When it comes to systemic violation of rights, parents must know: the person standing in front of you is not always the full source of harm. The pers
When it comes to systemic violation of rights, parents must know: the person standing in front of you is not
always the full source of harm.
The person on the frontline may be the face of a restriction or violation of your rights. But behind them, hidden from view, is the engine—the system, organization, or authority that gives them power and protection.
1. The Face vs. the Engine
The Face: The school officer enforcing an unfair policy. The caseworker delivering a harmful decision. The guard or clerk who tells you “this is the rule.”
The Engine: The agency, corporation, or government that designed the policy, created the loophole, or benefits from the silence.
2. Why This Matters for Families
If we only hold the face accountable, the engine keeps running. The next face simply steps forward.
- A child with special needs being denied needs they have a right to.
A young survivor in court may be forced to call her alleged attacker “she/her,” but the justice system is the engine that enforces that rule.
A mother may lose her children after filing a complaint, but the agency is the engine punishing her for speaking up.
3. What Parents Can Teach Children
Look deeper: Always ask, “Who is making the rules?”
Accountability must go wide: The person in front of you and the system behind them are both responsible.
Justice requires both: Change happens only when the face and the engine are held to account.
4. Advocacy at Home
Real courage isn’t just calling out the person in front of you—it’s also naming the system behind them. Confronting those systems.
Rules, policies, and silence can be just as harmful as direct actions.
Remind yourself that no one works alone—faces and engines are always connected. Investigate.
Final Word
The person on the frontline may deliver the harm, but the engine behind them keeps the harm in motion. To end cycles of violation, violence and injustice, know that accountability is two-fold: the visible face and the hidden engine must both be challenged.