April marks Child Abuse Prevention Month. This year’s theme is “Building a Hopeful Future, Together,” with a focus on creating environments that are nurturing and supportive. Each year, we are reminded of the ongoing need for child abuse awareness. The latest national data shows that across the United States, almost 560,000 children were reported victims of child abuse or neglect in 2022. The good news is that child abuse and neglect are preventable. And everyone has a role in creating safe, supportive environments for children.
Building
Building something takes time. Not everything can be expected to be done in one day. Preventing child abuse is no different. We know that not all child abuse will stop overnight. But that fact should not stop us for building steadily toward a future without abuse.
A Hopeful Future
To build with prevention in mind, we must not lose hope. Each step we take that prevents one action of neglect or abuse for one child is a step toward a hopeful future. We must be reminded of how far we have come. Of the good done in the past so we keep taking steps toward the future.
Together
We cannot prevent child abuse and build supportive environments alone. It takes all of us participating in awareness campaigns, sharing with our friends and family, and sharing on our social media to create a tipping point toward making a difference. This year’s national campaign provides a few key actions each of us can take throughout the month.
- April 5th is Wear Blue Day. Wearing blue shows your support for child abuse prevention efforts. If you wear blue tomorrow, consider taking pictures and posting on your social media account using #WearBlueDay2024 as support for the nationwide campaign. Encourage your friends, family, and colleagues to also participate. You can have a “wear blue day” contest at work or set up a backdrop where teams can take pictures together for their social media accounts.
- April 16th is Digital Advocacy Day. The purpose of this day is to provide a call to action to contact elected officials and advocate for increased funding and support for prevention programs. Preventchildabuse.org provides resources that make it easy for anyone to use.
- Throughout April, share on social media or consider purchasing blue pinwheels. Pinwheel Displays have long been a visual representation of Child Abuse Prevention. For digital displays, you can plant a virtual pinwheel display. Or anyone can follow and share social media content provided by Prevent Child Abuse America and National Child Abuse Prevention Month. They suggest using the following tags: #BuildingTogether, #CapMonth2024, #HopefulFutures.
Remember that every small step matters if we all take one together. Let’s make this year’s Prevention Awareness Month one where we all take actions steps for child abuse prevention awareness.
