Officials recognize April as Child Abuse Awareness and Prevention Month

County officials, school administrators, law enforcement and local child advocates gathered together at the Hot Spring County Courthouse earlier this week, as HSC Judge Dennis Thornton and Prosecuting Attorney Teresa Howell signed a proclamation recognizing April as Child Abuse Awareness and Prevention Month in HSC.

Child Abuse Prevention Month has been observed nationally since 1983, when former U.S. President Ronald Regan signed the first proclamation. Officials in HSC take time every April to bring awareness to the topic, which affects families across the county and the state with sad regularity.

Child abuse or neglect comes in many forms and can impact a child’s life in a myriad of harmful ways. The effects of child abuse can linger for a lifetime. Take this month to learn what signs of abuse to look for, and how to report your knowledge or suspicions of abusive behavior.

As stated in Arkansas Code § 12-18-103, 'Abuse' means any of the following acts or omissions:

• Extreme or repeated cruelty to a child

• Engaging in conduct creating a realistic and serious threat of death, permanent or temporary disfigurement, or impairment of any bodily organ

• Any injury that is inconsistent with the history given

• Any non-accidental physical injury

• Any of the following intentional or knowing acts: Throwing, kicking, burning, biting, or cutting a child; Striking a child with a closed fist; Shaking a child; Striking a child on the face or head

• Recruiting, harboring, transporting, or obtaining a child for labor or services, through force, fraud, or coercion, for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery

• Female genital mutilation

In addition, all of the following acts are considered child abuse, whether physical injury is present or not:

• Striking a child aged 6 or younger on the face or head

• Shaking a child aged 3 or younger

• Interfering with a child's breathing

• Pinching, biting, or striking a child in the genital area

• Tying a child to a fixed or heavy object or binding or tying a child's limbs together

• Giving a child or permitting a child to consume or inhale a poisonous or noxious substance not prescribed by a physician that has the capacity to interfere with normal physiological functions

• Giving a child or permitting a child to consume or inhale a substance not prescribed by a physician that has the capacity to alter the mood of the child, including, but not limited to, marijuana, alcohol, a narcotic, or an over-the-counter drug if a person purposely administers an overdose to a child

• Exposing a child to a chemical that has the capacity to interfere with normal physiological functions, including, but not limited to, a chemical used or generated during the manufacture of methamphetamine

• Subjecting a child to Munchausen syndrome by proxy or a factitious illness by proxy if the incident is confirmed by medical personnel

If you lay witness to, or have any knowledge of child abuse taking place, contact local authorities or call any of the following:

National Child Abuse Hotline 1-800-422-4453

Arkansas Child Abuse Hotline 1-800-482-5964

National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s Cyber Tip Line 1-800- 8435678

National Human Trafficking Resource Center 1-888-373-7888

The proclamation Thornton and Howell signed this week is titled “Proclaiming April 2024 Child Abuse Awareness and Prevention Month in Hot Spring County, Arkansas” and reads as follows:

WHEREAS: More than 35,000 children in Arkansas are reported as abused or neglected every year; and

WHEREAS: Child abuse prevention is a community responsibility and finding solutions depends on involvement among all people; and

WHEREAS: Communities must make every effort to promote programs that benefit children and their families;

WHEREAS: Effective child abuse prevention programs succeed because of partnerships among agencies, schools, religious organizations, law enforcement agencies, and the business community; and

WHEREAS: Everyone in the community should become more aware of child abuse prevention and consider helping parents raise their children in a safe, nurturing environment;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT PROCLAIMED:

The month of April 2024 is to be Child Abuse Awareness and Prevention Month in Hot Spring County, Arkansas, and all citizens are urged to work together to help significantly reduce child abuse and neglect in years to come.