Talking to Your Child for their Safety…

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An overwhelming number of children are being sexually abused & silenced by someone they know and in far too many cases, by someone they love and trust. It is so important to explain to your child that although they are generally expected to respect adults and authority, that there are exceptions to that rule.

Teach your child that it is ok to say “NO”.

Teach your child that they should never keep any secrets they are being told to keep and/or being threatened to keep. Teach them it is ok to “TELL”, no matter what they are being told.

~Susan Suafoa-Dinino, President/Founder, SpeakingOut against Child Sexual Abuse, Inc.

A Difficult Topic…

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Child Sexual Abuse…quite a difficult topic. There’s no doubt about that. To not want to think of such things is normal and natural. I mean, who wants to imagine what children go through? Who wants to think about the person that could sexually violate a child? Who wants to imagine that the sexual perpetrator could very well be someone you know and/or love?

On the other hand and the point of this post is this… If we cannot stand to think about or talk about the sexual abuse of children, what are the children supposed to do? Imagine what the child feels. Imagine what the child is going through and/or went through. The child is the one enduring this horrific violation and everything that goes along with that.

So when it gets hard and it seems much easier to just put the sexual abuse of children in the back of your mind, I ask you to think about this. The children need us…the adults…to step up and be their voice. They need us…the adults…to be the ones to educate them at the age appropriate level on the dangers out there. They need us to be looking for the signs that something is not right. They need us to care. They need us to be brave. They need us to act. And if/when they disclose, they need us to believe them.

~Susan Suafoa-Dinino, President/Founder, SpeakingOut against Child Sexual Abuse, Inc.

Those Who Sexually Violate Children…

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As we continue fighting against the crime of child sexual abuse through Awareness, Prevention, steps toward Healing, etc…, there are so many in the world who get away with what they are doing to children. It’s disheartening, discouraging and downright tragic for children of all ages.

In the multitudes of cases when the child does not disclose for all the reasons that is likely… or the child does disclose and then the systems in place that are supposed to protect children fails them, it brings me great comfort to know that even though the perpetrators think what they are doing is in secret and that they may very well get away with it, that ultimately and in the end, they will not get away with anything.

“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” Hebrews 4:13

In the meantime, we should all keep doing what we are doing in the fight against child sexual abuse…for the children! That is our responsibility.

~Susan Suafoa-Dinino, President/Founder, SpeakingOut against Child Sexual Abuse, Inc.

Abolish the Civil Statute of Limitations(SOL) for Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse

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Opportunity to Sign this Petition brought to SpeakingOut’s attention…

https://www.change.org/p/societies-need-to-protect-children-from-predators-does-not-end-with-time-neither-should-a-childhood-sexual-abuse-survivors-access-to-justice?recruiter=864086434&recruited_by_id=3cdc7710-95ea-11ec-a7ca-fbe6da453e01&utm_source=share_petition&utm_campaign=share_petition&utm_term=share_petition&utm_medium=copylink&pt=AVBldGl0aW9uALRjMQEAAAAAYf7Tv0Gi6CdhMThjNWRkYg%3D%3D&utm_content=cl_sharecopy_20014004_en-US%3A7

A SURVIVOR SPEAKS OUT…

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…THROUGH HER BOOK OF POEMS.

I have had the opportunity and pleasure of reading “Silhouette of a Songbird” by Elizabeth Shane and highly recommend it…not just for other Survivors, but for all adults. It will no doubt help you understand and see clearly the impact that childhood sexual abuse has not only on the child victim, but throughout the child’s life and into adulthood. This book also proves that healing is possible.

You can find this book on Amazon.

~Susan Suafoa-Dinino, President/Founder, SpeakingOut against Child Sexual Abuse, Inc.