Are these Stats acceptable TO YOU?

[hjfern]

TIME TO WAKE UP AMERICA!

By the way, THESE STATS ARE ONLY THE REPORTED AND SUBSTANTIATED CASES OF ABUSE.  Now imagine HOW MANY MORE THERE ARE DAILY THAT FLY UNDER EVERYONE'S RADAR, such as MY OWN CASE.

  

Child Abuse and Neglect

THE CHILDREN

Although only the most extreme cases make the news, child abuse and neglect is far too common in the United States. In 2004, there were:

• 3 million reports of child abuse and neglect
• 872,000 children confirmed victims of abuse and neglect
  • 65% experienced neglect
  • 18% experienced physical abuse
  • 10% experienced sexual abuse
  • 7% experienced emotional maltreatment
• Almost 1,500 deaths due to child abuse and neglect.
  • 350 deaths of children already known to the public child welfare system (2002)

For more data on child abuse, visit this site

THE CHILD WELFARE SYSTEM

Whether child abuse or neglect is related to poverty, mental health disorders, substance abuse, domestic violence or some other cause, child welfare officials have an obligation to act when they are informed of threats to children's safety.

Public child welfare agencies are responsible for assessing and investigating abuse and neglect reports and, if the reports are substantiated, taking appropriate measures to keep children safe -- by providing services to the family and monitoring the home or, if necessary, removing children from abusive or neglectful situations. Click here to learn more about foster care and adoption.

However, government agencies responsible for intervening when a child is at risk or has already been neglected or abused are too often ineffective and chaotic and sometimes even cause further damage to many young lives. Some of the systemic problems include the following:

• Failure to consistently initiate or complete investigations of child abuse and neglect in a timely fashion, placing children at risk;
• Failure to adequately train and supervise social workers who make very serious decisions about whether children are in danger and families need help;
• Failure to provide appropriate supervision and services after an investigation, causing children to experience repeated incidents of abuse and neglect.

CHILD FATALITIES

CHILDREN

At Least 4 children are fatally abused or neglected in the United States each day.

In 2004, almost 1,500 children were reported as having died due to abuse and neglect. The actual number of child deaths due to maltreatment is higher due to discrepancies in the ways states define, track and report this data.

However, available national data highlights a number of important trends:

• The national rate of child fatalities has increased from 1.62/100,000 in 1999 to 2.00/100,000 in 2004;
• While it is often assumed that children who die due to maltreatment have been physically assaulted, data reveals that more than one-third (35.6%) of child fatalities are due to neglect;
• Youngest children experience the highest rates of death due to maltreatment:
  • almost half (45%) are under 1 year of age;
  • more than three-fourths (81%) are under 4 years of age;
• 78.9% of fatalities involve 1 or both parents;
• 31.3% involve the mother only and 14.4% involve the father only;
• In 2002, there were at least 350 deaths of children already known to the public child welfare system. Approximately one third of these children were subjects of an open case at the time of their death and two thirds were previously known to the system but not involved at the time of the death. It is important to note that these data under-report the number of deaths of children known to the system as they do not include all states. For state by state information on deaths of children known to the child welfare system, visit http://ndas.cwla.org/

-Source:  Children's Rights web site

[cocoroyale]

Feb. 25, 2008 at 2:41 PM

This country has for many years turned it's focus on other countries so as to not SEE what is going on in ours.  DENIAL to the fullest. My nieces were horribly abused by their mother and when they were taken from her and placed with me while a report was being made a social worker came to interview them. The police that took them from her cried when they told us what they had found. Well this ass of a social worker told the girls that their mother had made some bad choices and they would have to accept it and move on. Then he took them back to her.  We trie dto get them back out for years but nothing ever worked. Theyare both doing really well now far away from her. But I could not believe this man. My point was she made bad choices not them. But no they had to go back. One is an alcoholic and the other has had some hard times but met a really nice man and has been taken in by his family and shown what a real caring family is.

 Your right about how many go unreported too. Just in my family and grade school friends.

[hjfern]

Feb. 25, 2008 at 3:26 PM

ONE CHILD is TOO MANY, PERIOD. 

It has taken me many tears, years & much heartache to get to the point of even speaking my abuse out loud.  It is a lifetime sentence, far after the actual abuse stops.  We don't want to acknowledge it happens, and then we do even less to ensure help to those who have suffered and survived.  I can't even express my sadness for this

(Original Poster)