Sep 21, 2010

We have to rely on each other

This post is inspired by a discussion on Facebook today along with a discussion I had in real life earlier today with my aquatherapist. She has a two-year-old son. Recently she and her husband took their son to the Baltimore Aquarium...also a sea of children running around. At one point she noticed her husband was not holding their son's hand because the child wanted to run ahead to another exhibit. My therapist immediately gathered up her child and explained to her husband that the Aquarium was the perfect breeding ground for a pedophile and they were not going to let go of their son.

This is what I have been saying in another way. We have to think like a pedophile to protect our children. They look like anyone else and they get along splendidly with children. Am recalling an Oprah show where a well liked neighbor had molested many of the neighborhood children including his own.

The State Departments of Children Services (DCS) are generally understaffed and underfunded. Neighbors need to be better neighbors and not give up even if DCS has visited and found no wrong doing. A story in the news today tells of diligent neighbors who kept complaining until proper intervention was made and two young children were pulled from a home of filth and squalor.

If it's a popular place for children, time to tighten up parental supervision. The good guys need to be their own police and we need a reliable enforcement system for when parents are being abusive. A community-driven child safety organization...that is also willing to look within its own ranks.


1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Grace

Having worked in CP services, I can tell you it takes more then just workers to keep children safe. Many times the families can hide what they are doing. Look at how well our families kept their secrets and we kept them for them.

Ravin