Sexual Assault of Young Children Frequent; Majority Suffer in Silence
November 5, 2007—Denver—State sexual assault
prevention experts Monday said the
sexual assault of young children, although shocking, is not
unusual. Jen Bruner, prevention education coordinator for
the Colorado
Department of Public Health and Environment’s Sexual Assault
Prevention Program, said, “Child sexual abuse is something
no one
likes to think about, but it happens with alarming
frequency. It must be
brought out of the shadows because child sexual abuse
thrives on
secrecy.” Darkness to Light, a national child sexual abuse
prevention
organization, reports that on the national level one in four
girls and
one in six boys are sexually abused before the age of 18,
and nearly 70
percent of all reported sexual assaults occur to children
ages 17 and
under. Bruner noted that sexual violence is widespread in
Colorado. The
department recently released findings from the 2005
Behavioral Risk
Factor Surveillance System, a telephone survey of Colorado
residents
that collects information on a broad range of health issues
including
sexual violence. Survey data indicated that about 14
percent, or one in
seven, of Colorado women and 2 percent, or one in 50, of
Colorado men
had experienced a completed sexual assault at some point
during their
lives. This is equivalent to an estimated 212,900 women and
25,400 men. Bruner said, “Sexual assaults to children are
occurring every day,
and most cases do not make the news. In some instances, they
may be
occurring in our own families, to our neighbors or our
children’s
friends. Although keeping children safe is a top priority,
many adults
do not have the knowledge and skills they need to protect
their children
from sexual abuse.”
To assist parents and caregivers in protecting their
children from
sexual violence, Bruner provided the following prevention
tips:
- Recognize that preventing child sexual abuse is an
adult
responsibility. Children cannot be expected to protect
themselves from a
predator.
- Understand that the vast majority of child sexual
abuse is
committed by someone the child knows, often a relative
or a family
friend. While teaching children about strangers is
important, talking to
them about their safety with family and friends is
equally important.
- Sexual offenders get access to children by being in
a caregiving
role or by gaining the trust of their caregivers. Be
very cautious about
who your children spend one-on-one time with.
- Talk with your children about their entire bodies
including
their private parts. Open dialogue about their bodies
and the changes
they go through as they grow promotes healthy sexual
development.
“Preventing sexual abuse requires providing adults
with the
knowledge and skills they need to keep children safe. It
also includes
training adult caregivers to raise children that do not
violate the
rights of others. It is critical to raise young people who
will not
become the next generation of sexual perpetrators. Creating
a world in
which children are not prey for sexual predators requires
changes in
attitude and behavior by the people in charge, the adult
caregivers,”
said Bruner. The Sexual Assault Prevention Program at the
Department of Public
Health and Environment funds local programs throughout the
state to
prevent sexual violence before it occurs. By providing
Sexual Assault Prevention Fund grants, the department
supports the planning,
implementation and evaluation of programs developed in
collaboration
with specific communities. Grants were awarded in August
2007 to nine
Colorado programs for prevention within a broad range of
communities. Sexual Assault Prevention Fund grant
recipients that focus specifically
on preventing the sexual abuse of young children include
Blue Sky Bridge
in Boulder, the Denver Children’s Advocacy Center in Denver,
and SHARE
Inc. in Fort Morgan.
For more information about child sexual assault
prevention, the public
may call Bruner at 303-692-2469. --30-- |
