This article is the first in a series of guest writers to be published as part of CASA Corner in the Eureka Reporter. An edited version of this article ran in the Eureka Reporter on July 13, 2006.
Living without Violence: A Fundamental Human Right for all Children
by Tasha R. Howe, Ph.D, Associate Professor of Psychology
Humboldt State University, email: th28@humboldt.edu
Governments around the world have begun to recognize that children are not the property of their parents. They have fundamental human rights that are non-negotiable. UNICEF drafted the Convention on the Rights of the Child to call nations together to recognize that children have the right to education, health care, a loving, nurturing home, and the right to live without violence or abuse. Countries that ratify the Convention must enforce these rights with appropriate laws. "Built on varied legal systems and cultural traditions, the Convention is a universally agreed set of non-negotiable standards and obligations…" (www.unicef.org/crc/). Over 190 countries have ratified the Convention. Only two countries have not, Somalia and the United States. We cannot wait for the United States to ratify the Convention. It is vital that we, as individuals, commit to helping all children reap the benefits of widespread recognition of their rights.
The children in my research illustrate the devastating impact of violence. The four main areas of development that require stimulation and nurturing are often decimated by repeated exposure to domestic violence or child abuse and neglect. Physically, I have worked with children who have gone deaf after enduring too many blows to the head. Neglected children are affected physically by stunted brain development that inhibits their ability to develop empathy or to perform well academically. Cognitively, children exposed to violence develop poor thinking abilities that spur them to view many social interactions as hostile in nature. They don't process information accurately and often end up being rejected by well-adjusted peers, as well as failing in school. Socially, maltreated children play aggressively and are unable to make friends. Emotionally, these children are less able to label their own feelings or understand the feelings of others. They sometimes cannot build emotional bonds or attachments with others.
Because of the pervasive effects of violence on the development of children, we cannot solely rely on service providers such as counselors or social workers to solve the problem. These services are crucial after maltreatment has occurred, but we all need to work on doing what we can to prevent violence from happening in the first place. I often relay the story of the village where children were constantly seen drowning in the river. Community members kept pulling them out by the dozens. Years went by and the practice continued. Finally, an elder in the community asked an important question that others had not considered: what is happening upstream that pushes the children into the river?
The old adage "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" has been supported widely in the research on violence prevention programs. For every dollar spent on prevention, we save four dollars in the long run on services such as juvenile detention, mental health counseling, welfare support, and court costs. Those services are necessary for the children who slip through the cracks and end up experiencing violence in their lives. However, the more we can do to prevent violence, the less wasted human capital we will see in our communities in decades to come.
Individual citizens can prevent violence in several ways. First, we can plan for the births of our children. Children who are planned are much less likely to be maltreated than children who are unplanned and/or unwanted. When we do have children, we should learn as much as we can about child development and parenting skills. Many parents don't understand the basic developmental stages children go through. This leads to unrealistic expectations and frustrations when raising kids, both of which are related to later maltreatment. We can also learn about effective violence prevention strategies.
To address this third issue, my colleagues and I have trained about 60 professionals in Humboldt County on the skills of early violence prevention (things like anger management, social problem solving skills, positive discipline, reducing the impact of media violence, and understanding children's brain development) using the ACT (Adults and Children Together) Against Violence curriculum. We are currently conducting parenting classes for 19 local parents who are committed to raising their children non-violently. This program was developed by the American Psychological Association (APA) and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). It is a not-for-profit research-based program. To learn more about the ACT Early Violence Prevention Program, please visit www.actagainstviolence.org. All of the materials for professionals, parents, and teachers are either free or low cost. Many of the curricular items are also available in Spanish.
The Convention of the Rights of the Child states that although governments have control over the laws related to the treatment of children, "the task, however, must engage not just governments but all members of society…respected by everyone, within families, in schools…in communities…" If you believe a child is being abused or neglected, it is your responsibility to ensure that child's human rights are protected. To report suspected child maltreatment, please call Child Welfare Services at (707) 445-6180. To help advocate for abused and neglected children in the court system, please volunteer for Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) at (707) 443-3197. To become a foster parent, please call Environmental Alternatives Foster Family Agency at (707) 443-1569. To update your knowledge of child development and parenting skills (or to volunteer to be a Parent Aide), call the Exchange Club Parenting Center at (707) 443-7935. Every person who recognizes the fundamental rights of children can help prevent violence.