Girl Runs Away To Avoid Arranged Marriage

From Reuters: California girl fled to escape arranged marriage:

(Reuters) - A 13-year-old Southern California girl who ran away from home to escape an arranged marriage in Pakistan has been taken into protective custody by child welfare authorities, police said on Thursday.

Jessie Marie Bender, who vanished from her home in the early morning hours of February 22, was found on Wednesday at a motel in a nearby community, where she had been hiding with the help of an uncle, San Bernardino County Sheriff's spokeswoman Roxanne Walker said.

After an investigation turned up no evidence that Jessie had been kidnapped, Walker said, detectives discovered that an uncle had taken her to a motel in nearby Apple Valley out of fear that she would be taken to Pakistan for an arranged marriage.

Walker said Jessie and her mother were American but that the girl's stepfather was a Pakistani native. It was not immediately clear if the girl's mother and stepfather are married.

For one, it's pretty incredible that something like this could happen in America, for all they boast about personal freedom. For another, I applaud her bravery in running away from and risking everything she knows to stand up for her own rights. Apparently this 13-year-old girl has more balls than certain people.

This isn't the first incidence of American families sending girls to far-off lands like Pakistan to be married off, with or without their consent. I'm glad that the real situation has come to light, and perhaps this will raise more awareness on the issue globally. I sincerely hope things turn out for the best for her.