Help? :[

[Guest]

I'm really concerned for my boyfriend. He's considering running away to a friend's house until he can live on his own. His parents aren't abusive from what I know, but they treat him carelessly. They always put him down even though he works hard, he has almost no privileges, his father even tells him how he wants another son and how much of a "failure" he is. He even told him he's ungrateful and needs to live on the streets to see how good he has it, and if he ever ran away he better not come back. He really sounds miserable with living them. I don't know what to tell him.
But I'm worried what will happen after he runs away. Could my friend's father be arrested for helping him? And what could happen for everyone else that helps him runaway?
Please help!

[ccsmod4]

Re: Help? :[

Hi,
we're really sorry to hear about whats going on with your boyfriend and appreciate you posting. It really sounds like your boyfriend has a rough time at home and is hearing some undeserving things from his dad but on the other hand he is fortunate to have a good friend like you trying to look out for him. You seem to really care about his feelings in all thats going on.
You said he sounds miserable and you're not sure what to tell him. Can you continue to be supportive and counter the negative feedback he gets from his dad by telling him about the good things you see in him? Since you mentioned that he would like to leave until he can live on his own exactly how much time would that be? Is he close to 18yrs old? Does he have any ideas about how he would survive. Do you think your boyfriend might call our 1-800-Runaway 24hr hotline himself to discuss his situation or his options in dealing with his dad's behavior towards him? When you say can your friends dad or friends be arrested in helping him what type of help do you mean? There is a law against aiding or harboring a runaway that could be punishable but to what extent we can't really say seeing that we're not legal experts.
We understand your concern for your boyfriends feelings and your wanting to help.
Does he have anyone besides you like an aunt ,uncle or other relatives he can talk with?
How about a teacher/counselor at his school? We hope things become more calm and clear for him soon. We thank you again for reaching out to nrs and will list a couple of referrals for your boyfriend.

Covenant House
1-800-999-9999 (24hrs)

Families Anonymous
1-800-736-9805

Take Care,
nrs