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What is advocacy?
Advocacy is as basic as speaking on behalf of oneself or others to get something done. For example, as child advocates we seek to ensure that the children in our community have a voice and that their needs are met. This can mean speaking on behalf of children and families to your local community officials, your state-level elected officials, or your federal policy-makers.
Why should you be an advocate?
The most obvious reason to be a child and family advocate is that you care. You care about the children in our country and want them to be safe, healthy, and happy. It follows that you want to help ensure that local, state, and federal policy-makers adopt, implement, and maintain important policies and programs that support children families. In order to ensure that these policies and programs are maintained, it is critical to have a sustained vocal and noticeable presence at all levels of policy-making. You can be part of that presence; and therefore, you can be part of the effort to protect our nations children and families.
Help Build Support for Federal Home Visiting Legislation
Prevent Child Abuse America is committed to promoting legislation, policies and programs that help to prevent child abuse and neglect, support healthy childhood development, and strengthen families.
The Advocacy Program operates on the national level. We monitor critical legislation that impacts children and families; work to obtain and maintain funding for prevention programs; and collaborate with organizations, community leaders and public policy makers.
Prevent Child Abuse America believes we can be most effective for children and families through collaboration. To this end, they work closely with their state chapters and Healthy Families America sites across the country to address issues on state and local levels. On the national level, their efforts are combined with over thirty professional organizations through the National Child Abuse Coalition. This coalition was formed in 1981 to coordinate federal advocacy efforts on behalf of abused and neglected children and is based in Washington, D.C.
Prevent Child Abuse America advocates for policies that promote healthy child development by preventing child abuse and neglect from occurring in the first place. They urge the Administration and Congress to:
1. Develop a National Strategy for Prevention
Having a national policy and commitment to prevent child abuse and neglect is necessary to ensure that every child has the opportunity to grow up in a nurturing, stimulating and stable environment. Implementing a national strategy will require the coordination of federal agencies, and the assurance that all federal funding, policies, and regulations related to child well-being are coordinated and working towards complimentary goals. Prevent Child Abuse America will work with the Administration and Congress to outline specific steps that our nation must take to embrace child abuse and neglect prevention in a more effective, meaningful, and comprehensive manner.
2. Enact Federal Home Visiting Legislation
The Education Begins at Home Act (EBAH) would establish the first federal funding stream dedicated to early childhood home visitation. Funding would be provided to states on a formula basis to expand and enhance quality home visiting services to families with newborns and young children; states would be able to use the funds to support a service delivery approach that best suits their population's needs. EBAH also authorizes two competitive grants to reach military families and families with English language learners. Prevent Child Abuse America urges Congress to pass EBAH this year.
4. Reauthorize the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment ActThe Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) is up for reauthorization. Since 1974, CAPTA has been a key part of the federal government's effort to help states and communities improve their practices in preventing and treating child abuse and neglect. CAPTA provides grants to states to support innovation in state child protective services (CPS) and community-based preventive services, as well as research, training, data collection, and program evaluation. Prevent Child Abuse America urges Congress to reauthorize CAPTA this year with the goal of strengthening and supporting state and community child maltreatment prevention efforts.
5. Increase Federal Investments in the Full Continuum of Child Welfare Services
In recent years, Congress and advocates have focused on ways to alter the federal child welfare financing structure. Prevent Child Abuse America will continue to evaluate legislative proposals with the dual policy objectives of securing adequate, guaranteed funding for front-end, prevention services and ensuring an effective approach to child welfare that is comprehensive and provides for a full continuum of care.
6. Enact Shaken Baby Syndrome Prevention Legislation
The Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) Prevention Act would provide funding to the HHS to develop and implement a public information and education campaign aimed at preventing SBS. Prevent Child Abuse America urges Congress to pass the SBS Prevention Act this year. SBS prevention programs have demonstrated that educating parents and other caregivers about healthy strategies for coping with a crying infant, infant soothing skills, and the danger of shaking young children can bring about a significant reduction in the number of SBS cases.
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ADVOCACY
