S: Is for the rights of Children

On Wednesday I wrote about Flirt cosmetics and promised a column on the charity it was benefiting. Children's Rights is a national organization advocating on behalf of abused and neglected children in the U.S. Since 1995, the organization has used legal action and policy initiatives to create lasting improvements in child protection, foster care and education. Their goal is to ensure that every child who is abused or neglected, invisible and voiceless, receives the treatment and care he or she needs, and grows up in a permanent and loving home. You would think in this day and age we wouldn't need this but we do.

In the early twentieth century, movements began to promote the idea of children's rights and required recognition. However, the first effective attempt to promote children's rights was the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, in 1923 and adopted by the League of Nations in 1924. This was accepted by the United Nations and updated in 1959, and replaced with a more extensive UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989.

Yet still far too many children are abused and neglected and then go on to be further abused and neglected by child welfare agencies not set up for their protection. No matter what the root cause - poverty, homelessness, adolescent parenthood, parent substance abuse, HIV/AIDS, etc. The government is legally responsible for protecting children from the moment abuse and/or neglect is reported and throughout a child’s stay in foster care. In 2003, more than 3 million children in the U.S. were reported victims of abuse and neglect. Of the reported cases, 900,000 were substantiated. Currently, nearly 525,000 of the children who are abused and neglected live in foster care. Children linger in foster care. The average stay of is 31 months. Sixteen percent have been in foster care for five or more years. Approximately 20,000 age out of foster care every year, without a connection to a caring adult. Many still need support and services. This statistics are staggering. To find out more log onto www.childrensrights.org

I have been advocate for the rights of Children for a very long time maybe because I was once one of those children. My life looked perfect until you lived it. I have seen this issue from every angle and know it needs to be addressed. Children's Rights is addressing the issues and that is a F.A.C.T.