Out of respect for some families, not talking about child abuse or neglect might seem like the right thing to do. Unfortunately, it clearly is not the right thing to do if a child is endangered. Neighbors, teachers, relatives and passers-by all have a stake in raising a child in a safe environment.
The Indiana Department of Child Services last week reported 66 Hoosier children died in fiscal year 2014 because of abuse or neglect, a 25 percent increase from 2013’s 49 child deaths, according to the Journal Gazette of Fort Wayne. Half of the children who died of abuse were a year old or younger, the state reported, and 46 percent of those who died of neglect were of that same age group.
For child advocates, that increase is not only alarming, it is simply unacceptable. “Each one of these deaths could have been prevented,” Department of Child Services Director Mary Beth Bonaventura said of the 2014 numbers.
It was only last year that Gov. Mike Pence said Indiana would hire more than 100 child abuse and neglect caseworkers.
But the job of improving Indiana’s death rate in child abuse and neglect cases is just beginning, and Hoosiers should not have a false sense of security because more people have been hired. Socially, Hoosiers should promote child abuse prevention and dispel the myth that Indiana is a safe place to raise a child simply because of its geography. No place is safe when those who abuse or neglect children are not held accountable.
The culture of raising children has to be improved in Indiana. There should be more talk and action from everyday Hoosiers, said Rachel Tobin-Smith, executive director of SCAN (or Stop Child Abuse and Neglect).
“Frankly, almost everyone has some involvement with children,” she said in her letter to the editor we published today. “We know that children who are seen regularly by caring adults such as teachers, day care providers, aunts, uncles, neighbors, home-based workers and nurses are less likely to be abused or neglected. We all can help protect our little ones.”
It’s been said that it takes a village to raise a child. In Indiana’s case, it takes a state government and residents committed to raising children in safer environments.