Nearly every public campaign about the evils of sex trafficking involve child female victims. A majority of victims are female, but there are many male victims, and they are mostly silent. Societal expectations often lead men to feel that they should be “strong” and “a...
One of the best ways safe adults can help children who are suffering from abuse is to recognize and listen to their disclosures — even if they are done in stages or in subtle ways. A child may float a “trial balloon” disclosure, meaning he may use a single sentence or ...
This Christmas, your family will likely be in a crowd or two — at school functions, visiting Santa at the mall, Christmas Eve Mass. According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, over 400,000 children go missing every year in the US. Crowds are a ...
Safe adults should be on the lookout for signs of physical abuse in children in their care. Some signs include frequent bruises or cuts, frequent and unexplained absences or injuries. Physical abuse can include hitting, kicking, shaking, or other forceful actions, resu...
With the continuing support of Archbishop José H. Gomez, the third garden of healing in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles dedicated to victim-survivors of sexual abuse was recently dedicated at Saint Francis de Sales Parish in Sherman Oaks. These gardens are a manifestati...
Groomers start by picking out a potential victim, often a child who is emotionally vulnerable or isolated, or with low self-esteem. Then, groomers will start to slowly build a relationship — bonding over an alleged shared interest and expanding relationships out to bui...
As children get older, they need to understand not just the rules of social interaction but why people act (or don’t act) these ways. Children need to know how to set their own boundaries. The approaching holidays are a great time to discuss these boundaries and how to...
A child’s disclosure of abuse must always be taken seriously and handled properly by mandated reporters, teachers, and all trusted adults. The duty to report abuse is the ethically responsible action to take. Failure to report could result in repeated offenses, more se...
Every adult has the responsibility to make sports a safe and enjoyable experience for children. Playing sports helps children work on sportsmanship, goal setting, personal responsibility, and emotional control. But sports also include some risks — the potential for phy...
It is the job of adults — not minors — to protect children from harm and abuse. However, many minors are also volunteers at school and at church, which sometimes makes it difficult to know what roles minors should play. Within programs or ministries, there should alway...
Protecting children from pornography is getting harder and harder in today’s increasingly sexualized and digital world. When young people become addicted to pornography, it changes their brain chemistry and hinders their ability to grow in healthy, normal ways. Viewing...
While a primary focus of those in ministry is on protecting children from harm, protecting vulnerable adults is just as important. This includes adults living with mental, emotional, or physical disabilities, adults who have court-appointed guardians, elderly adults in...
It is good practice for parents to have ongoing conversations with their children about family values, safety, and “what if” scenarios. Talking with your children before something happens gives them the tools and confidence to make safe, good decisions, and to react ap...
Doxing is publicly sharing someone’s private information, like home address, phone number, or social security number, as a form of punishment or revenge putting them at risk of hacking, identity fraud, or other violence. If someone is doxed, they may have their phone n...
A key part of creating a safe environment is being a trusted adult to the children in your care. Children who have been abused are more likely to confide in a trusted adult whom they know will listen to and believe them. For this reason, it is important to affirm a chi...
Child abuse victims are often scared and anxious to tell a trusted adult about the abuse they have suffered. These fears prevent a majority of victims from telling their parents, teachers, or other trusted adults about abuse, which, sadly, perpetuates the cycle. Victim...
Parents and caregivers need to be aware of the many ways predators can develop online relationships with their victims. Predators often seek out children or teens who share a lot of information about themselves online and use that information to build “friendships” tha...
Human trafficking is the forced exploitation of people — it is estimated that 27 million people are enslaved across the world. This can include sweatshop labor, sex work, forced marriage, and more. Every state in the US. has documented instances of human trafficking. S...
Online exploitation and enticement of young people is an ongoing problem, across social media, gaming platforms, and other websites. Victims can range in age and background, making it harder to prevent exploitation. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Childre...
Children have the right to set their own boundaries based on what they are comfortable with. One way to be a safe adult is to honor these boundaries to the best of our abilities. For example, if a child doesn’t want to high five, we can honor that desire and find anoth...