YMCA calls on the community to put children’s safety first

From June 7-11, the Fanwood-Scotch Plains YMCA will be participating in the Five Days of Action, a week designed to raise awareness and inspire adults to take action to protect children from sexual abuse.

Throughout the week, the Y will be providing information and resources on its social media accounts and encouraging local residents to join in its efforts to make the community a safer place for children to live, learn and play. As summer activities and camps begin to ramp up, June is the perfect time to bring attention to the simple ways we can all make the children in our community safer.

To that end, the Y will be focusing on the simple steps of KNOW. SEE. RESPOND. to help adults better protect children. When adults know how abuse happens, see the warning signs, and respond quickly to prevent abuse, they foster a culture of child abuse prevention. Together, we can bring awareness to the issue of child sexual abuse in our communities and have important conversations about how we can all work together to prevent it from happening.

“The past year has been challenging for families and we’re grateful that we can be a fun, safe environment for the children in our community,” said Kathy Barros, the Fanwood-Scotch Plains YMCA’s Senior Director of Child Care Services. “By celebrating the Five Days of Action and focusing on KNOW. SEE. RESPOND. we hope we’re encouraging other organizations to create safe spaces that protect children from sexual abuse.”

The Fanwood-Scotch Plains YMCA, with support from the YMCA Guardians for Child Protection, YMCA of the USA, Darkness to Light, the Redwoods Group Foundation, Praesidium, and the Monique Burr Foundation for Children have made materials available to help adults learn more about preventing child sexual abuse.

For more information about preventing child sexual abuse visit www.fivedaysofaction.org. Materials are derived from YMCA of the USA’s “Know. See. Respond.” copyrighted in 2020.

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CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE STATISTICS - PROVIDED BY DARKNESS TO LIGHT

• One in ten children will be sexually abused before their 18th birthday.

• 90% of child sexual abuse victims know their abuser.

• Approximately 30% of children who are sexually abused are abused by family members.

• 60% of child sexual abuse victims never tell anyone.

• False reports are rare. Research shows that only 4 to 8% of child sexual abuse reports are fabricated.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU BELIEVE A CHILD IS BEING ABUSED - PROVIDED BY DARKNESS TO LIGHT

• You do not need to have proof that abuse is occurring to make a report, only reasonable suspicion. Reasonable suspicion means that you have witnessed maltreatment or boundary violations, either in the child or adult, or both. Or, you have received a disclosure from a child about abuse, neglect, or boundary violations towards them.

• Child sexual abuse reports should be made to the police and/or state child protective services.

• Contact the Darkness to Light Helpline at 866-FOR-LIGHT or text LIGHT to 741741 to have questions answered by trained counselors at no charge.

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The Fanwood-Scotch Plains YMCA is dedicated to improving the quality of life of the individuals, families and communities it serves through programs and services that build wholeness of spirit, mind and body. The YMCA is a not-for-profit organization founded on Christian principles, serving people of all ages, races, faith, cultures and socio-economic conditions. For information, please call the Fanwood-Scotch Plains YMCA at (908) 889-8880 or visit https://fspymca.org. Financial assistance is available for those who qualify.