SECTION 1. TITLE This act shall be known and may be cited as the “South Carolina Family Preservation & Integrity Act.” SECTION 2. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT (A) The General Assembly finds that: The right of parents to the care, custody, and companionship of their children is a fundamental liberty interest protected by the United States Constitution and the Constitution of the State of South Carolina. Decades of court practices have resulted in inconsistent application of

Every time a meme calls out “mothers” or “fathers” in parental alienation, the comment section fills with the same chorus: “It happens to moms too!” or “It happens to dads too!” Yes, it does. Alienation isn’t owned by one gender. But here’s the thing: sometimes we need gender-specific language to expose the hypocrisy and patterns that are actually happening in courtrooms. In practice, the system isn’t neutral. Courts are far more likely to hand custody to mothers, even when a

When “family” court “professionals” defend cutting a child off from a parent, they almost always claim it’s for “protection.” They say the child is “safer” without contact, or that the parent is “too harmful” to be in their life. But here’s the truth: if it were really about safety, the child would still have access to the safe parts of that parent’s world, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, and family friends. When a child is denied all of those relationships, t

Parental alienation rarely comes wrapped in honesty. Instead, it disguises itself under buzzwords: “protective,” “cautious,” “safe.” The meme says it best, “I’m not an alienating mother, I’m a protective mother.” But look closer, and the contradictions spill out. A truly protective parent monitors all risky behavior: phone use, social media exposure, late nights, alcohol, unsafe friends, unsupervised parties. They set boundaries across the board, not just when it comes to the

Who Decides if a Parent Is “Deserving”? When it comes to parental alienation, the most dangerous myth is the idea that some parents are “deserving” of their children and some are not. You see it in casual comments online, like the one that says, “Not every parent is deserving of their children.” It sounds simple. It sounds righteous. But it’s a loaded statement that flips the entire foundation of family law upside down. The Law Is Clear: Parents Don’t Earn Their Kids In the U

What I’ve Learned About Fighting a Corrupt GAL For those of you stuck dealing with a corrupt “family” court “guardian” ad litem, let me say this as clearly as I can: Your kids know you. They know you better than some money-hungry imposter who claims to “speak for them” and act in their “best interests.” I’d say “at heart,” but let’s be honest, most of these people don’t seem to have one. I’ve witnessed this system. I’ve seen the games. The lies. The bias. The coercion. The wa

When people in power, a Guardian ad Litem, a therapist, a coordinator, or sometimes even a judge say, “You Can See Your Child When You Behave Better.” On the surface, it sounds like logic. “We just want you to be appropriate.” But underneath, it’s coercive control disguised as therapy and one of the The Most Subtle and Sanctioned Form of Psychological Control in Family Court. What that sentence really means is: “Your access to your child depends on your compliance with our na

I Didn’t Need Protection from My Parent. I Needed Protection from Their Agenda. When the family court system decides who a child should be “protected” from, it often fails to recognize the most dangerous force of all, the manipulation of truth for personal or professional gain. For countless children, the parent they were told to fear wasn’t the one who caused them harm. It was the one who was rewritten into a villain’s role by adults who stood to benefit, emotionally, financ

When Guardians Ad Litem Become Part of the Problem Guardians ad litem (GALs) are supposed to protect children. They’re appointed to be the voice of the child, the neutral observer who cuts through the noise of litigation. But in too many family court cases, GALs don’t protect children, they protect narratives. The Meme Says It All, “If you encourage the alienating behavior of one parent while disregarding the evidence of alienation by the other parent… If you keep children aw