PSA: April is Child Abuse Awareness Month

Submitted by Mr. Ord
Cutting Edge Journal Advisor

Pictures used from:
http://lightmix.blogspot.com/2007/09/child-abuse.html

http://www.upstate.edu/gch/services/care/

What is child abuse? Child abuse is defined in many ways. The most common types of abuse are physical, sexual and emotional abuse. Physical abuse is when an adult hurts a child and causes them severe pain by hitting, shaking, burning, etc. Sexual abuse includes a lot of sexual acts including rape, touching private areas, oral sex, using children for pornagraphy and prostitution. Emotional abuse is the most difficult to prove. It is a result of parents saying and doing things to a child that results in them having some mental health problems or being afraid for their life.
Child abuse is a problem through out the country. Susquehanna County Services for Children and Youth investigates about 100 child abuse cases and 400-500 child neglect cases each year.

What do you do if a friend comes to you and states that he or she is being abused? What do you do if your friend attempts to get you to agree not to tell anyone?

It is important that your friend chose you to be the one to tell. It means the he or she trusts you with information that is very personal and very upsetting. The first thing to do is to listen with
What is child abuse? Child abuse is defined in many ways. The most common types of abuse are physical, sexual and emotional abuse. Physical abuse is when an adult hurts a child and causes them severe pain by hitting, shaking, burning, etc. Sexual abuse includes a lot of sexual acts including rape, touching private areas, oral sex, using children for pornagraphy and prostitution. Emotional abuse is the most difficult to prove. It is a result of parents saying and doing things to a child that results in them having some mental health problems or being afraid for their life.

Child abuse is a problem through out the country. Susquehanna County Services for Children and Youth investigates about 100 child abuse cases and 400-500 child neglect cases each year.

What do you do if a friend comes to you and states that he or she is being abused? What do you do if your friend attempts to get you to agree not to tell anyone?

It is important that your friend chose you to be the one to tell. It means the he or she trusts you with information that is very personal and very upsetting. The first thing to do is to listen with respect. It is possible that the things that things you are hearing may seem totally unbelievable to you. Your friend needs you to not judge what they are saying and not to judge them. They are depending on you to be their friend and listen and help. While helping them definitly means not spreading the information to other friends, it does not mean that you should not tell someone who can hlep. Realistically, what can you do? It is wonderful that you may want to take your friend home with you so that they are safe. It may be tempting to help your friend make plans to run away from their abusive home. While this may interrupt the abuse for a short period of time, it does not provide the level of ongoing safety that your friend needs and deserves. The reality of the situation is that you need to involve adults who can make a plan for safety that is legal and protects your friend over the long run.

Is the plan going to be perfect? Probably not. Being safe may involve some other changes that can be scary. The safety plan could involve being with relatives who are supportive or in the absence of that, a foster home. It could mean changing school districts and being away from friends and other familiar things for a while. Most children and teenagers who have to initially be placed for safety do eventually get to go home when the stuation has improved.

The most important thing you can do for your friend is to be supportive of him or her through this process. Be a listening ear, encourage them through the difficulties of changes and all the things that may be involved. If you become physically separated,, stay in contact with letters or maybe phone calls. Let them know that the most important thing is to be safe and you are proud of them for taking care of themselves.

April is designated as Child Abuse Awareness Month. Do your part in letting your friends know that child abuse needs to stop. You can be a part of the solution to this very serious problem.

CHILDLINE: 1-800-932-0313