States are worried that child abuse and neglect is spiking due to pandemic-related family stress, yet maltreatment reports are down by 50% because children are invisible outside the household.
Prospects are particularly grim for neglected infants and toddlers, where lifelong damage can be inflicted in a matter of months, and for children confined with sexual predators or violent adults.
However imperfectly, Governors and public health agencies in most states, including Minnesota, have responded to COVID-19 with massive public education, exhaustive efforts to identify victims, and extensive follow-up.
Only a handful of states – not including Minnesota – have implemented thoughtful campaigns to reach hidden victims of child maltreatment.
This fall Safe Passage will produce a webinar series to increase public awareness of this issue and spur officials to action. We will also explore concrete ideas for addressing it in upcoming blogs.
As we prepare these webinar series, what questions do you have concerning this topic of child abuse during the COVID-19 Pandemic?
CORRECTION: Last week we incorrectly identified the title of the book by our board member and guest blogger Judy Schumacher. It is Terrific Toddlers! and is available at lulu.com. We offer our sincerest apologies, Judy.
SAVE THE DATE!The next Safe Passage webinar is August 19th: Registration opens on Monday for our next webinar featuring the highly regarded St. David’s Center for Child & Family Development, which serves many families in the child protection system.