In the early 1980s, a Child Abuse Awareness campaign was started, and Congress vowed to identify and implement solutions to end child abuse. The first national Child Abuse Prevention Week was June 6-12, 1982. The next year, President Ronald Reagan proclaimed April as National Child Abuse Prevention Month. You can read President Reagan’s full proclamation here.
He stated that:
“Child abuse and child neglect continue to threaten the lives and health of over a million of our Nation’s children. Their physical suffering and emotional anguish challenge us, as parents, neighbors, and citizens, to increase our attention ot their protection and intensify our efforts to prevent their maltreatment. Children may be endangered by physical battering, denial of the basic necessities for life and health, sexual abuse and exploitation, or emotional cruelty.”
President Reagan recognized that the “health and well-being of our children underlie the future of our Nation.” He urged the nation to renew the commitment to challenging child abuse and neglect – and that is a commitment that we continue to share today.
The Blue Ribbon Campaign to Prevent Child Abuse was established by a grandmother in 1989 who lost her grandson to an abusive situation. She tied a blue ribbon to the antenna of her car as a way to remember her grandson and to alert her community to the danger and tragedy of child abuse. This campaign has since spread across the country.
This year is especially significant in that it marks the 30th anniversary of the first National Child Abuse Prevention month. If you have concerns about a child being abused or neglected, please do not hesitate to report that concern to your local Department of Children’s Services (DCS) office, a local attorney or the police. Please do not sit by and allow a child to be continually abused. Stand with us to stop child abuse.
If you need to schedule a consultation to discuss your concerns about the safety of a child, please contact me immediately at (615) 804-6086 or [email protected]. There may be several options for you to help the child in need, including filing for custody (especially if you are related to the child). Act now! One child abused is one too many.
