In my work with families, I’ve seen it all too often. Parents who lack adequate childcare sometimes have to make difficult decisions between their child's safety and providing for the basic needs of their family.
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. A lot of efforts during this month focus on awareness of child abuse – how to spot the signs, our role as mandatory reporters, and how to make a report on the hotline.
While awareness is critical, we must also remember that even more critical to child abuse prevention is supporting families and getting involved earlier. There are so many mothers who need to go to work and have no choice but to leave their children with someone they don’t fully trust, whether it’s a boyfriend, family member, or neighbor.
Citizens of Arkansas, you are needed. When a single mom has a sick child and you are available, would you watch that child so she can go to work? What if a dad has to be at work at 6 a.m. but the bus doesn’t come until 7:30 a.m.? Could you help his child get to the bus stop on time and wait with the child so that they are safe?
There are a million ways to save children from abuse and neglect, but it all starts with having your ears open to hear the needs, your eyes open in a non-judgmental way to see what is going on around you, and your heart open to respond with compassion and be moved to act in a way that will be helpful to struggling families around you.
Parenting is hard and no two parents do things the same way. We must be flexible with parents, understanding the cultural and social differences in parenting and the restraints and hardships that occur when a parent is raising a child without a support system.
We can prevent child abuse and neglect by making sure that parents do not have to feel ashamed to ask for help when they need it. It all comes down to loving your neighbor as yourself. If we truly want to prevent child abuse, we must be willing to be inconvenienced.
Look someone in the eyes and tell them you want to help. They will believe you the first time if you are genuine. They will believe you the second time if you came through the first time.
Smart Justice is a magazine, podcast, and continuing news coverage from the nonprofit Restore Hope and covers the pursuit of better outcomes on justice system-related issues, such as child welfare, incarceration, and juvenile justice. Our coverage is solutions-oriented, focusing on the innovative ways in which communities are solving issues and the lessons that have been learned as a result of successes and challenges.
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