Myth or Fact: Parents of the 70s and 80s allowed kids to roam free?

[Don Snow]

I’m born 93 and I grew up like this in the 2000S


No cellphones just a bike and my dreams


Also didn’t realize most of thecoli was so much older

 

[TEH]

If you were born after 1995 you wouldn’t know about that …

Life was just like the posters above descriptions …

 

[threattonature]

It was facts. I spent the early years growing up in KC and we'd walk blocks to go to the library or the candy store or even a few miles to walk over to my aunt's place. I do remember my mother starting to tighten that up as violence started becoming more common shortly before we moved away.

 

[FunkDoc1112]

Yes. I’m 38 (born in 86) and use to have freedom that kids now don’t have.

I trace A LOT of it back to families staying put for years in one place and everyone growing up knowing each other.

All the adults had the authority to “police” us if they saw us outside acting up even if your parent wasn’t around.

Yup, your parents' friends were just as much the law as your parents too. I'm an early 90s baby and I definitely remember having that kind of freedom too. I think Gen Z is when the helicopter parenting really started.

 

[AllHolosEve]

-We were outside, outside. We had a certain main Street in each direction we couldn't cross. Once it got dark we were limited to a block or two.

-Somewhere around 11 I didn't have a home curfew, if I got caught by police I was on my own. We were DownTown at the arcade until we had to be put out by law & would walk or bus home.

 

[Shadow King]

I was outside selling crack at 6

These new lil nikkas soft

Facts. I was off the porch at 5 years old which is why I'm cut from a different cloth than you sheltered nikkas....

Wait till you qualify for kindergarten to be a big stepper, brehs

 

[Mr. Negative]

yeah, me and my older sister talk about how as kids, if we wanted to walk a mile to a neighbor's house, walk in and eat dinner, we could. No issues. As long as we were back before the street lights came on. Same as any other kid where we grew up. Community was tight knit and everybody knew everybody,

Hell, they could be in the next town hanging out in the streets or in bars/clubs and nobody batted an eye, cause if they got into trouble then somebody would be calling my mom or grandparents. Even if somebody drove by in a car and saw them.


I've also talked at length about how my mom had no problem putting me on a greyhound bus or amtrak and sending me 600+ miles away to stay with relatives. It's where I got my wide and varied taste in music from. It would be me on a bus with a walkman that only picked up AM radio stations, staring at cornfields.

 

[85 East]

Fact. We just came and went. Dropped in for lunch, came home for dinner. My patents used to get pissed if I was in the house all day.

 

[MooseMouthMthafuga]

Too damn free.I'm a 90's kid.I'd hop on my bike and ride to the next city.Fukk the next block;the next CITY.Long as I got back before it was dark outside, my parents didn't give a damn.That's just the fun parts.On the flip side, you had more responsibilities.For instance, I had to clean the whole house, do laundry, prepare my own school clothes, babysit, and play part time cook.All by the time I was 9 yrs old.Before 9, to be honest.My mom taught me how to cut, clean, batter, and fry chicken by the time I was 6.I could make simple meals like spaghetti/hamburger helper by the time I was in 2nd grade.

And when I say clean the whole house, I mean clean the whole fukking house.Me and my sister would alternate weeks.We didn't go "Monday, I clean.Tuesday, you clean" nah..The whole week.Monday-Friday when it was your turn.Mom would clean on the weekends.When it was my week, I had to clean right when I got home from school.Kitchen, room, bathroom, living room, and even some yard work.Fukked up part about it, my parents were old school.They had some type of phobia about vacuum cleaners.They thought brooms were superior smh.They'd make you sweep the whole house.Sweeping carpet is a bytch.Dudes was wondering why I had Steph Curry range by the time I was in 5th grade.That's why.Now y'all can probably understand why I'd hop on my bike & escape to the next city.It was always too much upkeep/maintenance work to do at the house.I honored my portion of the duties, now I'm getting far away from you mthafkkaz.I have nieces & nephews who're 9, 10, 11 yrs old.I couldn't imagine them doing any of this shyt.We turn into nervous wrecks if they tried to walk 2 blocks up to the nearest convenience story by themselves.We'd probably need antipsychotics if we saw them sitting on the oven, in front of a pan of scalding hot grease, trying to fry some chicken---> insert :THROW IN THE DAMN TOWEL: smiley.

 

[Jean toomer]

I rode my bike or Took the train all over the 5 boroughs and my people didn’t even know I left the block. Just be home before it gets dark and don’t get arrested. Now, my kids take an uber to the mall 15 min away…

 

[Thurgood Thurston III]

My preteen years were mid-2000s and it was still kinda the same. It wasn't weird to NOT have a cell phone, yet.

The thing I don't miss is people just showing up to your crib without calling first.

 

[Rekkapryde]

16 at the strip club cause my older cousin was the bouncer

 

[Majestyx]

I live in cleveland and have fam in canton/akron

Grew up on East or west side?

And yes folks was outside early and often, especially in the summer

 

[987654321]

I see it in Uganda kids go anywhere

Kids as young as 5 walking to school by themselves

I'll leave my compound and see little kids going wherever no one cares but pedos know there is
Jungle justice

Dar es Salaam was wild. You would see crowds of little kids, 3-8, just wandering around or walking to church, school, or the store to buy their parents cigarettes and stuff

 

[Eastside Get The Money]

I mean I grew up in the 90s and I was outside

We basically had a bike rule. We could go as far as our bikes and legs could take us (10 miles or so) without any problems from the parents