Why Child Abuse and Neglect Must Be Eradicated
Child abuse and neglect are a horrifying reality for many children around the world. According to the latest statistics from the American Society for the Positive Care of Children (American SPCC), in 2017 1,720 children in the United States died from abuse and neglect, an average of nearly five children every single day.
Of those children who died from abuse and neglect, nearly 72 percent were under 3 years old, and almost half were under a year old. Neglect was the most common cause of these deaths, at 75.4 percent. Among those children who died, physical abuse was the cause in 41.6 percent of the cases, either exclusively or combined with another form of abuse.
To make these statistics even more harrowing, more than 80 percent of the child fatalities caused by abuse involve at least one parent.
With respect to the survivors of child abuse and neglect, the National Children’s Alliance estimates that approximately 683,000 children are abused in the US annually, based on a 2015 study. Of those nearly 700,000 children, 74.9 percent were neglected; 18.3 percent were physical abused; and 8.6 percent were sexually abused.
Every year, approximately 60,000 children are subjected to sexual abuse in the United States, with 90 percent of cases involving a parent or relative of the child.
Child abuse and neglect generally occur at similar percentages among both boys and girls. Approximately 48.5% of boys and 51.2% of girls are victimized, although the fatality rate from abuse is higher for boys, at 2.68 boys per 100,000, compared to 2.02 per 100,000 for girls. Abuse and neglect occur essentially equally across all racial, religious, cultural, and socioeconomic groups.
Long-term and damaging consequences
The effects of child abuse often lead to long-term and damaging consequences. According to a 2012 study titled Child Abuse & Neglect, approximately 30 percent of people who are abused or neglected as children will inflict the similar treatment on their own children, extending the heartbreaking cycle for future generations.
Additionally, 80 percent of child abuse victims will experience at least one psychological disorder, according to a study of 21-year-olds who were victimized as children. Child abuse and neglect also have a direct link to criminal activity among adults. Approximately 14 percent of all men and 36 percent of all women in prison survived child abuse—twice the amount seen in the general population. In addition, survivors of child abuse are nine times more likely to become involved in crime.
While the human cost of such abuse and neglect is immeasurable, the financial burden is also telling and is estimated to be as much as $585 billion based on 2012 estimates, which means it will stand at a great deal more as of 2019-20.
Neglect is by far the main cause of child abuse in the United States and covers a wide range of areas. Physical neglect, as defined by the American SPCC, involves the “negligent treatment or maltreatment of a child by a parent or caretaker under circumstances indicating harm or threatened harm to the child’s health or welfare.”
General neglect refers to cases of “negligent failure of a parent or caretaker to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, medical care, or supervision where no physical injury to the child has occurred.”
Other areas of neglect include severe neglect—“where the parent or caretaker willfully causes or permits the person or health of the child to be placed in a situation such that his or her person or health is endangered”—and prenatal neglect of “chronic maternal substance (drug or alcohol) abuse coupled with significant risk factors that indicate the parent’s inability to provide the child with adequate care.”
Physical, emotional, and sexual abuse; adverse childhood experiences; shaken baby syndrome; domestic violence; and trafficking and exploitation comprise the other types of child abuse most commonly found in the United States.
Organizations lead the fight to end child abuse and neglect
While child abuse and neglect continue to be a scourge on society, there are many remarkable organizations and foundations that are leading the fight to end child abuse and neglect in the US and around the world.
The American SPCC, Prevent Child Abuse America, Childhelp, and Child USA are a few of the charities that have helped millions of children across the United States to escape abuse and recover from its traumatic effects, while countless other state- and region-wide organizations, help centers, and facilities have provided invaluable resources and support.
The DGBM Taylor Family Foundation was created with the simple mission to “preserve and advance individual potential, as well as respecting the dignity of everyone.” With that in mind, child protection and welfare and the prevention of child abuse and neglect are areas that the foundation is passionate about.
All children deserve the same opportunity to realize their potential and to make a positive impact on the world, which is why the DGBM Taylor Family Foundation is always on the lookout for organizations and charities to partner with to help end child abuse and neglect in the United States for good.
