[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 53 (Thursday, April 22, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H2339-H2340]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION MONTH

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Murphy) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. MURPHY. Mr. Speaker, April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. It is 
an important time to focus on how we can deal with this painful and 
preventable scourge on America's children.
  It is estimated that a staggering 896,000 children were neglected or 
abused in the United States in 2002, approximately 12 out of every 
1,000 children. In 2001, there were 1,300 deaths from neglect or abuse, 
but some estimate that half the deaths from neglect go unrecorded. And 
although cases of abuse have dropped slightly since the 1990s, the 
number has remained alarmingly steady in recent years. Most times the 
abuse is from a parent, and there is abuse at all income levels.
  The effects go far beyond the immediate and obvious impact. There are 
long-term consequences that include developmental delays, learning 
disorders, aggressive behavior and depression. Now, these consequences 
do not just affect the individual, but they effect society as a whole. 
Survivors are at a greater risk later in life to abuse their own 
children.
  State, Federal, and local governments, human service agencies, 
schools, faith-based groups and health care facilities have a stake in 
helping to prevent child abuse. These groups can all work together with 
combined resources to improve protective factors such as parenting 
skills and attitudes.

[[Page H2340]]

At the same time by working together they can reduce risk factors such 
as parent depression, caregiver stress and children's behavior 
problems. These risk factors are critically important because they can 
precipitate the rage that leads to abuse.
  It is well worth noting that this is not just a problem of poverty, 
but all walks of life. This is not the family in the other part of 
town. This is our neighbors next door, down the street, or around the 
corner. This is not someone else's problem. This is all of our problem.
  Now, there have been positive accomplishments by those who work at 
the Federal level, notably passage of the Child Abuse Prevention and 
Treatment Act, but we cannot solve the problems of child abuse by laws 
alone. And there is an alarming lack of coordination among the Federal 
agencies that are already in place to prevent and treat victims of 
abuse. When one considers the fact that there are 33 offices, agencies 
and bureaus in the Federal Government that deal with child abuse, added 
to the fact that there are a staggering 46 separate streams of funding, 
it is a wonder that anything gets accomplished.
  The old cliche, the left hand does not know what the right hand is 
doing, may well fit here.
  The Federal Government cannot single-handedly stop child abuse, but 
it can provide valuable tools to assist those working to save our 
families and our children. Right now, however, the system is 
splintered, disjointed and sometimes ineffective.

                              {time}  1700

  Next month the Committee on Government Reform will hold important 
hearings on cleaning up the Federal Government's approach to preventing 
and treating child abuse; but with a steady 900,000 cases per year, 
despite the millions and millions and millions spent by the Federal, 
State and local government, it is clear the current approach is 
failing.
  We must streamline these agencies and funding streams. We cannot just 
preach a proactive approach to stopping child abuse. We must also set 
the example. The most direct way to end child abuse is to stop it 
before it starts. Prevention and early intervention is the key.
  Community-based programs have shown positive improvements by 
utilizing a proactive approach that includes improving parenting skills 
and attitudes, as well as reducing risk factors such as parental 
depression, caregiver drug use, caregiver stress, and children's 
behavior problems. President Bush's fiscal year budget proposal shows a 
commitment to helping our children by doubling funding for two critical 
funding programs, money that provides funds to States.
  It is also imperative that we streamline the Federal system and 
ensure that money being spent is utilized effectively in programs that 
work.
  We owe our children nothing less than the right to feel safe in their 
own homes with their own parents. It is a duty that is a responsibility 
and a moral obligation that we all share. We must do our part here in 
Washington.
  I call upon all Americans to take an active role, to open their 
hearts to America's hurting children. I call upon all Members of 
Congress to recognize that of all the things we do, of all the things 
we do, stopping the pain, stopping the rage against our innocent 
children could indeed be the most courageous and noblest task of all.

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