In my Inbox today…
I am often frustrated by the fact that it seems as if we can talk about anything in our society ad nauseum but the true reality of child sex abuse. What is that reality? Over 90% of child sex abuse victims have been abused by someone close to them- a parent, a sibling, a relative, a neighbor, a teacher, a coach, a pastor, elder, priest, youth leaders, and among others. Child sex abuse happens more in homes by those the victim knows and trusts than anywhere else. Most of the sexual and physical abuse I suffered throughout my entire childhood was from people I was in often daily contact with - family members, neighbors, professional people and clergy.
The following is from an email I received today from a great organization (Darkness To Light) telling over and over the true reality of child sex abuse and working hard to train adults to help prevent the abuse. Recently they have started to release a series of public service announcements that are quite controversal, yet hit the mark on what most perpetrators look like and sound like- they are often our relatives, our neighbors, and others we trust our children to be with. They are disturbing because they are so real and true.
(Caution to survivors: these videos may be upsetting for you,so take care of yourself if you are in a vulnerable place.)
The new Darkness to Light public service announcements have caused quite a stir — and you can read about it and experience them in a blog that Jesse Kornbluth, a member of our advisory board, has just published on HuffingtonPost.com, the most influential blog in the world, according to The Guardian.
To read it and access links to the PSAs, click here. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jesse-kornbluth/coach-and-uncle-as-perver_b_118804.html
If you have seen the PSAs, which were developed by Darkness to Light’s media partner Young & Rubicam, you know that the campaign shows responsible-looking, middle-aged white men confessing that they’re not just coaches or uncles — they have a nasty secret, and it involves your kid. This is factually accurate: 90% of child sexual abuse incidents are most often perpetrated by someone known to the child and/or the child’s family.
Viewers are outraged, and they should be — not at the PSAs, but at the reality of child sexual abuse. In the blog, Anne Lee, President and CEO of Darkness to Light, urges the public to turn anger into action — to come to the D2L.org site and start to learn how to recognize, prevent and react responsibly to child sexual abuse.
If you want to do something about the epidemic of child sexual abuse, this is your chance. You can:
1. Forward this post to all of the responsible adults in you know..
2. Click the “Buzz Up” button on the HuffingtonPost article to move it to a “Big News” category, ensuring that many people see the article.
Since the spots began airing on CNN and Lifetime, visits to the Darkness to Light website have increased 200% in the past 2 weeks! That’s the power of media!
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Darkness to Light is a national nonprofit 501c3 organization and initiative located in Charleston, SC whose mission is to diminish the incidence and impact of child sexual abuse, so that more children will grow up healthy and whole and to raise awareness of the prevalence and consequences of child sexual abuse by educating adults about the steps they can take to prevent, recognize and react responsibly to the reality of child sexual abuse.
Another Darkness to Light Video: