Child Abuse ~ If the various organizations that focus on this issue are doing their jobs, you know what this looks like and might even know some statistics about abused children: A child abuse report is made every ten seconds; Nationally, almost five children die every day as a result of child abuse and 75% of those are under the age of 4; Children who have been sexually abused are 2.5 times more likely to abuse alcohol and 3.8 times more likely to develop drug addiction; nearly two-thirds of the people in treatment for drug abuse report having been abused as children.
Perhaps you've read or heard about children in foster care, already removed from abusive or neglectful parents, who have been killed or beaten, amid various phone calls and warnings to the authorities. Perhaps you've seen pictures or posters of children with bruises or broken bones ~ This is abuse.
Child abuse is heinous, and we all know what it looks like, and we'd NEVER do it to our own children; we'd NEVER let it happen in our family...Or would we??
There's a new child abuse in town. It's quiet and silent and you can't see it's marks upon a child's face or arms. You don't see the broken bones or bruises. State mandated reporter don't make calls when it's happening; grandparents, family members and friends even help the abuser.
How can this be? What is this abuse? You may think, "I'd NEVER abuse my child or allow it in my family!!"
What is this abuse that's quiet and secretive? FAILURE TO SUPPORT!
Parents who fail to support their children are committing abuse; Financial and emotional abuse.
In California there are over $20 billion dollars owed in back child support. Annually the state forgives approximately $3 billion of this therefore the figure never rises. Women with children are the fastest rising homeless population in the nation, as a result of failure to support. A family in California can expect only a 60% chance of receiving any amount of child support in a given month.
If you know someone who is failing to pay his/her court ordered child support, that person is committing abuse. Don't be a party to child abuse. Don't help hide income or assets. Tell that person now, "Stop it !! Send a check and support your kids".
It's the responsible thing to do ~ It's the decent thing to do.
No form of abuse is acceptable and failure to support is abuse.
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