COLORADO SPRINGS — April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and one local non-profit works to teach kids safety and confidence-building skills to reduce their risk of physical and mental abuse.
At some point in their lifetime, 54 percent of children experience some form of physical assault. And 90 percent of abuse happens with a person a child already knows. This is why Kidpower is teaching kids how to speak up if they feel uncomfortable or in danger.
The organization offers programs and classes that teach kids the safety skills needed to help kids learn what abuse is and how they can speak to their parents or caretakers about situations that make them uncomfortable. Kidpower goes into local schools to teach these workshops.
I spoke with Jan Isaacs Henry, the executive director and co-founder of Kidpower. She tells me there are conversations parents can have with their children in order to build trust with their children. Because sometimes abuse victims might be afraid to speak up.
“That invitation, again, parents lots of times say, “my kids just know that I’m there for them,” but they really need that direct language so that their kids will know no matter what we are there for them,” said Isaacs Henry.
“They say to their kids, “If you have a safety problem, I want to know, even if I seem too busy, even if you’ve made a mistake, even if you’re embarrassed. Even if you think you think you’re going to upset someone else and even if someone made you promise not to tell, I want to know because I will do everything in my power to help you.”
Kidpower also offers classes for law enforcement, teachers, and child development professionals. Since starting in 1994, the organization has trained over 61,400 people.
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