EveryChild Matters is campaigning to bring attention to lack of attention and public policy for abused and neglected children.
http://www.everychildmatters.org/National/News/Do-10440-child-abuse-deaths-deserve-a-Congressional-hearing.html
As part of a campaign to stop child abuse and neglect deaths, The Every Child Matters Education Fund and its partners—the National Association of Social Workers, the National Children’s Alliance, and the National District Attorneys Association—are running ads that urge Congress to address the fatalities that claim the lives of innocent children every day. Specifically, the ads ask Congress to hold hearings and provide emergency funds to stop state cuts in child protective services. Continue reading ‘Bringing Attention to Child Abuse Deaths’
This very determined organization ensures that every abused, abandoned, and neglected child in their county has a court appointed guardian Ad Litem to represent their best interests.
Every county in every state needs to know about the guardian Ad Litem program and how it helps at risk children through the difficult system of child protection services.
It is to all our benefit when children thrive in our communities. Children can only thrive if they are given a fair chance to thrive.
Without court appointed guardians, abused and neglected children are voiceless in our communities. For the CASA guardian ad litem program in your state, http://www.nationalcasa.org/, for Florida; www.casa-stpete.org/, for CASA Minnesota http://www.casamn.org/
Continue reading ‘Voices For Children Foundation Announces Their 2010 Be A Voice Feel the Magic Gala with Special Cirque Du Soleil Performers’
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;
Fifty percent of Americans do nothing when they witness abuse
New Study by Prevent Child Abuse America Reveals Alarming Trends in How Americans Respond to Child Abuse
WASHINGTON, D.C.- Three in ten Americans have witnessed an adult physically abuse a child and two in three Americans have seen an adult emotionally abuse a child (see table 1). Yet nearly half of these Americans failed to respond to the incident, according to a study released today by Prevent Child Abuse America, formerly the National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse. Continue reading ‘How Americans Respond To Child Abuse’
Follow us on Twitter http://twitter.com/KidsAtRisk
New York-based Children’s Rights claims that Georgia is failing abused and neglected children. The Department of Human Services has been under a consent decree since 2005 that came out of a class action lawsuit in 2002 claiming the division was mismanaged and overburdened.
I find it hard to accept that abused and neglected children in our advanced nation, find it so hard to receive adequate help to get a fair start in life.
With budget cuts throughout the nation, states that were already underfunding, under-supporting & doing poorly for children in child protection service before this economic collapse are beginning to see these unhappy results. Growing caseloads in juvenile and criminal courts, more preteen pregnancies, and unhappier communities. Continue reading ‘Georgia Child Protection: Too Many Children Too Few Resources’
This Jan 18 NY Times article points out just how much more we spend on the elderly than on children (2.2% vs 5.3% of GDP) & how important early childhood education is for developing children. http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/18/remembering-the-little-people-accounting-for-kids/
The author, Nancy Folbre points out that , full-time, year-round child care for young children costs more than public university tuition in 44 states.
As a guardian ad-Litem, I’ve been chartered to removed children from a home where the father could not afford day care and the waiting list for subsidized day care was so long he could not hope to be awarded a subsidy.
Continue reading ‘Spending On Children’
These Friends of Texas Linked In discussions explain how children have become America’s new political football. If states can refuse government help failing schools with no political backlash, the dream for educated youth and an informed democratic society dies with the schools. This discussion needs more attention. Pass it onto your friends and coworkers. http://twitter.com/KidsAtRisk
http://www.invisiblechildren.org/2010/01/25/friends-of-texas-vs-friends-of-children/
“What we do to our children, they will do to our society” Pliny the Elder 2500 years ago.
Continue reading ‘Friends of Texas vs Friends of Children’
In a study of Crimes Against Children, the University of New Hampshire found that the majority (60.6%) of children had experienced at least 1 direct or witnessed victimization in the previous year.
Almost half (46.3%) had experienced a physical assault in the study year, 1 in 4 (24.6%) had experienced a property offense, 1 in 10 (10.2%) had experienced a form of child maltreatment, 6.1% had experienced a sexual victimization, and more than 1 in 4 (25.3%) had been a witness to violence or experienced another form of indirect victimization in the year, including 9.8% who had witnessed an intrafamily assault.
One in 10 (10.2%) had experienced a victimization-related injury. More than one third (38.7%) had been exposed to 2 or more direct victimizations, 10.9% had 5 or more, and 2.4% had 10 or more during the study year.
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/124/5/1411 Continue reading ‘Crimes Against Children Study New Hampshire University:’
Every state releases youth that are troubled and without the skills or resources to cope in the community. Nationally, up to 80% of the 15,000 youth aging out of foster care each year are leading dysfunctional lives.
Few states think through the consequences when youth do not meld into the community to become healthy and productive citizens. Here’s one great example, this program Katz said is successful: 61 percent of the women have high school diplomas or GEDs, 97 percent are enrolled in school and 60 percent have found part-time work or are in school full-time.; http://www.miamiherald.com/492/story/1398131.htmlMiami-Dade nonprofit offers affordable housing to women aging out of foster care.
BY JONATHAN DAVILA
JDAVILA@MIAMIHERALD.COM
In Miami-Dade County, more than 130 girls become too old for foster-care eligibility every year, according to a study by Our Kids, a Florida-based nonprofit.
They’re given a monthly stipend of about $1,135 by the county and are required to attend school to keep receiving it.
“I was living paycheck to paycheck. It was kind of crazy,” said Rachel Johnson, a 25-year-old former foster child who aged out of the system at 18.
Continue reading ‘A Program Worth Repeating’
Watch the video clips from the Academy on Violence & Abuse http://avahealth.org/and order their free full presentations (when you join their organization). The Relationship of Adverse Childhood Experiences to Adult Health Status piece by Dr Felitti is extremely powerful http://gallery.mac.com/avahealth#100000
The years of hard research this organization has done to quantify the impact of abuse on children as they become adults is as incontrovertible as it is moving.
This information shared with the public and policy makers can help abused and neglected children received more and better care and lead more productive lives.
Support them
info@avahealth.org
Academy on Violence and Abuse
14850 Scenic Heights Road, Suite 135A
Eden Prairie, MN 55344
Phone: (952) 974-3270
Fax: (952) 974-3291
In my own experience as a guardian ad-Litem, it is better to heal the family when possible, but I have seen cases where adults have had license to abuse children year after year without penalty. This organization provides training for the investigation and prosecution of crimes against children; http://www.ndaa.org/
In 1985, the National District Attorneys Association established the National Center for Prosecution of Child Abuse as a program of the American Prosecutors Research Institute (APRI). Aimed at responding to an increasing volume of reported child abuse, the National Center provides training, technical assistance and publications to prosecutors, investigators and allied criminal justice professionals on all aspects of criminal child abuse and exploitation. Continue reading ‘National Center for Prosecution of Child Abuse’
Because last weeks Texas/Alaska Politics Trash Children blog generated so much controversy on the social networking sites that hosted it, providing more information about Texas and its ranking among the states in how it treats children is in order. Factually, Texans can’t make the argument that they spend too much money on children by these numbers.
April 2008, Every Child Matters, Geography Matters
Child Well-Being Indicators
Infant Mortality 20th
Child Death (1-14) 29th
Teen Deaths (15-19) 14th
Births to Teen Moms 50th
Late/No Prenatal Care 33rd
Child Poverty 44th
Uninsured Children 50th
Juvenile Incarceration 34th
Child Abuse Deaths 45th
Child Welfare Expenditures 42nd
Total Tax burden* 41st
Overall Rank** 46th
Continue reading ‘Texas Blog Sequel’
Few would argue that helping at risk children saves communities, taxpayers, and the child. Reading this article from the Detroit news indicates that some policy makers still don’t understand the relationship between healthy children and productive adults (or unhealthy children, preteen mothers and adolescent felons).
Last Updated: January 12. 2010 12:47PM
Child poverty, neglect on rise in Michigan
Catherine Jun / The Detroit News
Childhood poverty, neglect and abuse continue to rise in Michigan, troubling signs that children continue to bear the brunt of the state’s economic woes, according to a report released today.
Read more: http://www.detnews.com/article/20100112/METRO/1120362/1409/METRO/Child-poverty–neglect-on-rise-in-Michigan#ixzz0d4mLZOj4 Continue reading ‘Michigan: 16% Confirmed Increase in Child Abuse & Neglect Cases’
Today’s newspapers have printed the story of how Alaska and Texas are refusing federal funding for schools (up to seven hundred million dollars for Texas) because governors want to make a political statement against the Obama administration.
Texas has suffered the lowest graduation rates in the nation with the worst racial disparities.
To so pointlessly and blatantly refuse money for strapped schools when the Houston superintendent writes “I have 100,000 kids in Houston who don’t read at grade level” is putting another generation of Texas children at risk.
Texas had taken $250,000 from the Gates Foundation to complete the grant application and had a good chance of at being awarded funding.
The risk of youth not being able to read by the third grade going on to lead dysfunctional lives is well documented. .
Children depend on the government for their education. This government is investing its capital in politics rather than children.
Texas is laying off teachers, cutting useful programs and closing schools.
Texas has also suffered from one of the highest rates of crime and incarceration in the nation. It is well established that educated children have a far better chance of becoming productive citizens and the people of Texas would all benefit from that.
Governor Perry, these are your state’s children.
Please reconsider this counterproductive and political decision.
Continue reading ‘Texas & Alaska Politics Trash Children Openly’
I’m hoping that the Child Well Being Network gets great support and becomes a big deal in the state of MN.
More than 5,000 Minnesota children were abused and neglected in 2008. Over a thousand are currently under state guardianship, living in foster care permanently or awaiting adoptive homes (DHS 2008). Up to 600 youth age out of foster care every year.
Nationally, recent studies have shown that up to 80% of youth aging out of foster care are leading dysfunctional lives.
The Child Wellbeing Network has come together to declare that Minnesota needs a refreshed vision of child welfare. Policies and practices should reflect our values and highest hopes for children throughout our state.
Every state needs a Child Wellbeing Network, every person needs to understand that healthy children become healthy citizens & healthy citizens build healthy communities that are safe and pleasant to live in.
It is better for the child, it is better for the state, it is better for the community to take care of children.
This in depth report from the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire makes it painfully clear that poverty and mental health issues are often at the heart of child abuse.
Durham, NH–According to a new brief by Carsey Institute director of research on vulnerable families Marybeth J. Mattingly and research assistant professor of sociology Wendy A. Walsh, rural families who have been reported to Child Protective Services (CPS) are more likely than those reported in urban areas to experience high family stress and financial difficulties. Rural children referred to CPS are also more likely than urban children to live in a single parent home.
Based on data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being, this brief shows that across place, nearly 40 percent of children who are reported to CPS live in poverty, and roughly half have a caregiver with mental health issues. Continue reading ‘Financial and Family Stress Linked to Child Maltreatment in Rural Areas’
One of my guardian ad-Litem youth walked home for many hours on a below zero Minnesota night without a coat because of the abuse he received at a juvenile detention center. He had had enough troubles for a lifetime before this happened.
A Pennsylvania judge was just sent to prison for receiving commissions for each youth he sent to a privately run juvenile detention center run by his friends.
Thousands of innocent youth paid for this crime. Illinois has recently stun gunned, choked, and brutalized young girls in its juvenile justice system.
A MN judge has sent me the Ritalin, Prozac, and other psychotropic medications proscribed to five, six, and seven year olds that passed through her courtroom (seldom receiving adequate mental health therapy to accompany these not yet recommended for children medications).
Missouri had suffered a 90% recidivism rate in its juvenile justice system, New York & California are close (and topping the expense charts at almost $250,000/per child per year) & all states seem to be moving toward trying more and more children as adults
Today’s NYTimes Report: Sex Abuse High at 13 Juvenile Centers
establishes that almost a third of juvenile justice detainees are victimized. About 12% are sexually abused & six of the sites had abuse rates of over 30%. Continue reading ‘Growing Up In America’
Our dedicated Macalaster College Volunteer Lelde has delivered another extensive report on child abuse in other developed nations. (Entire report follows with “continue reading”). England , Canada, Sweden.
Thank you Lelde.
With almost half the population of the U.S. (138M v 307M) Japan reported 33,308 cases of child abuse in 2005 compared to about 3 million cases in the U.S. In 2007, 37 Japanese children were killed by their parents compared to 1400 in the U.S.
The very first Japanese child abuse survey was conducted in 1999, along with specialized training for social workers. In 2006, the government introduced a national 10-year plan to improve child-rearing nationwide that included new 1700 community daytime childcare centers by March of 2010.
Japan is only now beginning to identify and respond to child abuse and neglect, after hundreds of years of three generations living in the same home, and the supreme authority of the oldest male, family intervention by the community is a difficult issue. Continue reading ‘Invisible Children Around the World; Japan’
After losing a $95,000 grant (about half its budget) Prevent Child Abuse Wyoming announced it will be shutting down.
With state, county, and federal funding diminishing, it is painful to see the disappearance of one of few non profit services to abused and neglected children in Wyoming.
Read more;
http://www.sheridanmedia.com/news/child-abuse-prevention-group-close6898
Send them a donation to keep the doors open; Make checks payable to:
http://www.pcawyoming.org/donate.php
Prevent Child Abuse Wyoming
1902 Thomes Avenue, Suite 204B
Cheyenne, WY 82001
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