.
Both MOTAL artifacts are props that travel with the exhibition A Class Action: The Grassroots Struggle for School Desegregation in California.
MOTAL has two artifacts that remind us of the history of corporal punishment in California. A brief reminder about the meaning of the word corporal: It means physical or bodily, and can include harm done to any part of the body.
Both MOTAL artifacts are props that travel with the exhibition A Class Action: The Grassroots Struggle for School Desegregation in California.
History
The first is a paddle that was made to represent the kinds of spankings that went on in the 1940s. It was said that paddles with holes in them could provide a harder whack on the bottoms of misbehaving students. Paddling was usually administered by the principal or a person in charge at the school, and although the reasons for paddling were varied, the victims were more often boys than girls. MOTAL’s home state is California, where public school paddling was not outlawed in the mid-1980s. However, despite the recommendations of the American Psychological Association and other agencies concerned with the safety and welfare of children, corporal punishment is still permitted in nineteen U.S. states. See the link to the National Institutes of Health article that tells more.
The first is a paddle that was made to represent the kinds of spankings that went on in the 1940s. It was said that paddles with holes in them could provide a harder whack on the bottoms of misbehaving students. Paddling was usually administered by the principal or a person in charge at the school, and although the reasons for paddling were varied, the victims were more often boys than girls. MOTAL’s home state is California, where public school paddling was not outlawed in the mid-1980s. However, despite the recommendations of the American Psychological Association and other agencies concerned with the safety and welfare of children, corporal punishment is still permitted in nineteen U.S. states. See the link to the National Institutes of Health article that tells more.
Donor
Donated by a plaintiff descendant of the landmark lawsuit, Mendez et al. v. Westminster School District et al.
Donated by a plaintiff descendant of the landmark lawsuit, Mendez et al. v. Westminster School District et al.
History
The second MOTAL artifact is a bar of Ivory soap from the 1940s. It travels with a galvanized metal water pail to represent the pails and soap that were used in the segregated “Mexican Schools” of the era for students to wash their hands when the teacher called them out for having dirty hands. It was also used as a punishment for students who were caught speaking Spanish at school. The teacher would make a dose of soapy water to wash out the mouth of the misbehaving student. The practice ended in the mid-20th century. Childhood experts became aware of the potential toxic effects of soap ingestion and affirmed that “washing your mouth out with soap” is abusive. Refer to the Wikipedia link for further information.P
Donor
Paid by MOTAL; a purchase for ACA
Learn More!
Corporal Punishment in U.S. Public Schools: Prevalence, Disparities in Use, and Status in State and Federal Policy https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5766273/
Washing out the mouth with soap – Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washing_out_the_mouth_with_soap
The second MOTAL artifact is a bar of Ivory soap from the 1940s. It travels with a galvanized metal water pail to represent the pails and soap that were used in the segregated “Mexican Schools” of the era for students to wash their hands when the teacher called them out for having dirty hands. It was also used as a punishment for students who were caught speaking Spanish at school. The teacher would make a dose of soapy water to wash out the mouth of the misbehaving student. The practice ended in the mid-20th century. Childhood experts became aware of the potential toxic effects of soap ingestion and affirmed that “washing your mouth out with soap” is abusive. Refer to the Wikipedia link for further information.P
Donor
Paid by MOTAL; a purchase for ACA
Learn More!
Corporal Punishment in U.S. Public Schools: Prevalence, Disparities in Use, and Status in State and Federal Policy https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5766273/
Washing out the mouth with soap – Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washing_out_the_mouth_with_soap