Kidpower success story: a lost child stays calm and gets help

Many times this blog addresses news about major safety crises, but in our work at Kidpower, Irene and I love to celebrate everyday success stories. Each time a child stays safer using Kidpower, we are reminded that our work is practical, helpful and valuable. We are proud of this new Kidpower success story from our North Carolina Center. A mother whose eight-year-old daughter took a Kidpower workshop about two years ago wrote in: “I wanted to tell you about a recent incident that... Read more

Perceive, Believe, Act. Sometimes Believing is the hardest part.

My heart goes out to the four young women who have escaped captivity in Cleveland. Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight, and the rescued 6-year old girl identified as Berry’s daughter can now begin to rebuild their lives. This is such a bizarre story that evokes mixed feelings of triumph, relief, anger and sadness. How could these three young women have remained in captivity for a decade, just a few miles from where they were kidnapped? How much does the stigma of racism and... Read more

Sexual assault in the military: still a national disgrace

The issue of sexual assault in the military is a national disgrace, and today the news spotlight is shining on this issue. The Pentagon is preparing to release an annual report about sexual misconduct in the military, which tells the results of a survey of military personnel that found that incidences of “unwanted sexual contact” were up by 33% in the past two years, from 19,300 to 26,000 now. Whether this increase can be in any way attributed to an increase in reporting, rather... Read more

Good news about teens online: the Opposite of Cyber-Bullying

We hear so much about online problems and cyberbullying tragedies. But the internet itself is not necessarily a bad thing, and can even offer a lifeline of support to a distraught teen. My Doing Right by Our Kids co-author Irene van der Zande reports an online success story at the Kidpower blog: “There’s a lot to live for, even if maybe you can’t see it right now. Please don’t go yet!” These heartfelt words are from a teen reaching out to try to stop another teen from committing... Read more

Marathon bomber’s friends arrested for cover up: dramatic example of peer pressure gone wrong

I am just getting back from a week of Kidpower/Teenpower instructor training in Santa Cruz California. We have been teaching young teenagers how to resist peer pressure, including an instance where a friend asks them to cover up for them. Now comes the dramatic headline news that three buddies of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev are facing federal charges for helping Tsarnaev hide the evidence of his crimes–even after they came to believe that he was involved in the bombings. This was a monumental... Read more

Rehtaeh’s devastated father: My daughter was disappointed to death

There has been so much tragic news lately that it is hard to even keep up. But I can hardly think of a story that has saddened me more than that of 17-year-old Rehtaeh Parsons’ suicide, which happened this week, seventeen months after reporting being gang raped by four schoolmates. After her reported sexual assault, Rehtaeh was revictimized by her attackers spreading photos of her rape on social media that went viral. Even with those photographs in circulation, which you would think... Read more

UNC Chapel Hill must support those who report sexual assault

Here in Chapel Hill we are dealing with the shocking news that a woman who reported her sexual assault complaint through the UNC Honor Court is now facing “an Honor Court trial herself, accused of ‘intimidating behavior’ against a fellow student she says raped her.” Now she could potentially face a range of punishments, up to and including expulsion. I am so angry about this. I was in a coffee house this morning in line with a lot of UNC students and I wanted to jump... Read more