Child Abuse Prevention Month

    April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. In America, children of all ages face abuse daily. Together we are reaching out as a nation and bringing awareness to those that need us the most, the leaders of tomorrow. Abuse comes in many forms such as verbal abuse, physical abuse, mental abuse, verbal abuse, and institutional abuse. In just the past two years, statistics are alarming. I am going to present you with those statistics in order to show that not only is child abuse a major problem, but there are a LOT of children that need us to rise together as a nation and bring down the statistics of abuse. These aren't just numbers, these are children. It might be the neighbor down the street, it might be the child you see daily, or it might be someone that you know. Keep that in mind as you read this surprisingly awful statistics.

   2010 Statistics

 -Approximately 695,000 children were victims of maltreatment
 -Children younger than one year had the highest rate of victimization of 20.6 per 1,000 children in the population of the same age.

-Of the children who experienced maltreatment or abuse, over 78% experienced neglect;

more than 17% were physically abused; just under 10% were sexually abused;

approximately 8% were psychologically maltreated; just over 2% were neglected; and

approximately 10% experienced other types of maltreatment.

-Nearly 80% of reported child fatalities as a result of child abuse and neglect were caused

by one or more of the child victim's parents.

-47 states reported approximately 3.4 million children received preventative services

from Child Protective Services agencies

-In 2010, an estimated 1, 560 children died from abuse and neglect in the USA

  2011 Statistics

Among the over 259,000 children served by Children’s Advocacy Centers around the

country during 2011, some startling statistics include:

 -206, 522 children were 0-6 years

 -99, 624 children were ages 7-12 years

 -69, 372 children were ages 13-18 years

 -187, 862 children reported sexual abuse

 -48, 264 children reported physical abuse

 -179, 014 children participated in forensic interviewing at a Children's Advocacy Center

   Among the over 226, 000 alleged offenders investigated for instances of child abuse

from January through June 2011, statistics include:

 -146, 981 were 18+ years old

 -24, 075 were ages 13 to 17 years old

 -17, 250 were under the ages of 13 years

 -88, 182 were a parent or step-parent of the victim

 -47, 096 were related to the victim in another way

 -71, 877 were an unrelated person the victim knew

                    

                        Every day in America:

               -Nearly 5 children die every day from abuse and neglect

Statistics were located on the National Children Alliance website. They work to enpower local communities to serve child victims of abuse.