Watch ‘Paddington 2’ to Teach Your Kids About Prison Abolition. Seriously.
Whether intentional or not, the adorable movie is an introduction to a big social issue.
Paddington 2 is one of my favorite movies of all time. I went to see it in theaters a couple of years ago simply because my son wanted to see it. I expected to take a 90-minute nap as I do for a lot of kids’ movies. But Paddington 2 was different. The movie was so damn positive and warm. It’s just a bear and a family and a community that loves him. It’s rare to feel that fulfilled in a movie theater. Parents, watch it with your kids. You’ll all feel better about life.
But there’s an added benefit. If you dig deeper, you can use the movie to teach your kids about one of the most important issues facing society today: the criminal justice system. I know this sounds like a stretch, but hear me out.
Paddington 2’s second act revolves around the titular bear being framed for a burglary. As a result, he ends up in jail. What follows is a story about how prisons don’t actually provide any rehabilitation and how treating people with humanity is transformative and rehabilitating.
Here are three simple things Paddington does when he gets to jail:
- He accidentally put a red sock in…
