Victor Vieth of the National Child Protection Training Center (http://www.ncptc.org/) has called for a strategic end to child abuse within three generations. It’s an audacious call, but upon reading his apologia “Unto The Third Generation” and hearing him speak so passionately on the subject, one comes to understand he’s onto something valuable.
The plan calls for the systematic training of front line professionals who are likely to come in contact with abused children such as victim advocates, police officers, teachers, medical staff, etc., so that they have a clear understanding of the problem, signs and symptoms of abuse, and effective tools for addressing each challenge. It doesn’t end there, though. The plan also calls for other professionals such as staff in religious institutions, attorneys and judges, media personnel and elected officials to be educated as well so that essentially anyone who could potentially play a part in bringing hope and security back to an at-risk child becomes part of the solution team.
One of the integral pieces in the plan calls for semester-long classes for front-line professionals so that graduates leave a criminal justice or child advocacy program ready to hit the ground running. This training will include extensive coverage of such concepts as mandatory reporting, effective victim interviewing skills, evidence collection and statement corroboration, and decision-making strategies to facilitate successful, long-term solutions to some of the most difficult problems we ever face.
The idea is to break the connection of generational violence by placing emphasis on solid reporting, complete and accurate investigations, and collaborative follow-through on all levels. We know that child abuse is perpetuated from generation to generation by many families. Thus, the strategy is to effectively end child abuse by working to interrupt the violence of a first and second generation. Children—all children—will stand a chance of growing up in a home devoid of violence and, thus, will not have lived a history that could dictate a violent future.
Yes it’s an awesome undertaking, and the goal is so lofty as to be shooting for nothing less than miraculous. Miracles happen, though, and the only shame would be in not pursuing such a dream.
The time is now. It’s now because of visionary leadership such as Vieth; because of a broad willingness of diverse professionals to train and collaborate at unprecedented levels; because organizations from the private sector recognize that child abuse and domestic violence negatively impact the bottom line but, more importantly, that to participate in ending the epidemic brings great honor to their respective companies; because our communities demand it and our elected officials are listening. Mostly the time is now because these children need us to be the generation that dreamed it, planned for the dream, and then took decisive action to make it come true.
I’m in.
Read Victor Vieth’s Unto the Third Generation here: http://www.ndaa.org/pdf/unto_third_generation.pdf
