{"id":6,"date":"2017-02-27T14:39:41","date_gmt":"2017-02-27T14:39:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fs.wp.odu.edu\/llombard\/?page_id=6"},"modified":"2017-02-27T14:39:41","modified_gmt":"2017-02-27T14:39:41","slug":"words-form-in-support-of-children-vigil-2017","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/fs.wp.odu.edu\/llombard\/words-form-in-support-of-children-vigil-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"Words form In Support of Children Vigil 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"

Words from 12th Annual IN SUPPORT OF CHILDREN Vigil <\/em><\/h3>\n

Honoring Children Who Lost their Lives at the Hands of those Who Should Love Them<\/em><\/h3>\n

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DR. Karen A. Polonko<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

This is our First Vigil without our Founder and Leader Dr. Karen A. Polonko. Karen passed in August of 2016.<\/p>\n

Her inspiration and energy will be with us forever!<\/p>\n

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Jennifer Kennard President, In Support of Children <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Welcome everyone to In Support of Children\u2019s 12th Annual Candle Light Vigil. My name is Jennifer Kennard and I am the current president of In Support of Children.<\/p>\n

In Support of Children is a student organization founded at ODU that volunteers at Park Place Child Life Center in Norfolk, brings in speakers to talk about the negative effects of corporal punishment, and honors the lives of children that have died at the hands of their caregivers every year at this event.<\/p>\n

Our main goal is to educate the public on how detrimental corporal punishment is and we aim to end all forms of violence against children.<\/p>\n

The Vigil is my favorite event that this organization is apart of due to the fact that the reasons we are here are so important. We\u2019re here to honor the lives of children that have died by the hands of those that were supposed to love and nurture them. We want to keep the memory of these children alive so they did not die in vain. We remember their horrific stories to remember that we should do everything we can to stop abuse from happening. While we come together with heavy hearts and sadness, we also come together to celebrate the lives of these children and our courage to advocate for them. We speak out for them and tell their stories because they cannot.<\/p>\n

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Nick Adams, Faculty Advisor to In Support of Children <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

“A Human Right and Its Violation”<\/strong><\/p>\n

Over 26 years ago the world embarked on a journey, a commitment to children across the world. With the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, we made a promise to protect our children and promote their human rights so that they can grow and thrive and reach their full potential.<\/p>\n

Among those is the right to live free of violence of any form.<\/p>\n

Article 19 of the UN CRC states that .<\/a><\/p>\n

States Parties shall take all appropriate legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to protect the child from all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse, while in the care of parent(s), legal guardian(s) or any other person who has the care of the child.<\/em><\/p>\n

To date, 51 countries around the world have abolished legal support for corporal punishment of children in all contexts, schools, and family, child-care, juvenile justice.<\/p>\n

Until 2015, Somalia and the U.S. were the only countries in the UN that had yet to ratify the CRC. As of now, the U.S. is the only country that has not ratified the CRC. A<\/p>\n

s a country we claim to be the land of the free, however, children are one population that are far from that when it comes to their right to the sanctity of their body and their being. In his country, and around the world, children are seen as the property of their parents. This places them in very vulnerable situations, including experiencing violence at the hands of those who are supposed to love and protect them.<\/p>\n

It seems that the main worry when it comes to corporal punishment is the right of the parent to discipline how they see fit, regardless of the negative outcomes associated with CP and the way it strips children of their human dignity.<\/p>\n

We must put an end to this violence against children, and begin to treat them like the human beings they are. I would like to talk briefly about the child abuse both locally and nationally to give us an idea of the scope of this issue.<\/p>\n

Statistics on CP and abuse:<\/p>\n

\u2022 70% of adults in the US agree, \u201cIt is sometimes necessary to discipline a child with a good hard spanking. (GSS 2014)<\/p>\n

\u2022 55% – Moderate physical discipline – Slapped face; spanked with hand on buttocks; hit head with knuckles; pulled hair; pinched; twisted ear; forced to kneel or stand in one position; hit buttocks with an object such as stick, broom, or belt; hit elsewhere other than buttocks with an object; put hot pepper or spicy food in child\u2019s mouth; shook child aged 2\u201318 yrs.<\/p>\n

Hampton Roads<\/p>\n

\u2022 13 child fatalities in 2015 that were founded as a result of abuse or neglect<\/p>\n

\u2022 85% were age 3 or younger<\/p>\n

\u2022 Approximately 40% died from physical abuse<\/p>\n

\u2022 Other 60% found to have died from neglect<\/p>\n

Virginia<\/p>\n

\u2022 Almost 50,000 children were reported as possible victims of abuse and neglect in 2015<\/p>\n

\u2022 Of those, approximately 6,500 were founded reports<\/p>\n

\u2022 32% of those children were under age 4<\/p>\n

\u2022 75% were under age 12 \u2022 A child is abused or neglected every 75 minutes \u2022<\/p>\n

Every 14 days a child dies from abuse or neglect<\/p>\n

Nationally<\/p>\n

\u2022 Approximately 1,600 children die in from abuse and neglect<\/p>\n

\u2022 Over 3 million children are investigated by the CPS annually<\/p>\n

\u2022 There are over 600,000 substantiated cases of child abuse and neglect each year<\/p>\n

Effects of Corporal Punishment and Child Physical Abuse<\/p>\n