Keeping Kids Safe From Abduction, Violence, and Exploitation

Keeping Kids Safe From Abduction, Violence, and Exploitation

According to the U.S. Department of Justice more than 300,000 children in the U.S. are at risk every year for commercial sexual exploitation. Teri Williams from NBC reported that investigators and researchers estimate the average predator in the U.S. can make more than $200,000 a year off one young girl or boy. How are you protecting your children and how do you approach this topic with them. This information will help parents find that balance between protection and paranoia.

Diane Brown joined Dr. Rose Gamblin and Candy DeVore for this recent topic about educating kids on safety. Diane Brown, is the founder and director of Safety Kids, Inc. She has worked on the issue of personal safety for children since 1982. She is a certified International Crime Prevention Specialist through the International Society of Crime Prevention Practitioners. She has taught personal safety to hundreds of thousands of children and adults, has appeared on numerous television and radio programs, and also worked with Sesame Street Live and the Harlem Globetrotters to present child safety programs. She serves on the Advisory Board for the FBI Adopt-a-School Initiative and the Safe Schools and Communities Consulting Group.

Here are five of the most important questions we addressed:

1.  At what age, and how, do I teach my child proper and effective personal safety tips?

Teaching safety is like teaching manners, a parent needs to gradually increase the amount of safety information based on the maturation of the child and they need to consistently teach these safety principles. The two most important safety rules should be “check first” and “because I’m with you.” For example, when offered candy, a child would “check first,” and you respond, “Yes, because I’m with you.”

2. What are some good home-alone skills that my child should know?

·         Don’t tell others that you’re going to be home alone.

·         Don’t answer the door even if the person at the door sees you.

·         Know what to do in case of an emergency.

3. Is “stranger danger” the best strategy for teaching my child how to be safe from predators?

Most predators offend children that they know and with whom they have established some type of a relationship with. While it is important to teach children to avoid strangers, the danger is usually much closer. While interviewing a child predator, the predator said that they would go to church, pick a target, and then start developing a friendship with the children and the parents. Here again, the safety rule of “checking first” will help parents and children stay connected and make appropriate choices.

4.  How do I talk to my child about sexual abuse and how to prevent it?

Although discussing child abuse with your child may be difficult for you, it is very important. More than 3 million reports of child abuse are received each year, including half a million reports of child sexual abuse. Research has shown that children whose parents talk to them about preventing abuse are more effective at fending off assaults. Parents should have open discussions about how to take care of their private parts. Part of that discussion is teaching your children not to allow others to touch their private parts. Children should also feel that they can tell their parents about anything that makes them uncomfortable without any reproach or guilt.

5. How should we handle a bullying situation? When do parents intervene and when do we let kids work it out?

The definition of bullying as widely agreed on in research is (1) a specific type of aggression in which the behavior is intended to harm or hurt, (2) the behavior occurs repeatedly over time, and (3) there is an imbalance of power, with a more powerful person or group attacking a less powerful one. The aggressive behavior may be verbal (name calling or putdowns), physical (hitting, spitting, tripping), or psychological (rumors, shunning/exclusion). Parents shouldn’t intervene if it is just a squabble between two equally balanced children. But certainly intervene if you have concluded that bullying is taking place.

Studies show that bullying causes major problems for children of all ages such as depression, low self-esteem, and truancy. Without intervention, bullies also suffer as adults, they require more support from government agencies, have more court convictions and alcoholism, and use more mental health services. Even children who simply witness bullying incidents experience significant fear and anxiety. As serious and damaging as bullying is most victims do not report it. Even those who do are often discounted or ignored. Children who are bullied by their parents or older siblings often become bullies. Parents can use the definition of bullying to understand the extent to which their child may be in a bullying situation. Encourage your child to walk, talk, look the offender in the eye, and act confident. Work with your child on conflict management skills. And after exhausting all other possibilities, don’t hesitate to involve the local authorities if the circumstances should warrant it.

Tagged as: Abduction and Exploitation, Addictions, Bullying, child training, Early Childhood Education, Information, reasoning, Socialization and Homeschooling