Monuments for stillborn children and disenfranchised grief in the Netherlands Recognition, protest and solace

Abstract

In the Netherlands, until the years mid eighty of the previous century, in accordance with the so called 'breaking bonds' paradigm at the time, children who had died around birth, were immediately separated from the parents. There and above, Roman Catholic rules dictated that children who had not been baptized before they died, would be buried anonymously in hideaway, and in the unconsecrated grounds of the graveyard. This article discusses these parents and their stillborn children. Their loss and grief remained for a long time unacknowledged, resulting in feelings of disenfranchised grief. These feelings increased as a result of the shift of paradigm into continuing bonds with a deceased, developing into the nowadays empathic and intimate contact between parents and stillborn children.With the emergence as of the year 2000 of monuments to stillborn children (in the Netherlands around 160 in total),monuments have become a strategy to cope with feelings of disenfranchised grief.This article concludes that parents of stillborn children benefit from an honourable place to commemorate and pay respect to their long-time publicly neglected child.

Ebeler İçin Yenidoğan ve Çocuk Sağlığı II

“…Daha sonraları ölü doğan çocuklara yönelik anıt mezarların yapılması ile ebeveynlerin ölü doğmuş bebekleri ile aralarında empatik ve yakın temas kurulmasına, ölen bebeklerini anma ritüellerini uygulayabilmesine imkanı sağladı. Bu çeşit uygulamaların desteklenmesi ebeveynlerin kayıp ve keder duygularıyla başa çıkmaları için önemli bir araç olmaktadır (Faro, 2021).…”

Surun paikka

“…Kallio-Seppä ym. 2020;Faro 2014Faro , 2020. Fyysisten paikkojen saamien merkitysten lisäksi analysoimme suomalaisessa surututkimuksessa vähän huomiota saanutta surun kokemuksellisuutta kehollisuuden näkökulmasta sekä paikoissa ilmenevää suruun liittyvää dialogia menetetyn läheisen kanssa.…”