Here I would put a link to donate to a charity or organization you work with |
Any one of these children could have grown up to be scientists, doctors, parents, etc.. Unfortunately, their lives were cut short by parental child abuse. All these deaths occurred while the families were under the supervision of the Dept. of Social Services.
Child abuse is robbing America of it's future. We see and hear about children being starved, abused, and killed by their parents or guardians in the news on a regular basis. There are many more that don't make the headlines. Children are still being lost in the system, with social workers and politicians alike scrambling for excuses and taking measures that amount to little more than symbolism over substance. There is no sense of urgency by society and government to intervene and rectify the situation. How many more ineffective and wasteful studies have to be ordered by politicians, in an attempt to stave off criticism for not doing anything for the latest victims to hit the news? How many more children will be maimed or murdered before we figure it out?
We hear so much about how social workers are overworked and underpaid, yet we hear of no solutions to remedy their predicament. The cries from these paid government workers become more acute when a child under their care and supervision has been overlooked, resulting in further abuse and death. Suffice to say, if I used the fact that I was underpaid as an excuse for not repairing their vehicles properly, I would still expect some sort of retribution from them. Just imagine what these very people would say or do if they got hurt for my negligence or incompetence! How about we hold them to the same standards they hold us? After all, it is our tax money that pays their $40,000+ a year salaries.
In short, we urgently need to focus our attention and tax dollars on effective measures for intervention and rehabilitation of victims instead of continuing to put "Band-Aids" on a flawed and largely ineffective system designed to suggest effectiveness rather than engage in real time solutions. Intervention urgently needs to include therapy for the victims, which would be far less a financial burden to society (Money matters, apparently!) than dealing with the very same victims later as inmates in a penitentiary or patients in psychiatric wards.
The horrors and trauma of child abuse do not end with removal from the abusive home. The victims of child abuse live with the effects the rest of their lives. So few receive the intervention necessary to unlearn the dysfunctional behavior patterns that encroach nearly every aspect of their adult lives. If they are lucky, they receive the intervention and rehabilitation necessary for them to tap into their inner strength, realize our potential, and pursue their aspirations and dreams.
It is time for us to take a stand instead of hiding away this dirty little secret with ignorance and indifference. Who knows what taking a stand against child abuse will do? Our actions could save the very person that finds the cure for cancer or the answer to our fuel crisis.
Best Regards,
Caesar Gonzales
