A child’s safety is an adult’s job. Children are often taught how to keep themselves safe from sexual abuse — and that’s important for them to learn — but it’s no substitute for adult responsibility. We make sure children wear seat belts. We walk them across busy streets. We store toxic household cleaners out of reach. Why, then, would we leave the job of preventing child sexual abuse solely to
children?
What is child sexual abuse?
Any sexual act between an adult and a minor or between two minors when one exerts power over the other.
Forcing, coercing or persuading a child to engage in any type of sexual act. This, of course, includes sexual contact. And it also includes non-contact acts such as exhibitionism, exposure to pornography, voyeurism and communicating in a sexual manner by phone or Internet.
An agonizing and traumatic experience for its victims.
A crime punishable by law.
Step 1.
Learn the facts. Understand the risks.
Realities-not trust-should influence your decisions regarding your child.
Step 2
Minimize opportunity.
If you eliminate or reduce one-adult/one-child situations, you’ll dramatically lower the risk of sexual abuse for your child.
Step 3
Talk about it.
Children often keep abuse a secret, but barriers can be broken down by talking openly about it.
Step 4
Stay alert.
Don’t expect obvious signs when a child is being sexually abused.
Step 5
Make a plan.
Learn where to go, who to call and how to react.
Step 6
Act on suspicions.
The future well-being of a child is at stake.
Step 7
Get involved.
Volunteer and financially support organizations that fight the tragedy of child sexual abuse.
Read expanded information about each step at Darkness to Light On their home page you will find a LINK to "7 steps" with expanded information for each step.
The following is reprinted material fromt he Darkness to Light website
please visit their website for more information or do their online awareness course.
1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys are sexually abused before their 18th birthdays
“It can’t happen in my family. I could tell if someone I know is an abuser.” Yet in more than 90% of sexual abuse cases the child and the child’s family know and trust the abuser.
30-40% of children are
abused by family members.
1 in 5 children are sexually solicited while on
the Internet.
Nearly 40% are abused by
older or larger children.
