Making a Change by Raising Awareness

The Child Prevention Symbol

             If you can't read the shirt, it says "It shouldn't hurt to be a child." It's not my saying, but it was a nice phrase I found on Google. 

Also, on the back of the shirt, there would be a small child prevention symbol right below the neck.

By the way, I made this on http://www.uberprints.com/?gclid=CN76ksTErLQCFao7MgodA1oA4g. You can make T-Shirts on this website and order them for yourself or others. You can make your own saying about child abuse and help me prevent it, or you can make a T-Shirt with a cat on it for your grandma's birthday. Either way, I don't really care. I  encourage you more than anything to simply keep an eye out for children you may suspect are being abused. Additional information about prevention will be posted later.

Child abuse prevention wrist bands you can buy at 

http://pcapastore.paaap.org/products-1/blue-wrist-bands.html

Sylvia Likens, an Example of Child Abuse

This film is definitely depressing, but it's based on the actual case of Baniszewski v. the state of Indianapolis regarding the torture and murder of Sylvia Likens, a sixteen year old girl who was staying with Baniszewski and her kids at the time. The other children and the neighborhood kids were also involved in torturing her. One boy branded into her stomach the words "I am a prostitute, and proud of it." Others sprayed her down with a hose, tied her up, burned her, and tortured her in many other ways. It's a very sad, extreme story, but I thought it conveyed pretty well how much we can be unaware and how sick people can get.

These are just few of many people that were involved in the crime. The victim, Sylvia Likens, is the one in the top left corner. I realize that this case was a number of years ago, but there have been similar instances since then.

Sylvia Likens death after being brutally tortured

Introduction and My Viewpoint

    Most individuals in America  believe that children need discipline, a tactic used to enforce the rules and instill proper behavior. Although discipline may be crucial to a child's development, too many Americans take it to the point of abuse. Justified, reasonable discipline is not what this blog is referring to. It is also in no way arguing that parents don't need to have consequences when their children make unacceptable choices. It is supporting the concept, however, that when a person harms a child for no reason other than to exert their anger or stress, they are abusive. Contrary to some beliefs, child abuse is not a deserved punishment. If you feel the need to argue that a child must earn safety from their parents or any other individual, please do so elsewhere.

   Abuse comes in many forms: physical, sexual, and emotional. It can also be neglect. Each form of abuse influences a child's behavior and puts them at risk. This blog was designed for the sole purpose of informing America about this issue, which will only end when we become aware and take further steps to prevention. It will continue to grow if no attention is drawn to it. You decide if you want to be a part of the problem or a part of the solution.

http://www.childhelp.org/pages/statistics?gclid=CIivyfa4lbQCFYs7MgodbC8AJQ

http://www.childhelp.org/pages/statistics?gclid=CIivyfa4lbQCFYs7MgodbC8AJQ