...Dr. Mailloux says, "at the center this year in Sioux Falls, we will see at least 700 to 800 children, where 3 to 4 years ago we saw 200 to 300 children."
Dr. Mailloux says more than half those kids are from Minnehaha County. He believes part of the increase can be traced to parents and professionals knowing what to look for. But it's only a piece of the puzzle. "But I also think that unfortunately child abuse is becoming more prevalent in our area."
Even worse, child abuse appears to be more prevalent in our area than other parts of the country. Dr. Mailloux says our area sees twice as many child physical and sexual abuse cases as Dayton, Ohio, a metro area similar in size to Sioux Falls.
What's wrong with us? Why would South Dakotans be hurting their own children at all, not to mention hurting them more often? Could it be related to our near-top-in-the-nation rates of alcohol abuse and dependency (10.2%, 3rd in the nation in 2003-2004)? I wish I knew the cause so we could stomp it out of existence.
One factor the abuse rates apparently aren't related to is abortion rates. Professor Schaff suggested a couple weeks ago that "the abortion culture promotes child abuse." South Dakota has one of the lowest abortion rates in the nation, 6 per 1000 women of reproductive age. Ohio (Dayton, remember?) has an abortion rate of 15 per 1000 women of reproductive age, above the national average of 14.1. Those numbers suggest Ohio is much more a part of the so-called "abortion culture," yet Dr. Mailloux tells us South Dakota kids are in more danger of abuse.
Consider this just another example of how the legislature and our moral crusaders should spend less time crying for another year of abortion politics and concentrate on real, growing problems in our state. It might even be that child abuse, like abortion, is not going to be solved by legislation. But we need to figure out what's wrong and reach out to people so they feel like they belong and don't have to turn to violence or alcohol or other false paths to "deal" with their problems. Our kids deserve better, and we have a responsibility as a community to do better.
Child Abuse on the rise?
ReplyDeleteHmmm check out Title IV Federal funding.
Maybe that'll help.
Title IV is a federal program; even if it does drive some increase in reporting (if that's Louise's thesis), it should drive similar increases nationwide, not a spike in our area. It seems there must be some local factor involved as well.
ReplyDeletecoralhei,
ReplyDeleteHave you looked into the national child abuse numbers?
The rate at which children are being pulled from their families is alarming.
Don't believe me, find out for yourself.
God Bless the internet, and all it's wonderful information right at our fingertips.
If you take a peek at my blog, take special note of the Whistle Blower Blog, from a lawyer in Mass, see what he has to say on this subject.
Louise
I did peek at your blog -- sounds like you've bad through some rough times. Stay tough!
ReplyDeleteNational child abuse numbers -- got a link? I would like to see some state-by-state comparisons. The numbers from our local news cite one doctor working at one site in Sioux Falls. He's no fake, but I was always like as many stats as possible.
Ever consider that those allegations of abuse are lies? Yep, lies were told about my son and he lost his kids....and the only reason was Title IV monies that child services and family courts could steal from OUR social security funds. It is nothing but a corrupt racket happening everywhere. I would say that the increase in ND is not child abuse, it is an increase in lyers! Child services LOVES anonymous calls so they can destroy innocent family's lives and grab all that free gubnet money.
ReplyDeleteHow about the abuse that goes on within the foster homes themselves. When the child protection service agencies come in and remove the children from the families that they are trying to protect them from, and yet what happens to those reports. The fact is that children in the United States are being physically sexually and emotionally abused more by the states and the so called Child Protection agencies and Foster Care far more above and beyond [AND IT IS COVERED UP]than what their own parents could have done to them. It is a known fact that Children Services and Foster Care is a profit driven racketeer for the sole purpose of monetary gain. Now I am sure the figures are different from state to state however it is quite a bit of money in New York for one child, The Foster agency will recieve $60.000 per year per child, the foster parent will recieve from $700 to over $1000 a month per child depending if they can get them declared special needs or not, plus they can get foodstamps and wic and medical assistance, clothing money, furniture money, and so on and so on........THIS IS A FACT........and what also is a fact is that the majority of the children and families that these people prey upon are of the black and latino communities, that is not to say that they don't attack white communities however the majority of the families are of black and latino culture. AND WHY IS THAT? COULD IT BE THAT THEY ARE PERCIEVED AS AN INDIGENT PEOPLE WITH NO RESOURCES TO FIGHT? not knowledgable in the laws that could protect them? or is it that society really believes that black and latino families and poor white families abuse and neglect their children more, WHY? BECAUSE OF THE ZIP CODE THEY LIVE IN. HHMMMMM something to think about. MAYBE IF THESE AGENCIES WOULD GIVE THE NATURAL FAMILIES HALF THE MONEY THAT THEY GIVE THE FOSTER PARENTS IT WOULD SOLVE ALOT OF PROBLEMS FOR THEM {MAYBE NOT ALL BUT IT IS A START} IT MOST CERTAIN WOULD REDUCE AN AMOUNT OF STRESS OFF OF THE FAMILIES..............THE PROBLEM HERE IS THAT OUR CHILDREN ARE IN DESPERATE NEED OF PROTECTION.....HOWEVER THE PROTECTION THAT THEY ARE IN NEED OF IS THE PROTECTION FROM THE SYSTEM THEMSELVES.....YOU ALL NEED TO CHECK OUT A.C.S. MUST BE STOPPED, AS LOUISE SAID TITLE IV FEDERAL FUNDING, AND THE WHISTLE BLOWER BLOG....VERY VERY INFORMATIVE..............
ReplyDeleteMARJORIE
I am a former CPS worker from NYC with over ten years experience, most of it in Emergency Children's Services.
ReplyDeleteI know that the numbers of allegations are going up and the numbers of removals went up after the media show around the Nixzmary Brown case (there are around two to three such cases per month in NYC alone.) After this media show removals skyrocketed and have gone down some but are still for more numerous than previously.
These removals and foster care itself are Federally subsidized. Foster care is a failure and a disaster and should only come into play in the case of an abandoned child who has no relatives to help her. The child removal industry has its roots in the 19th Century when mainly Catholic immigrant children were taken away from their impoverished homes and sent West to work on Protestant owned farms as foster children and as adoptees in what were called "orphan trains" Of course the children were not orphans, they were kidnap victims. This blot on our history has the lives on today.