This organization Childabuse.com goes a long way in measuring the attitudes and understanding this nation has towards child abuse and why public policy has lagged so far behind the reality. The more we know, the better our policies and programs;
DetailsHer advice to us was to report animal abuse because animal abuse gets investigated & when it is investigated, those people see things that can trigger a social worker saving a child.
This seemed pathetic to me at the time, but now I tell people how important it is.
DetailsHow can those of us who care about at risk children, be more effective in bringing positive change to the politics, attitudes, people, and institutions that rule the lives of these children?
What has worked in your community?
What did not work?
Where do you go for help?
DetailsFew politicians speak to the children’s issues. Fewer still understand or advocate for programs that would help the 3 million children reported to child protection services each year.
DetailsNot just anyone can manage adoption or fostering of children that have been tortured by their caregivers*.
Years of child protection work have proven to me that gay couples are not only wonderful parent choices for abandoned children, but that they may be the very best choice.
As outcasts themselves, the GLBT community knows what frightened and alone means to a child and can relate to fear and anxiety of being different in a harsh environment.
Abused children carry their traumas with them and have mental health issues and behaviors that are often uncontrollable, violent and dangerous to themselves and others.
It takes special people to raise traumatized children.
So when the Church or the State refuse gay couples the right to adopt it eliminates an already inadequate pool of foster/adoption families and leaves abandoned children even more alone and frightened at a time they most need a loving home and family. This is a special kind of cruelty and deserves to be outed. Share this widely.
DetailsKARA board member David Strand has written a powerful article in today’s Minneapolis Star Tribune pointing out how America’s politics continue to bring communities generational poverty that has resulted in the problems this CASA volunteer has worked with over many years.
“Their methods for leveling the economic playing field start with providing all young children with healthy conditions for physical and mental development. Surprisingly, much of the research they rely on comes from America’s best universities.
The proof is that it works — these countries have broken the link of intergenerational poverty that afflicts our country.”
DetailsWhat makes life worse for sexually abused five and seven year old’s is not talking about it. Not reporting it. Not disclosing it publicly or privately. The fewer people that know about the wretched things that are happening to NJ children, the smaller the problem appears to be and the less will be done to support the agencies chartered to help New Jersey Children.
New Jersey has taken a big step forward in making sure that the abuse is worse and lasts longer for its youngest citizens;
NJ: Child welfare agency proposes less disclosure of fatal child abuse cases.
The Star –Ledger- June 12, 2013.
The Department of Children and Families Plans to limit the information it publicly discloses when a child die or suffers life threatening injuries from abuse and neglect
DetailsAs a volunteer guardian ad-Litem, I have spoken with too many frustrated social workers, CASA workers, educators, birth, foster, and adoptive parents that have experienced gaping holes in our child protection systems.
DetailsMost communities experience uncoordinated providers delivering multiple services without adequately planning the most effective ways of delivery. Costs are high, results suffer.
I have yet to see effective tracking or outcomes based measurements in our child protection services.
RECOMMEND, www.socialsolutions.com
DetailsMother Earth News this month includes weapons manufacturers marketing materials aimed at very young children. It is disturbing. It was just last week a five year old Kentucky boy killed his two year old sister with his “Crickett” “my first” rifle. You can buy them in hot pink for little girls:
“The Crickett rifle is ideally sized for children four to ten years old and comes in a …Arms manufactures the following youth rifles: Crickett .22WMR Youth Rifles”
Mom was outside & said she did not know the gun was loaded. Gun marketing pictures from the Crickett marketing page (the site was down today when I went to include the link – it will be interesting to see if it has been changed) http://www.crickett.com/
