Child Abuse in America
- Over 693,174 confirmed reports of child abuse & neglect yearly
- Nearly 5 (up from 4 in 2007) children die everyday from abuse & neglect
- In 2011, an estimated 1,570 children died from abuse and neglect in the U.S.
- Children ages birth to 3 years had the highest rates of victimization for abuse and neglect
- Over 75% suffered neglect; more than 15% suffered physical abuse; and just under 10% suffered sexual abuse
- One or both parents were involved in 78.9% of child abuse or neglect fatalities
- Cost society $103.8 billion in 2010 (Pew Charitable Trust)
- 40% of all births to unmarried women, 23% of which to teens
Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Impacts on Children
- Boys who witness domestic violence are twice as likely to batter their female partners as adults than boys raised in nonviolent homes.
- Children in homes where domestic violence occurs are physically abused or seriously neglected at a rate 1500% higher than the national average in the general population.
- 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys will be sexually assaulted prior to their 18th birthday (CDC statistic).
- 60% of teen pregnancies are preceded by an incident of child sexual abuse.
- 80% of children who are sexually abused don’t disclose (until reaching adulthood)
Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children
- The girls sold for sex in Georgia on average are between 12 and 14 years old
- Atlanta ranks in top 14 cities in the nation for human trafficking
- 50% of domestic sex trafficking victims are runaways living on the street
- 1 in 5 children are solicited sexually on the internet
Child Deprivation in Georgia
- 33 children are the victims of confirmed abuse or neglect every day
- On any given day, 7,400 children are in the foster care system
- Georgia’s ranking for child well-being fell six spots to 43rd in the nation (2013 Kids Count Data Book)
- Worsened: Children in poverty, Children whose parents lack secure employment, Low-birth weight babies, Children in single-parent families, Children living in high-poverty areas
- The Health domain suffered the biggest setback, dropping ten spots to 40th in the nation.
- Georgia had 67,859 reports of child abuse and neglect were made to Departments of Family and Children Services, with 36,468 substantiated incidents of abuse/neglect or diversions to Family Support services.
- 13,498 children came through the foster care system during state fiscal year 2012.
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