For years many agencies and organizations have been founded to help abused children and to educate others on the growing epidemic of child abuse. Although in some part help has arrived for these victims, there is also alarming statistical data of silence within certain social and political history the has contributed to this abuse. Due to this silence many advocates have failed to address these issues and history continues to repeat itself.



The news is so full of reports about child mistreatment that you can't help but wonder how safe your child really is. While it's a mistake to become overprotective and make your child fearful, it is important to recognize the actual risks and familiarize yourself with the signs of abuse. More than 2.5 million cases of child abuse and neglect are reported each year. Of these, 35 percent involve physical abuse, 15 percent involve sexual abuse and 50 percent involve neglect.

Child abuse is common. Studies show that one in four girls and one in eight boys will be sexually abused before they are 18 years old. About one in 20 children is physically abused each year. Sexual abuse includes inappropriate touching of a child's breasts or genitalia, as well as someone's exposing their genitalia to a child. Physical abuse involves injuring a child's body by burning them, beating them or breaking their bones. Because a bruise indicates that body tissue has been damaged and blood vessels have broken, any discipline method that leaves bruises is not appropriate.

Child neglect can include physical neglect (withholding food, clothing, shelter or other physical necessities), emotional neglect (withholding love, comfort or affection) or medical neglect (withholding needed medical care).

Recognizing and Reporting Child abuse is key:

Signs of Physical Abuse:

- Any injury (bruise, burn, fracture, abdominal or head injury) that cannot be explained

Signs of Sexual Abuse:

- Fearful behavior (nightmares, depression, fears, running away)

- Abdominal pain, bedwetting, urinary tract infection, genital pain or bleeding, sexually transmitted disease Extreme sexual behavior that seems inappropriate for the child's age

Signs of Emotional Abuse:

- Sudden change in self-confidence

- Headaches or stomachaches with no medical cause

- Abnormal fears, increased nightmares

- Attempts to run away

Signs of Emotional Neglect:

- Failure to gain weight (especially in infants)

- Desperately affectionate behavior

- Voracious appetite and stealing of food

Though we may not be able to completely stop child abuse it will take everyones help in recognizing the signs and reporting this to local law enforcement agencies. It is equally important to "Be Silent No More" and to convey to our children that it is ok to tell an adult they can trust if they feel that they have been mistreated.

Continual work must also be done in researching and vocalizing these social and political issues that stem from this abuse also. Silence is a killer for all abused victoms so we must once again vow to "Be Silent No More".