How a UNICEF Photo Makes the West’s Heart Ache

This photo of 11-year old child bride sit­ting next to her 40-year old fiance cap­tures a small, every­day moment that wouldn’t sur­prise any­one in the Tal­iban. But to West­ern eyes it is quite a dif­fer­ent mat­ter. Dutch writer Leon de Win­ter: Our eyes behold an abom­i­na­tion. Our eyes have learned to see the world from the per­spec­tive of a slowly acquired sense for human­ity. And although more and more voices tell us that we — the for­mer colo­nial­ists and impe­ri­al­ists — have lost the right to judge other cul­tures, we know just as well as this girl that this mar­riage is wrong.