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Ensure Children Have Safe and Healthy Homes

Target: U.S. Congress
Sponsored by: American Humane Association

The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) was passed in 1974 because of increasing public awareness of the need to ensure the safety and welfare of children. CAPTA provides federal money to state and local communities like yours for programs and services to prevent abuse, protect children and strengthen families.

Each year, almost 1 million American children experience abuse and neglect. Of these children, 60 percent suffer neglect, 19 percent physical abuse, 10 percent sexual abuse, and 7 percent emotional maltreatment. All of these forms of abuse can have a lifelong psychological and physical impact on a child. And shockingly, approximately 1400 children are killed each year from abuse, most of whom are under the age of one.

Every five years, CAPTA gets reauthorized. This year it is up for review again. President Bush has already cut many important human service programs in this year's budget (including domestic violence and juvenile justice funds). We need your help to ensure these cuts do not affect the safety of children.

Please ask Congress to not only maintain current funding levels, but to increase funding to keep up with today's economy, so that all children can live in safe and healthy homes.

deadline: Ongoing...
goal: 30,000

21,098
signatures!

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Tell Congress why you want programs to prevent child abuse.

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Dear [member of Congress],

I am writing to you today to ask for your support for increasing the budget for state grants, community-based prevention grants, and research grants supported by the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA). Our nation's child welfare system is stretched beyond capacity to handle the full scope of the problem. Appropriate services for families and children who have been victimized by abuse or neglect are lacking, and insufficient funding has been allocated for the prevention of child maltreatment.

And now, I fear that this situation may only get worse. President Bush has already cut many important human service programs in this year's budget (including domestic violence and juvenile justice funds), and I strongly oppose cutting into budgets for child abuse services.

Our child protection system demands adequate investment. Continuing to do otherwise is far too costly. A 2003 study calculated the total costs of child abuse to exceed $87 billion annually -- $258 million dollars a day -- a figure that includes the immediate direct costs (such as law enforcement, medical treatment, child welfare services and foster care) and long-term indirect costs (including juvenile delinquency and crime, special education, and lost productivity).

Yet, according to the Urban Institute, out of more than $20 billion spent each year on child welfare in federal, state and local funds, states typically spend just between 10 and 15 percent on prevention and the protection of children. We have a spending gap in this country in services to prevent child abuse and to intervene on behalf of children known to the child protection system.
It would be good business sense if we invested our resources in child protection and prevention services the way we should.

Nobel Prize-winning economist Dr. James J. Heckman has concluded in his research that "early childhood interventions of high quality have lasting effects on learning and motivation." An additional analysis conducted by Federal Reserve Bank economists recognizes that "investment in early childhood development yields an extraordinary return, far exceeding the return on most investments, private or public ... that are currently funded as economic development." And at a recent Senate hearing, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke noted "a significant return towards investing in young kids."

Preventing child abuse is cost effective. Putting dollars aside for prevention is sound investing, not luxury spending. We urge you to put together the resources to support preventive services and treatment services that can save us money in the long run.

It is crucial that Congress makes the protection of children a priority. Therefore I urge you to support increased funding for CAPTA.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,
[Your name]
[Your address]

We signed the “Ensure Children Have Safe and Healthy Homes” petition!

# 18,950:

8:03 pm PDT, May 9, Shelly Jones, Utah

# 18,949:

7:22 pm PDT, May 9, Cindy Fong, California
Preventing child abuse benefits society in many respects. To top the list, children as well as adults, treated with respect and dignity will in turn treat others the same way. It stops child abuse in generations to come. It prevents a child from developing mental health problems. Imagine having to spend a considerable amount of time to heal oneself when the person should be flourishing in life. Not all are lucky enough to seek help and heal. Let children grow up in an environment free of harm and fear. Protecting them is the duty of the adults, not harming. Child abuse prevention programs will provide education and serices to families in need.

# 18,948:

7:21 pm PDT, May 9, Kris K, Pennsylvania

# 18,947:

7:05 pm PDT, May 9, Arnold Dean Ruiz Guadarrama, Puerto Rico
We have been atempting to create a better society, our children will be the foundation of that dream to come, therefore we need to liberate them from potential psicological, emotional and fisical harm so that they can erradicate what ever residual of our deteriorated society can prevent them from growing into that future. Our children are the hope.

# 18,946:

6:53 pm PDT, May 9, Stephanie Beaudoin, Massachusetts

# 18,945:

6:43 pm PDT, May 9, Jenni Ledford, North Carolina

# 18,944:

6:42 pm PDT, May 9, Shirley Freeman, Tennessee

# 18,943:

5:51 pm PDT, May 9, Richard Estacio, California

# 18,942:

5:25 pm PDT, May 9, Beverly Krasner, Oregon

# 18,941:

5:17 pm PDT, May 9, Hugs Blake, Indiana

# 18,940:

4:49 pm PDT, May 9, Joshua Breitner, Oregon

# 18,939:

4:42 pm PDT, May 9, Marita Kennedy-Castro, Maine

# 18,938:

4:42 pm PDT, May 9, Terri Carboni, California

# 18,937:

4:36 pm PDT, May 9, Barbara Grudzien, Tennessee

# 18,936:

4:26 pm PDT, May 9, Terri Bedell-Ferguson, Washington

# 18,935:

4:04 pm PDT, May 9, Ursula Parnitzke, Vermont
Every child deserves to be raised in a loving and supportive environment.

# 18,934:

3:52 pm PDT, May 9, Theresa Billeaud, Louisiana
Save the children!

# 18,933:

3:13 pm PDT, May 9, Natalie Massenburg, New York

# 18,932:

3:08 pm PDT, May 9, Chad McCrory, Georgia

# 18,931:

3:08 pm PDT, May 9, Teresa Campos, Portugal

# 18,930:

2:59 pm PDT, May 9, Donna O'Neal, Florida

# 18,929:

2:54 pm PDT, May 9, Marden Seavey, Maine

# 18,928:

2:43 pm PDT, May 9, Rhiannon Fanning, New York

# 18,927:

2:25 pm PDT, May 9, Pam Crossin, Ohio
PLEASE PROTECT OUR LITTLE ONES WHO CAN'T PROTECT THEMSELVES. IF IT WAS YOUR CHILD/GRANDCHILD/FRIEND'S CHILD, YOU WOULD WANT TO HELP WOULDN'T YOU? WELL, PREVENT ABUSE TO ALL BY TAKING ACTION TO PROTECT THE CHILDREN WHO NEED YOUR HELP, NOW! WHEN A CHILD IS ABUSED, IT CHANGES THE INNOCENCE OF WHO THEY ARE & WERE MEANT TO BECOME!

# 18,926:

2:23 pm PDT, May 9, Yvonne Horgeshimer, California
I WAS SEXUALLY ABUSED BY MY GRANDFATHER MY STEPFATHER AND MY NEXT DOOR NEIGHBOR WHOM MY STEPFATHER SOLD ME TO A FEW TIMES-sorry didn't see the caps.I was neglected and physically abused by my stepfather and my brother was physically abused by my stepfather and made to kick carpet at the very underweight age of 6 which ruined his knees, too many girls are forced to have their own father's babies like my aunt for one...it's all too rampant and out of control.please do more about it.

# 18,925:

2:20 pm PDT, May 9, Kirsten McGorman, Arizona

# 18,924:

2:12 pm PDT, May 9, L. Tomko, California

# 18,923:

1:59 pm PDT, May 9, Niklas Marcev, Austria

# 18,922:

1:57 pm PDT, May 9, Name not displayed, Maryland

# 18,921:

1:52 pm PDT, May 9, Pamela Pranke, North Dakota
Children are defenseless, have no financial resources of their own and rely on the people of the nation to watch out for their best interests. Please do not let them down.

# 18,920:

1:49 pm PDT, May 9, Name not displayed, Arizona

# 18,919:

1:32 pm PDT, May 9, Robert Baum, North Carolina

# 18,918:

1:20 pm PDT, May 9, P. Robert Maiden Mueller, Wisconsin

# 18,917:

1:06 pm PDT, May 9, Tracy Jackson, Texas

# 18,916:

12:58 pm PDT, May 9, Name not displayed, Texas

# 18,915:

12:50 pm PDT, May 9, Jerry Wolf Duff Sellers, Rhode Island

# 18,914:

12:46 pm PDT, May 9, Minky Masterson, California

# 18,913:

12:45 pm PDT, May 9, Katherine Valderrama, Florida

# 18,912:

12:44 pm PDT, May 9, Sean Bailey, Washington

# 18,911:

12:29 pm PDT, May 9, Marianna Durr, Kentucky
I'm a Prtection and Permanency worker and I see the results of abused and neglected babies and children too often There eye are like little hollow souls. The children and families suffer when programs are lost or cut. Please help us help them. Thanks Marianna Durr SSWII BSW Cabinet for Health and Family Service Protection and Permanency 206 Nth 8th Street Paducah Ky 42002

# 18,910:

12:22 pm PDT, May 9, Thomas Lane, Florida

# 18,909:

12:19 pm PDT, May 9, Andrey Yeatts, Arizona
Protecting America's children should not be funded by what's left after subsidizing corporations.

# 18,908:

12:15 pm PDT, May 9, Mary Holliday-boles, Texas

# 18,907:

12:00 pm PDT, May 9, Michele Quinn, North Carolina
How could you turn your back on these children who need our help so desperately?

# 18,906:

11:51 am PDT, May 9, Patricia Travaline, Florida
I have known many women with a history of childhood abuse, who are in jail/prison and trying to recover from addictions. Childhood abuse/neglect is big factor in substance abuse and violence in our society. It is crucial for the future of our country that this receives attention and support.

# 18,905:

11:48 am PDT, May 9, Lori Corder, Kentucky
Children are hurt every day. They need programs to keep them safe.

# 18,904:

11:45 am PDT, May 9, Alicia Carden, Kentucky
I work as an ongoing worker for Child Protection Services. The families that I work for are in need of many serives that I can not provide due to us being located in a rural area that there not being funding for us. I strongly feel that we need more funding to help with the services that these families so desperately need.

# 18,903:

11:36 am PDT, May 9, Diann F Sheppard, Kentucky
I am an investigator for Child Protective Services. All too often, I come to a wall when attempting to provide services for the families I work with. My agency is located in a rural area of Western Kentucky and the services provided at this time are very few. I support the need for more funding to help ensure that the families will get the services needed to ensure the safety and well being of the children involved. Thank you,

# 18,902:

11:27 am PDT, May 9, Kristine Miller, Tennessee

# 18,901:

11:10 am PDT, May 9, Claire Sweet, United Kingdom
No child deserves to get hurt or abandoned by those who should love them.

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