Infant Safe Haven? Neglect, Abandonment or Best Alternative Available?

State legislatures have felt the need

to address infant abandonment and infanticide

in response to a reported increase

in the abandonment of infants.
Child Welfare Information Gateway:

State Statutes Series: 2004

Can't help wondering... what you're wondering about?

Thanks to DK at Kelsey's Purpose for posting information on Infant Safe Haven laws today, I'm wondering about safe places in general for babies.


Every baby deserves to feel as safe as if held within the arms of an angel.

But sometimes even the best of Caregivers can't provide that perfect situation.

So... on a temporary basis, they may resort to rather creative solutions to ensure that baby has a safe place to stay while they attend to ...whatever seems most demanding at the moment.





As long as the baby is safe, at leasst those involved in these two pictures seems content about the solution.






But sadly, sometimes Caretakers seek a safe haven for a baby for a longer time...sometimes forever. Whatever the reasons for such a sad decision there is a solution safer than many other desperate alternatives, available in most states (46), beginning with the Texas' "Baby Moses" law passes in 1999.

Unfortunately, not enough is known about the laws...especially by those who might most need to know of them. Part of the reason for this is that many people are against the laws. They suggest that these laws somehow encourage promiscuous behaviors and too easily allow the mother to avoid responsibility for her choices.

Whatever the outcome of the debates over time, at least for now babies can be given a safe haven while the debates rage on. For me that is the most important part of the laws, and the primary reason to encourage everyone to learn the laws for their states and share the information at every opportunity. An infant may live because you do....

The information provided by DK at Kelsey's Purpose about Infant Safe Haven laws comes from the Child Welfare Information Gateway. The 2004 State Statutes Series, State Statutes , and the Infant Safe Haven Laws: Summary of State Laws (pdf) are all available from here, with the quick click of a link.

A Child is Waiting,
Take care...be aware,
Nancy Lee

Congressional Hearing on Troubled Teen "Treatment" Facilities"

Children Should Be Safe…
Children Should Be Important to Everyone…
Australian Childhood Foundation's motto

Can't help wondering...what you're doing today? I know what I'll be doing... today, Oct. 10, congress is holding their first ever hearing on teen abuse in residential treatment centers. So I'll be watching it on C-Span either live if possible, or later as a re-broadcast even if that's in the middle of the night. I'm sure it will also be available at C-Span for viewing as well.

The industry that profits off children's misery needs to be exposed on a greater level than is presently happening. One of the witnesses will be Maia Szalavitz who helped spur this investigation with the first book-length expose of this billion-dollar industry, "Help at Any Cost: How the Troubled-Teen Industry Cons Parents and Hurts Kids" (Riverhead Books, 2006), which detailed the horrifying abuse, medical ignorance, and neglect that caused thousands of injuries and dozens of deaths." Other witnesses include parents of children who died as a result of "treatment" in such places.

This morning I visited Kelsey's Purpose, as I often do. I went to share the above information but also commented on child abuse in general in response to a thread where parents were sharing how they deal with the frustrations of parentin. Although I don't usually, I thought I'd share part of what I said there, here.

CHILD ABUSE should NEVER be the answer! No matter what the circumstances. Unfortunately, too often it is the answer. I know. I was abused and in turn as a young mother I abused my wonderful innocent children. It wasn't considered abuse then...just excessive discipline and other such nonsense. In fact until the 60-70's "child abuse" as a parenting problem wasn't even part of any conversation. Kempe's article brought it to the attention of many, including me who sought help for myself and family. However, although the conversation is louder now, child abuse remains a global disgrace. The numbers continue to climb and most experts agree that the numbers represent only the tip of the proverbial iceberg. I fear that as long as we focus on the horric, heart rending stories of the "newsworthy" abuse such as poor tiny Kelsey endured and lost her life to, we enable vast numbers of daily abusers to use Kelsey's experiences and others like her to kid themselves that whatever they do to their children isn't really "abuse." The rationalilzations for continuing their abuse run the gamut from "my parents did this to me and I turned out okay" (usually a dubious claim at best) to "children are resilient and won't remember anyway" even though that's not true on deeper levels of the body, spirit and soul, and hardly serves to excuse or explain anything. And of course the ever present, "it's for their own good," "they need to learn and this is what it takes to get their attention," "that's why God padded their behinds," "spare the rod..." (much debated meaning by spiritual leaders but seldom questioned by laypersons) on and on...ad nauseum.

A child waits,
Take care...be aware,

Nancy Lee

Shonya at Kelsey's Purpose Forum...a place that hears

Community gathers to help stop child abuse…

The only problem is

parents and families didn't show up.

I'm wondering about what it takes to get more people involved in making this a safer world for children. Certainly there are individuals, groups, corporations, legislators, etc. attempting to provide information, training, educational seminars on a regular basis.

Recently I attended a community seminar offered locally by the Community Educator from the Women's Help Center. It was heavily advertised for weeks in advance in the local newspaper. Was free. Didn't require pre-registration. Offered refreshments. Was presented at a convenient location mid-afternoon on a Saturday. No bad weather that day. No big community event to occupy people. Not even any high interest sports events! So...who attended? No friends or families. Five people...all professionally involved in Child Welfare fields, but none from CPS or CASA or other similar groups.

This week's news from around the country included an account of a similar community seminar.

"The main point of the seminar was education -- making sure the
community knows what help is out there to aid them in preventing child abuse in the valley. What the community doesn't know can hurt them..

The article says no parents or families came. It didn't say how
many professionals attended.

Shonya posted clear descriptions of Florida's definition of child abuse and neglect, and symptoms, today at Kelsey's Purpose. Assuming you are one of those who does want to learn... and why else would you be here?... and in learning be prepared to make a difference whenever circumstances arise to share, it's well worth reading.

Take care...be aware,

Nancy Lee

Child Protective Services

It is the theory

that decides what we can observe.

-Albert Einstein

Can't help wondering...why so many well meaning and caring people who are part of the "system" that deals with child welfare act possessively of their positions as though some unknown enemy is trying to "get them?" Is that some form of group paranoia? The result of inordinate involvements in litigation? Trust issues from their own childhood experiences? Maybe it comes with saturation in a field that is difficult for anyone to be aware of let alone be involved with on a daily basis? Maybe though it is all the result of their training and therefore the theory upon which it is founded that makes them see the way they seem to?

Yesterday I spent a lot of time at a site you might want to visit...because it provides an in depth look at different sides of an issue and the people involved in a child welfare case that ended with the death of a precious child. Remarkable insights into how various people think and feel about the "system." Kelsey's Purpose includes the story of Kelsey and how her family continues to use her death as a catalyst for change so hopefully some day we'll have a system to protect other children before its too late.

For another perspective you might want to watch a PBS Frontline video entitled Failure to Protect: When should a parent lose the right to raise a child? This video and another related one, provide views from various participants in the child welfrare system.

Lots of perspectives and information also available through Alt Support Child Protective Services, including "Help for families involved with CPS."

Take care...be aware,
Nancy Lee