Should young kids have smartphones? These parents in Europe linked arms and said no

By JOSEPH WILSON and LAURIE KELLMAN
Associated Press

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Parents across Europe are rallying to make it normal for young kids to live smartphone-free. From Spain to Ireland and England, groups are ballooning on chat groups like WhatsApp and agreeing to link arms and refuse to buy children younger than 12 smartphones. Some say they shouldn’t have the devices until ages 14 or 16. In Spain, a messaging group on the topic grew to 10,000 parents. In Gravestones, Ireland, parents last year signed voluntary pledges to refrain from buying their children smartphones. In Britain, one WhatsApp group of parents devoted to giving their kids smartphone-free childhoods has drawn likeminded parents from Wales, Scotland and every English county.