No kids but you still care

No Kids but you still care

Maybe your kids are all grown up. You were able to protect your child from predation. Phew! Well done. Do you have grandkids? Yes? You and the family have been sure to teach your kids to swim and wear a helmet when they ride, right? We all wear seat belts in a moving vehicle now, but it hasn’t always been that way. Body-safe education is not any different. Body-safe education is foundational to personal safety in this day and age—check-in with your offspring and grandkids. Start the conversation because the last thing you would every want is to have your little gem targeted by a sexual offender. Learn about risk factors. Build your kids’ prevention team. Educate yourself on what concerning behaviours look like and how to respond. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Maybe you don’t want kids, never wanted kids, but you’ve got some nieces, nephews or cousins who you love to bits. You are a possible candidate for their safety network! A youth or child should have three to five trusted adults they can come to about anything. Show how much you care about the safety of your young family members and educate yourself on the CSA. Model healthy physical, emotional, sexual and social boundaries. Learn about what constitutes concerning behaviour and how you can respond if you observe these behaviours in a child, youth or adult.

Maybe you want kids, but it hasn’t happened yet. You have kids in your circle that are special to you. Same as above, show your commitment to their safety by educating yourself on CSA. Ask about the youth or child’s safety network and body-safe education. Your friends and family may already be on it. And if not, then this is a great opportunity to discuss creating one. Support your family and friends by modelling healthy boundaries with their kids.

Maybe you don’t want kids, never wanted kids, but you enjoy kids in small doses. Do you have kids in your friends’ circle that are important to you? The role of the trusted-adult-outside-the-family is integral to building a robust safety network for the kids you care about. As much as we don’t want to think about or consider that a family member might do something inappropriate to the youth or child you know, it happens. Statistics from 2009 show more than half the time (59%) it’s parents (including biological, adoptive, step and foster) who are the perpetrators of all family-related sexual offences and physical assaults.

Maybe you wanted kids, but that’s not how it panned out. Even without kids, you know the sexual exploitation of youth and children needs to stop. Look in your life. Where do you see or come in contact with youth and children? Do you have young neighbours that regularly play on your street? Maybe there’s a bus stop where youth hang around that you’ve noticed on your evening commute or a mall where you frequently see familiar groups of kids. Maybe you watch the children in your congregation grow up between each service. You can be part of the culture of prevention. Consider educating yourself on by-stander intervention, the risk factors for kids, and what concerning behaviours look like in a child, youth or adult.

A great place to start is by reading this brochure by the Canadian Centre for Child Protection

Child Sexual Abuse: It’s your business https://protectchildren.ca/en/order/product/117:en/

Next, consider registering for one of the training sessions available from any one of the organizations on the resources page. If you’re unsure which one is right for you, feel free to drop me a line. I’m happy to go over the various training and help you choose what is best for you.

From there, the sky’s the limit! You get to choose how you want to contribute to a culture of prevention. You could volunteer or donate to an organization working to reduce CSA. Or you could contribute to an organization providing support and healing to survivors. It could be simply sharing what you are learned with a friend or acquaintance. You can stop child sexual abuse from continuing by educating yourself on the issue and contributing to a culture of prevention.