A pinwheel is a universal symbol of joy. It's hard not to smile with a pinwheel in your hand, which is why it was selected as the national symbol for prevention of child abuse.
In a perfect world, child abuse would not exist; every child would be joyful, happy, safe and loved. Sadly, we do not live in a perfect world. We live in a world where a report of child abuse is made to authorities every ten seconds of every day. We live in a world where more than one in ten of our children are sexually abused before they turn 18. We live in a world where adults routinely damage children emotionally and physically. We live in a world where people by and sell our children for sex. Our world is definitely not perfect, and the worst part is the deafening silence around this issue, especially the issue of sexual abuse. Revved Up Kids believes at its core that we will never solve the problem of child sexual abuse until adults can have open, productive, conversations about the issue. Did you know that there are an estimated 40 million adults in the US who are survivors of sexual abuse? Contrast that to cancer, which has about 14 million US survivors. How many people do you know who have battled cancer? Statistically, you probably know three times as many who are sexual abuse survivors; but they are people whose pain is hidden because it's not a comfortable conversation.
This post is a call to action. The staff at Revved Up Kids is working tirelessly every day to ensure the safety of all children, but we need your help! If you are a survivor, be brave and speak up. Tell your story and empower other survivors to do the same. If you are reading this post, vow to do just one thing to be part of the solution. Contact us, donate, volunteer, speak out; just take one action step.
It's time we mandate that joyful, happy, loved and safe isn't a privilege, it's a right for all of our children.
Revved Up Kids has trained tens of thousands of children to recognize dangerous people, avoid unsafe situations, and escape attackers. Our training programs are available for boys and girls in K-12th grade, for parents, and for youth serving organizations. Contact us to discuss protecting the children you love from predators and violence, 678.526.3335.