Breathe
By Jimena de Gortari
I flew a few days ago with a mother and her 18 month old baby girl, the baby was screaming uncomfortably. The flight was early and she was tired. My first reaction was to snort thinking about the flight ahead, I took a deep breath while the mother tried to do everything to calm her down. I looked for her gaze and gestured to the baby who was looking at me curiously. Once she calmed down, I started to talk to her mother, I tried to reassure her with "I was there, I know how it feels, it's normal". The baby slept through the entire flight. The anecdote comes from a debate on Twitter where people were discussing whether it was appropriate to take younger children to a museum. I wonder if, in a city, should there be public spaces that restrict access to minors? Can children's voices, screams and emotions be considered noise?
Planning for public spaces or public use with access restrictions for some people is contrary to the ideas that should prevail in its design, one that is intended for the entire population, particularly the most vulnerable. The design of the city should be designed for everyone and, in particular, should incorporate the needs of children, who I believe are the ones who soften them. Their voices, cries and laughter remind us of our human being . Recently I was told about a city without children in which their voices were recreated in public transport: announcing the arrival or departure or alerting about the closing of doors; it is a necessity of a living city. There are not and should not be "child-free zones" in a city, and yet cities do not offer them the environment, facilities, housing and services that children need to grow up safe, free and healthy. Let us remember that children also have rights (Convention on the Rights of the Child) and that cities designed with children in mind incorporate a perspective into the analysis of how, where and why. A child-centered city promotes healthy behaviors, is safe and inclusive, and fosters the development of life skills.
