The young victims of sexual abuse; hotline numbers in article

Thursday, 10 November 2011 20:06

The young victims of sexual abuse; hotline numbers in article

Written by Scott LaMar, Director of Radio Smart Talk

Radio Smart Talk for Monday, November 14:

"Say a little prayer for the kids."

Those were the words of former Penn State head football coach Joe Paterno Wednesday night as he walked back into his State College home after being informed that the school's Board of Trustees had dismissed him.

Paterno was referring to the young victims of sexual assault allegedly committed by former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky. A Grand Jury presentment listed eight young boys as victims.

Much of the attention of the so-called Penn State Scandal has focused on the adults involved in the case directly or indirectly. Many are asking, "What about the kids?"

On Monday's Radio Smart Talk, we'll talk to three child abuse service providers about sexual assaults against children, how to keep kids safe from predators, what to look for and how to get help.

Contact information to report sexual abuse or you have been the victim of sexual abuse:

Hero Project: 1-877-874-HERO (4376) www.heroproject.org

YWCA of Greater Harrisburg: 1-800-654-1211 www.ywcahbg.org

PA Coalition Against Rape: 1-888-772-PCAR (7227) www.pcar.prg

ChildLine: 1-800-932-0313

Stop It Now! www.stopitnow.org

Guests:

Cathleen Palm, executive director of Protect Our Children Committee.

Tina L. Nixon, Chief Executive Officer, YWCA of Greater Harrisburg

Kristen Houser, Vice President of Communications and Development for the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape

LISTEN TO PROGRAM:

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# Robert Colgan 2011-11-14 10:01

Some Clues That A Child's Sexually Victimized :

blood in the child's underwear,
extreme loss of appetite,
great difficulty sleeping or recurrent nightmares,
screaming, crying, begging not to be left with a relative or babysitter,
unusual awareness of sexual matters,
publicly masturbating,
sudden changes in eating,
clinging behavior,
self-destructive acts,
frequent complaint of feeling sick,
aggression/violence to others,
attempts to initiate sexual contact with adults,
hypervigilance,
drawing pictures of sexual acts or of people with detailed genitals,
depression,
high anxiety,
restricted emotions,
suicidal gestures,
profound change in school performance,
radical loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities,

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# Robert Colgan 2011-11-14 10:03

Continued......

radical loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities,
truancy,
vandalism,
running away,
“booby-trapping” or putting barriers in front of the bedroom door,
use of protective rituals prior to going to bed,
wearing many layers of clothes to bed,
sleeping with baseball bats or knives or other weapons,
bed wetting after being toilet trained,
being very still or rigid in posture while being dressed/undressed,
sleeping or hiding in protected areas such as under beds or in closets,
sleep walking,
expressions related to being physically damaged or deformed

(from Mic Hunter, Abused Boys ISBN 0-669-20866-3)

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# Karen 2011-11-14 11:48

My question is why the moderator did not respond to the one caller that shared his voluntary removal of his sex drive to manage better in the society we live in. What a missed opportunity to engage in conversation with such a person. The others were not even included in responding as another caller was sent in to rescue with something we can discuss with more ease, despite the nasty topic...my Navy dad stole my innocence...Thanks for the program, surely a challenge to pull off/

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# Helen 2011-11-14 11:48

Society has allowed this to happen because the right of the soveirgn is still recognized. Judges and others in power do this sort of thing to adults coming into their courts like in Luzerne County and that dude in Western Pa. years ago. Why do you think Sandusky thought it was OK? The powerful want this to go on as it makes many people stop becoming active politically because their kids and them may be targeted by police. Saw lots of it happen in the lower classes where I live.

Vulnerable people are not going to be protected until judges and D.A.'s have term limits so they can not think they are the King or God with the right of first night.

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# John 2011-11-14 11:49

Hi Scott,
Thanks so much for your program, always enjoy listening. Great message from JC, I too am a survivor and looking for recovery. Is there anyplace in Central PA that focuses on adult recovery for child sexual abuse?

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# Kristen Houser 2011-11-14 16:07

you can visit www.pcar.org and click on "local centers" to find the contact information for sexual assault centers in your area. They may offer services there, as well as provide referrals to others who are trained in these matters.

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# Fran 2011-11-14 11:50

The human services providers who have spoken this morning want us all to know that there is help available to guide people in reporting and to counsel victims. How ironic that The Great Penn State University personnel were unaware of the help available and weren't sure they should report the heinous rapes they witnessed. This was a case of lack of transparency and powerful people believing they were above the law. There is no excuse.

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# Robert 2011-11-14 11:50

Where can you find age appropriate guidelines?

I have a 14 year old boy that I want to talk about, but also don't want to share too much.

Are there websites that parents can get this info from? Please post them.

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# Kristen Houser 2011-11-15 10:12

the Our Whole Lives curriculum has some strategies for parents – there is even a parents workbook. http://www.uua.org/re/owl/

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# Kathleen 2011-11-14 11:51

In light of the lack of responsible reporting in the Sandusky case, I question why all school employees involved in direct or indirect contact with children or students are not held to standards that match that of a counselor which requires reporting it to police directly if proof or suspicion is there. I support extending these requirements. Why should this requirement of law stop with reporting it only to the next level of management? Unfortunately, leaving this to moral and personal responsibility didn’t protect children as it should.

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# Dr. Susan Thornsley 2011-11-14 11:52

Great topic. I just want to point out that false allegations of sexual abuse occur much more often than "one in a million." I'd find the statistics but I'm on my way to work. The false allegations are most often prompted and fostered by one parent against another, often in the context of abuse. Children rarely fabricate false accusations of abuse on there own, although occasionally a socially sophisticated child will threaten an adult in order to manipulate them. I am a child psychiatrist and I have investigated such cases, although I do agree that much more often that when a child makes an accusation, there is a basis for it.

Susan L. Thornsley MD

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# Dale 2011-11-14 21:06

I have to mention what I think is an obvious hypocrisy that has surfaced with the Penn State issue, though it's not my intention to defend Penn State. Before we single out Penn State, note that there seems to be a common practice among our 'venerable' institutions of higher learning to sweep dirty business under the proverbial rug, handling their affairs, from petty offenses to rape, as discreetly as possible so to protect their reputations. And, again, before we raise those gesticulating fingers, we should also recognize that the parents of college-age students often insist upon a more lenient standard of punishment for whom they term "children" making foolhardy, impetuous mistakes. Understood, this was not a student who committed a crime, but I think it's the dismissive attitudes held by us, the community, towards young adults that ultimately cement the lenient policies practiced at large at our universities.

continued below . . .

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# Dale 2011-11-14 21:07

Part 2 of 2

We're outraged when we learn that an unspeakable act is committed without appropriate action, yet we're asking universities to arbitrarily draw lines which we hope won't interfere when our own spawn commit egregious acts? My point; the waters get murky when we hold two standards for individuals who are of prosecutable age as adults.

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