November 2011
The John Hope Franklin Center for Reconciliation’s “Dinner of Reconciliation” was a wonderful evening. I was especially intrigued by the keynote address by john a. powell (lower case letters his). He talked about unconscious bias and he described “three ways of not knowing”:
1. We don’t know because we cannot know; something is beyond our ability to know, such as the number of neurons firing in your brain this second as you read this.
2. We don’t know because we are not interested to know; something is not important to us, such as noticing the color of a car behind you at the stoplight this morning.
3. We don’t know because we are unwilling to be aware; something is too uncomfortable to think about, such as our own stereotypes, prejudice….or child abuse and neglect.
Yes, it is uncomfortable to think about child abuse and neglect. No one wants to imagine a child being hurt. We don’t want to read that article or watch that story or hear that report or see that picture.
But we must not turn the page, turn the dial, or turn our eyes away. If not acknowledged, it cannot be confronted. If not confronted, it cannot be stopped.
We must be aware so that we are alert and action oriented when it comes to protecting children.
Desiree
2010
It’s one of the early lessons we learn as children: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. We know intuitively that the best way to stop something is to prevent it from happening in the first place. Unfortunately, when it comes to preventing child abuse, it is one lesson we too often forget.
As executive director of The Parent Child Center of Tulsa, I see every day the tragic results of failing to stop child abuse. Children suffer, families are torn apart, and society as a whole is degraded. To stop this cycle, it is our mission to prevent child abuse and neglect through education, treatment and advocacy.
Child abuse takes many forms, from withholding food and shelter, to berating a child verbally with hateful remarks, to inflicting physical pain, injury or even death.
According to the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, an estimated 108,289 children were alleged to be victims of child abuse in 2009, with 8,605 children confirmed.
Think about that for a moment. More than 8,000 Oklahoma children suffered abuse or neglect last year and now carry lifelong scars – both visible and invisible.
No one is exempt from the impact of child abuse and neglect. According to a 2007 study sponsored by Prevent Child Abuse America, the estimated annual cost of child abuse and neglect in the United States is $103.8 billion.
Dr. Robert Block, my colleague and chairman of the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine Department of Pediatrics, reports that each year, nearly 1,000 Tulsa County children are treated on an outpatient basis for child abuse and neglect. An additional 200 children are hospitalized. He estimates the annual cost of child abuse and neglect in Oklahoma at more than $270 million.
What if we as a community invested even one-tenth of that amount in prevention? What if we determined to be proactive about prevention because we recognize child maltreatment is both a cause and effect of so many of the social ills that concern and cost us all?
April is National Child Abuse Prevention month and provides us with the opportunity to focus on what can be done to prevent needless suffering.
Be a voice for children who cannot vote. Speak to local, state and federal legislators and policymakers about the importance of early prevention programs. Tell them you want child abuse prevention to be a priority.
Last, remember that to a child, love is spelled T-I-M-E. What would one hour of your undivided attention mean to that little boy or girl you care about?
During Child Abuse Prevention Month let’s heed the wisdom of an ounce of Prevention.
Sincerely,
Desiree Doherty
Executive Director
