Prevent Child Abuse New York's Blog

PCANY Supports the Trafficking Victims Protection and Justice Act

Children who are abused at home or in foster care, who run away from home, or are kidnapped deserve the utmost in compassionate treatment. Instead, they often find themselves forced into the commercial sex trade. At the hands of both skilled traffickers and “customers”, these children find themselves subjected to further violence, manipulation and harm.

The average age for a child to enter into prostitution in the United States is 13. By definition, every sexual act a child engages in with an adult is rape. Children who are used for prostitution are usually under the control of an adult who uses whatever physical and psychological force is necessary to keep under their control, as virtual or actual slaves, and who is in charge of the commercial part of the transactions. Children commercially exploited for sex suffer enormous physical, mental and emotional harm. The criminal justice and social service systems often struggle to meet the needs of these children, and they are frequently so stigmatized by their exploitation that they struggle to re-integrate into society when they have the chance.

Toughening the penalties for purchasing sexual services from a child will decrease the demand for these services. This, in turn, will decrease the demand for traffickers to trawl for vulnerable children or to bring them in from foreign countries. It also sends a message that raping a child is never acceptable, even if that child is being prostituted. It emphasizes that children are children, and it is the responsibility of adults to protect them.

Prevent Child Abuse New York supports A.9804/S.7212, which toughens the penalties on adults who purchase sexual “services” from a child. While only one step in a long journey, we believe this bill will help move New York in the right directions when it comes to safeguarding children, the direction that we must, absolutely, head in.

Price Chopper Raises $37,000 to Prevent Child Abuse

This April and unusual item popped up on shoppers' grocery lists: Pinwheels for Prevention pin-ups. Price Chopper stores sold 37,005 of them, resulting in a $37,005 donation to Prevent Child Abuse New York (PCANY) and its sister chapters in surrounding states.

Fox 23 News WXXA also joined in the fight against child abuse, sponsoring the Pinwheels for Prevention pin-up campaign and running television PSAs to promote it.

Money raised in the campaign will support PCANY’s Parent Helpline, public education, and legislative advocacy programs.

Throughout the month of April, which is Child Abuse Prevention Month, Price Chopper’s customers were asked if they would like to purchase a Pinwheel for Prevention pin-up. Every dollar raised goes directly to the Prevent Child Abuse state chapter where it is donated.

Pinwheels for Prevention is the signature campaign for Prevent Child Abuse America and its state chapters. The pinwheel symbolizes a person’s commitment to truly preventative measures, such as home visitation services, parent education and the overall re-prioritization of our policies, programs and resources to ensure that every child is provided with a healthy, safe and nurturing home and an involved, supportive and caring community.

One-Year Civil Suit Window for Past Child Sexual Abuse

Topic of Tuesday May 22 program at the Legislative Office Building in Albany.

As common as headlines are about adults being arrested child sexual abuse, the cases that make the paper are the tip of the iceberg. Most children who are sexually abused don’t disclose the abuse before adulthood. Why? Often the abuser manipulates or threatens the child into silence. Very young children sometimes lack the vocabulary to describe their ordeal. Some children don’t realize that what they’re experiencing is considered wrong, abnormal, or noteworthy to the outside world. Almost 40% of sexually abused children are abused by someone in their family, and family members are often reluctant to believe a child’s revelation of abuse, or are willing to dismiss it in order to prevent family upheaval.

Children generally survive acts of sexual abuse by forcing themselves to not experience it, through disassociation or other means. Victimized children get very good at blocking out and not thinking about their abuse. Before they can disclose, they must be able to survive without those coping mechanisms. They also must be able to verbalize what happened, and have someone in life to disclose to. They must be able to survive rounds of questioning by police, social workers, etc. They may need to brace themselves for living without their family of origin, a decision a child rarely can make. Thus, many children simply can’t disclose the abuse while they are children.

Changing the statute of limitations. All of that means that we often have to wait until their victims are adults if we want to arrest child sex abusers. How long do we need to wait? At the least, we should allow grown children enough time to gain complete independence from their family, and allow for them to “outgrow” those survival mechanisms that served them so well. How long does that take? Statistically, most survivors who disclose their abuse do so in their late 30’s to early 40’s. I have had the privilege of meeting one survivor who didn’t disclose until her 60’s. Currently in NY, the statue expires on a victim’s 23^rd birthday. Ideally, we should eliminate the statute of limitations or extend it for decades after the survivor reaches the age of majority.

But changing the statute of limitations will only catch tomorrow’s offenders. Crimes committed before the law was changed will not be prosecutable.

Creating a window for civil suits. An interesting solution that some states have found is to include a “civil window” in statute of limitations reform.  The “window” is a limited period of time following the law’s passage, most often one year, when survivors may file suit against their abuser, for abuse that happened at any time in the past.

Civil suit windows have seen survivors awarded money for damages. (A recent study estimated that surviving childhood abuses costs the average survivor $400,000 in increased medical expenses and decreased productivity.) They have seen court documents naming specific abusers committed to the state’s record; those documents can limit offenders’ access to additional victims. And they have given many survivors the chance to tell their story, under oath, to a judge and have the judge say “I believe you”, a phrase most survivors rarely hear.

Learn More: A panel discussion about the civil window and statute of limitations reform in New York will be held in Tuesday May 22, 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the Legislative Office Building, Room 104A, in Albany. Experts in the fields of law, and advocates who have brought similar legislation to other states will be in attendance.  Everyone who is interested in making New York safer for children is welcome to attend and show their support for this important legislation.  For more information about the event, contact Bob Kristan, (212) 989-1285 or Assemblywoman Margaret Markey’s office, (518) 455-4755.  

Psychological Maltreatment Conference for Child Welfare Professionals

Our colleagues at the New York Foundling Vincent J. Fontana Center for Child Protection are presenting a one-day conference on June 5, Psychological Maltreatment from Research to Practice: Bringing It Home. Conference participants will learn about the components of psychological maltreatment and its impact on children, identify examples of psychological maltreatment from their own practice, learn positive parenting techniques that develop children's self-esteem and improve their behavior, discuss effective intervention strategies, and learn how positive discipline can reduce problematic behaviors in children.

The conference is Monday, June 5, 2012, at the New York Foundling Vincent J. Fontana Center for Child Protection, 27 Christopher Street (corner of Christopher Street and Waverly Place), New York, NY 10014. Registration is limited to 60 people, so register early to guarantee your spot. Details and registration information are here. 

 

 

 

Childhood Poverty Focus of NYSPEP Semi-Annual Meeting

We know that poverty is bad for children and families. But, why? The New York State Parenting Education Partnership (NYSPEP) will tackle that question at its semi-annual membership meeting on May 23. Cornell professor Gary Evans' presentation, The Environment of Childhood Poverty, outlines the cumulative effects of poverty and other risk factors on families. The session includes data on risk exposure, its consequences, and strategies to support families.

The afternoon workshop, Addressing the Environment of Poverty through the Lens of Protective Factors, includes information in Strengthening Families, a universal approach to building social connections and interpersonal skills. The presentation includes an overview of the protective factors upon which this approach is built, strategies for implementing in family support programs, and an introduction to the Protective Factors Survey.

The meeting is open to the public and will be held on Wednesday, May 23, 2012, 9 am - 4 pm, at the Carondelet Hospitality Center in Latham, New York. The registration fee is $25 and includes lunch. More details and registration information is here. 

 

 

New Report Estimates the Cost of Child Abuse at $80 Billion a Year

Child abuse and neglect will cost our nation over $80 billion in 2012, according to an economic impact analysis released today by Prevent Child Abuse America. The report, Estimated Annual Cost of Child Abuse and Neglect, assesses a number of factors. Direct costs, which include hospitalization, mental health costs, costs incurred by the child welfare system, and law enforcement, total $33 billion. Indirect costs, including special education, early intervention, adult homelessness, mental health and health care, juvenile and adult criminal justice costs, and lost work productivity, total nearly $47 billion.  

Based on this analysis, New York will spend an estimated $5,264,534,000 to address the consequences of child abuse and neglect. This confirms what professionals in the field have long known: There's a tremendous imbalance between what we spend on preventing child abuse from happening and intervening in and treating child abuse after it already occurs. New York State, for example, spends $23.3 million on Healthy Families New York and $2.5 million on Nurse Family Partnership, two early childhood home visiting programs proven to reduce abuse and improve outcomes for at-risk kids.

We should not diminish the importance of intervening in abusive situations and treating victims, but we must also recognize the trauma of abuse can not be erased. Abuse and neglect account for many grievous social ills. Victims are more likely to experience chronic health problems, mental health issues, developmental delays, poor educational outcomes, and involvement with the juvenile and criminal justice systems.

We need to prioritize children not only in our policies and budgets, but in our everyday actions," said James M. Hmurovich, President & CEO, Prevent Child Abuse America. "Wouldn’t it make sense to develop a strategy that focuses on a national commitment to actually prevent child abuse and neglect before it ever occurred? If we could decrease these annual costs by 10% in the next 5 years, think of the great things we could do for children and their families. For example, $7.7 million provides 78,000 home visits to 2000-3000 expectant and new parents at risk of abusing or neglecting their child. Ultimately, this benefits not just families, but society as a whole.”

Child Abuse Prevention Fundraiser - Happy Hour at Tonic East in NYC

Please plan to join the Lion Fund for Children, Inc. (LFFC) for a Happy Hour fundraiser to benefit Prevent Child Abuse New York and LFFC, this Thursday, April 19 at Tonic East (Third Avenue at 29th Street), 6:30 to 8:30.

The Lion Fund for Children, Inc. is a grassroots non-profit coalition of Penn State Alumni and Supporters devoted to preventing child abuse and supporting local community efforts to provide child abuse prevention, counseling, treatment and support services. There is no cover charge for the Tonic East fundraiser, but donations will be accepted.

Capital District Law Enforcement Set to Stand Up For Preventing Child Abuse

Schenectady County's District Attorney and Sheriff, Albany's Chief of Police, and Rensselaer County's District Attorney join other area law enforcement to unveil a new report on the child abuse-crime link, costs of abuse. Leaders support efforts to break cycle of abuse through voluntary home visiting. Thursday, April 19, 2012 at 11:00 a.m. at Parsons Family Resource Center, 125 Bigelow Avenue, Schenectady NY 12304.

Schenectady, N.Y. -- Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney, Schenectady County Sheriff Dominic Dagostino, Albany City Police Chief Steven Krokoff and Rensselaer County District Attorney Richard McNally will headline the release of a new report being issued by law enforcement leaders and crime survivors on the extent of child abuse and neglect in New York. Fight Crime: Invest in Kids New York members are issuing the report showing that over 77,000 New York children suffered abuse or neglect in 2010—more than 200 every day. Among New York children who suffered abuse and neglect in 2010, the report says at least 114 children died. In the Capital District alone, there were 3,986 (Albany: 1,218; Rensselaer: 823; Saratoga: 802 Schenectady: 1,143) children abused or neglected.

Carney, Dagostino, Krokoff and McNally will emphasize the benefits of voluntary home visiting services, which help new parents cope with the stresses of raising a young child.  Research shows that quality home visiting programs can cut child abuse and neglect by as much as 50 percent, significantly reduce later crime and save taxpayer dollars. Carney, Dagostino, Krokoff and McNally will also voice strong support for services proven to prevent child abuse by releasing an open letter to policy makers, signed by more than 1,560 law enforcement leaders nationwide (more than 200 from New York): one for every confirmed child who died from abuse or neglect in 2010.

April 19 Prevention Fundraiser in NYC

Prevent Child Abuse is proud to be partnering with the Lion Fund for Children, which is organizing a fundraising gathering in New York City on Thursday, April 19th.  Proceeds from the event will benefit LFFC and Prevent Child Abuse New York.

The Lion Fund for Children, Inc., is a grassroots non-profit coalition of Penn State alumni and supporters devoted to preventing child abuse and supporting local community efforts to provide child abuse prevention, counseling, treatment and support services. The April 19 event will be a Happy Hour at Tonic East on Third Avenue at 29^th Street, from 6:30 to 8:30.  There is no cover charge, but donations will be accepted.

“We are very pleased to support Prevent Child Abuse,” said LFFC’s President, Bill Lalor.  “Each and every day, this outstanding organization is on the front lines in preventing child abuse, and they deserve the steadfast support of the Penn State community.”

Find more information about Lion Fund for Children at LFFC website.

Pinwheels for Prevention Events Held Around New York

They’re popping up in front yards, at community events and in front of city halls. They’re pinwheels and we’ve distributed thousands of them in preparation for Child Abuse Prevention (CAP) Month events.

This April, students, families, organizations and advocates around the state are coordinating Pinwheels for Prevention campaigns in their communities. Pinwheels are a happy and uplifting token of childhood. They represent the joyful, healthy and safe life that every child deserves.

Our colleagues at the Family Violence Prevention Council in Broome County have already had their CAP Month event! You can see news coverage of their Pinwheels event here.

Our Pinwheels for Prevention product line includes everything you need for your campaign. Pinwheels, lawn signs, window clings, postcards, buttons and pins can be purchased separately or in one of our Pinwheels for Prevention Toolkits, which come in various sizes to fit your campaign plans. For more information and pricing and other campaign resources, please visit the Pinwheels for Prevention section of our web site.