LETTER WRITING CAMPAIGN

LETTER WRITING CAMPAIGN We have a unique window of opportunity right now, in light of the Jerry Sandusky and Josh Powell horrors. There have been two Congressional briefings and one Senate hearing on the subject of child abuse last fall. Plus, the election is looming and politicians are listening. The reason Batterers' Rights groups have gotten so far is that they contact their representatives incessantly. We need to engage in the same way. Our cause is far better than theirs: the modern enslavement women and children. The suffragists fought for half a century for women for the right to vote. We need to contact the representatives we voted for, to tell them that safe mothers are losing custody to batterers and molesters in family courts throughout the nation. Legislative aides told us that letters and letter writing campaigns make a big difference. Emails and calls are great, but hard copy letters shows a much bigger commitment on the part of the writer. We've heard that each letter represents 1,000 constituents, which translates into precious votes. So here's the plan: Step 1. Find 7 envelopes, 7 stamps and about 30 minutes of time. Step 2. Write a letter asking for oversight hearings. You can use the following letter if you wish. If you wish, send a one page summary of your case, and say you will provide other information as needed. Step 3. Send one letter to Senator Barbara Mikulski (Maryland) who is the chair of the Sub-committee on Children and Families. She chaired the December 2011 Senate hearing on child abuse resulting from the Sandusky case. Step 4. Find your two U.S. Senators and one US Congress Member athttp://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml Step 5. Address and send the same letter to each of them. (They pay close attention to letters from their own constituents.) Step 6. Send letters addressed to President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and Vice President Joe Biden at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, D.C. 20006. If you want to help make the maximum impact and can find another hour of time and 17 more envelopes/ stamps, join me in sending a letter to each Children and Families sub-committee member listed below.  Senator Patty Murray (Washington), 448 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510 Senator Bernie Sanders (Vermont), 332 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510 Senator Bob Casey (Pennsylvania), 393 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510 Senator Kay Hagan (North Carolina), 521 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510 Senator Jeff Merkley (Oregon), 313 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510 Senator Al Franken (Minnesota), 309 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510 Senator Michael Bennet (Colorado), 458 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510 Senator Richard Blumenthal (Connecticut), 702 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510 Senator Tom Harkin (Iowa), 731 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510 Senator Richard Burr (North Carolina), 217 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510 Senator Lamar Alexander (Tennessee), 455 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510 Senator Johnny Isakson (Georgia), 131 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510 Senator Rand Paul (Kentucky), 208 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510 Senator John McCain (Arizona), 241 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510 Senator Pat Roberts (Kansas), 109 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510 Senator Mark Kirk (Illinois), 524 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington DC, 20510 Senator Mike Enzi (Wyoming), 379A Senate Russell Office Building, Washington DC, 20510 Yes we can! Imagine the impact if 500 of us sent letters! YOUR ADDRESS TODAY'S DATE The Honorable Barbara Mikulski Chair, H.E.L.P. Sub-Committee on Children and Families 503 Senate Hart Building Washington, DC 20510 RE: Request for Oversight Hearings on the Failure of Family Courts and Child Protective Services to Protect Children Dear Senator Mikulski: I am writing to request oversight hearings on the failure of family courts and Child Protective Services to protect children, particularly child victims of incest and domestic violence. The sexual assault, torture and murder of children across the United States is an ongoing barbarism that undermines our society and creates a new generation of pedophiles, torturers and murderers. In Family Courts across the country, judges are making ill-informed custody and visitation decisions that violate the constitutional rights of women and children because of the lack of recognition and understanding of the dynamics in domestic violence and child physical and sexual abuse. Consequently, children are being placed back into harm's way at the hands of their abusers. This phenomenon is so common it has come to be called "court-imposed child abuse." I cannot overstate my concern regarding the issue of child physical and sexual safety. Jerry Sandusky's pedophilic rape in Pennsylvania and Josh Powell's perversion and double filicide in Washington are just the most public and recent sickening events. These crimes happen every day. Yet our political candidates are silent on children's issues. Is it because children can't vote? Or do perpetrators have money and influence? The silence is unraveling our moral fiber. The lack of interest in child physical and sexual safety is fueled by Federal programs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. While impoverished citizens are forced to live in their cars and educational programs are slashed because of the Great Recession, the Federal government continues to pour billions of taxpayer dollars into counterproductive, corruption-inducing HHS programs that do not protect, and in some cases endanger, children. 20% of the HHS budget ($80 billion) goes to the Administration for Children and Families ($16 billion). We see our nation's priorities clearly in the budget: Child Support programs receive nearly $4 billion, while Violent Crime Reduction and Child Abuse prevention programs combined receive only $226 million. 22 times more taxpayer dollars flow to child support enforcement than to violence prevention.http://transition.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/assets/fy2012apt.pdf This hugely disparate allocation paradoxically provides an incentive program for irresponsible fathers to avoid paying child support. HHS Responsible Fatherhood program works to reunite ex prisoners, including felons, batterers, and addicts, with children. Although the program purports to encourage these men to get jobs and pay child support, the likely well-intentioned funding is backfiring badly on children due to a variety or reasons, including corrupt local practices. Because child support is based on parenting time, abusive fathers realize they can avoid paying child support if they get custody. They receive an added bonus of child support paid by mothers, and access to incest victims. Therefore, they have a strong incentive to request custody in Family Court. Studies show that 70% of batterers who ask for custody receive it. Batterers generally have more resources than their victims. A cottage industry of private mental health professionals and attorneys who receive lucrative court appointments and payment by the wealthier parent has sprung up to help them. Child Protective Services does not act to protect children in custody matters, assuming incorrectly that family court has done that. Because reports of child crimes are directed to social services, evidence may be tampered with by the time law enforcement investigators become involved. These types of crimes are inappropriately reported to and investigated by social services workers instead of law enforcement. Mandated reporters are sued by the abusers, despite laws against this, which has a chilling effect. The result is that children are being placed at risk. Additionally, boutique programs such as Healthy Marriage Promotion and Responsible Fatherhood Grants ($150 million), Family Connection Grants ($15 million), Personal Responsibility Education ($75 million) and Abstinence Education ($50 million) have not been shown to ensure child safety. $300 million is being diverted from proven violence prevention programs. This is unconscionable. Fatherhood programs are often corrupted on the local level from helping ex-prisoners and other irresponsible fathers get jobs and pay child support to advising irresponsible, often violent fathers to obtain custody and child support from the mothers. 70% of batterers who ask for custody receive it, according to the American Judges Association. This harms children, rather than helping them. We are branded by the Inter American Commission on Human Rights as a nation that commits human right violations against battered mothers and children. This is more than embarrassing; it is scandalous. http://www.law.miami.edu/hrc/hrc_gonzalez_usa.php. We must follow their recommendations to create better laws, and assure compliance. Mandated reporters are often picketed and sued by accused perpetrators, which results in lack of compliance. Furthermore, stronger mandated reporting laws will not fix the problems occurring after the report is made. We need to: Ensure through public policy and funding allocations that child physical and sexual safety is the highest priority in our country. Eliminate expensive programs that do not ensure child physical and sexual safety. Reverse the money flow so that domestic violence prevention receives 22 times more of our taxpayer dollars than child support enforcement. Assure that the incentive for misappropriation of federal funds is reduced through strict oversight and accounting procedures. Create effective citizen review board oversight. Disconnect parenting time from child support to remove perverse financial incentives. Federal funds are facilitating incestuous child sexual predators to have open access to their victims. Require that child physical and sexual crimes are reported to law enforcement, not social services. Treat victims of violent crime with the same professional standards of investigation, regardless of the relationship to their perpetrator. Withhold funding from states that do not implement specialized domestic violence courts to hear cases in which crimes are alleged. I urge you to schedule oversight hearings on the failure of family courts and Child Protective Services to protect children. Sincerely, YOUR SIGNATURE

Thank your customer, tell them how valuable they are to you, but don't go overboard. Insincerity is easy to spot.   Sincerely,   Connie Valentine CA Protective Parents Association

One reason why courts may be placing sexually abused children with pedophiles:

One reason why courts may be placing sexually abused children with pedophiles:

http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2012/02/15/sacramento-juvenile-court-official-arrested-on-child-molestation-charges/

Petition to help children

Petition to help children

http://www.change.org/petitions/justice-for-children-stop-court-ordered-child-abuse

September 9-12 International Violence, Abuse and Trauma conference at the Town & Country Resort & Convention

September 9-12 International Violence, Abuse and Trauma conference at the Town & Country Resort & Convention Center, 500 Hotel Circle, San Diego, CA. For conference information, go tohttp://ivatcenters.org/Conferences.html#affiliated

August 10-12 SMART Ritual Abuse Conference at the Double Tree Hotel near Bradley International Airport,

August 10-12 SMART Ritual Abuse Conference at the Double Tree Hotel near Bradley International Airport, 16 Ella Grasso Turnpike, Windsor Locks, CT. For conference information, go to http://ritualabuse.us/smart-conference/ A one day Ritual Abuse And Extreme Abuse Clinician's Conference 2012 conference precedes the regular conference and is open to licensed 

July 21-25 15th National Coalition Against Domestic Violence conference and National Organization of Men Against Sexism's 37th

July 21-25 15th National Coalition Against Domestic Violence conference and National Organization of Men Against Sexism's 37th National Conference: Preserving Our Roots While Looking to the Futurein Denver, CO. For more information, go to http://www.ncadv.org.

May 19-20 Survivorship Ritual Abuse and Child Abuse 2012 Conference

May 19-20  Survivorship Ritual Abuse and Child Abuse 2012 Conference at the Executive Inn & Suite, 1755 Embarcadero, Oakland, CA.Our Healing Journey: Past, Present, Future. For conference information, go to http://survivorship.org/2012conference.html

May 6-8 Fourth Annual Mothers of Lost Children Mothers Day demonstration/lobbying inWashington DC.

May 6-8 Fourth Annual Mothers of Lost Children Mothers Day demonstration/lobbying inWashington DC. We are holding this event the week before Mothers Day this year.

           

Sun, May 6    

Time: 11:00 am to 3:00 pm for a silent vigil and march around the White House.

6:30 - 7:30 pm for a silent candlelight vigil.

Place: 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW in front of the White House.

Mon, May 7   

Time: 10:30 am to 3:30 pm for our first formal coalition meeting and lobbying workshop.

        Place: Sewall Belmont House Suffragists' Headquarters, 144 Constitution Ave, NE

Contact cppa001@aol.com right away to sign up for the workshop (seating is limited).

A small fee of $40 is needed due to high cost of the historic space.

Tues, May 8  

Time: 10:00 am to 4:00 pm to lobby at the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives

• Most of us stay at the inexpensive International Hostel, 1009 11th St NW, Washington(202) 737-2333
• Be sure to bring your Mothers of Lost Children t shirts! We will bring more in case you don't have one. We wear white like the Liberian women www.praythedevilbacktohell.com.
• We follow in the footsteps of the mothers who demonstrated every Thursday afternoonat the Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires, Argentina to protest government torture and murder of their adult children. In Sacramento we demonstrate on Thursday afternoon at the family court to protest the legalized beatings, rape and murder of children.
• For information on previous Washington DC demonstrations, go to www.mothers-of-lost-children.com.

April 28 Eighteenth Annual Child Sexual Abuse Conference at the Veterans Memorial Center,

April 28 Eighteenth Annual Child Sexual Abuse Conference at the Veterans Memorial Center, 203 East 14th Street, Davis, CA from 9:30 am to 5:00 pm. Healing from Trauma: Clergy Abuse with Keynote Speaker Jaime Romo http://jaimeromo.com. For more information, go tohttp://www.issb.us. The conference is no cost.

March 19-21 The U.S. Attorney General's National Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence (the "Defending Childhood Task Force")

March 19-21 The U.S. Attorney General's National Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence (the "Defending Childhood Task Force") will hold the third public hearing in Miami, FLAfocused on children's exposure to violence in their communities and at school.http://www.justice.gov/defendingchildhood/index.html If you cannot attend, you can e-mail comments by April 24 to defendingchildhoodtaskforce@nccdcrc.org or send to NCCD, Attn: Defending Childhood Task Force, 1970 Broadway, Suite 500, Oakland, CA, 94612

March 16-17 Conference in Phoenix AZ on Our Broken Family Court System.

March 16-17 Conference in Phoenix AZ on Our Broken Family Court System. For more information, go to http://thecummingsfoundation.ticketleap.com/our-broken-family-court-system/

Sep 24, 2008Child Abuse Professionals Rally Around American Fugitive.

Child Abuse Professionals Rally Around American Fugitive... ‎ newswise.com - Sep 24, 2008 The court acknowledged abuse had taken place but was swayed by the bogus legal argument that the children's fears were a result of "Parental Alienation ..

Sep 23, 2006Women in Science Given Boost; Abusers Gain Custody | Womens...

Women in Science Given Boost; Abusers Gain Custody | Womens... ‎ Women's eNews - Sep 23, 2006 Parental alienation, a discredited concept that has become a leading defense ... Parental alienation is a psychological theory that one parent will make a ...

Dec 20, 2011 – In addition, anywhere from 3 to 10 million children are exposed to domestic violence each year (3

PTSD in Children and Adolescents - NATIONAL CENTER for PTSD

www.ptsd.va.gov/.../ptsd_in_children_and_adolescents_overview_fo...

Dec 20, 2011 – In addition, anywhere from 3 to 10 million children are exposed to domestic violence each year (3), 40-60% of which cases also involve child .

“Promoting Prevention, Targeting Teens: An Emerging Agenda to

“Promoting Prevention, Targeting Teens: An Emerging Agenda to

www.hewlett.org/uploads/.../PromotingPreventionTargetingTeens.pd...

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domestic violence, its causes and consequences, and to define the ..... is prevalent, and teens may also be exposed to domestic violence in their homes. Teens .

Effects of Domestic Violence on Children and Adolescents: An ...

Effects of Domestic Violence on Children and Adolescents: An ...

www.aaets.org/article8.htm

Domestic violence has adverse effects on individuals, families, and society in general.... Exposure to this form of violence has considerable potential to be perceived as .... An estimated 1/5 to 1/3 of all teenagers who are involved in dating ..

Children Exposed to Violence Introduction

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Children Exposed to Violence Introduction

www.nccd-crc.org/nccd/dnld/Home/focus0809.pdf

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example, children exposed to domestic violence are more likely than ... NCCD study on teenage victimization found that these youth experience more problems ..

Healing the Invisible Wounds: Children's Exposure to Violence

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Healing the Invisible Wounds: Children's Exposure to Violence

www.safestartcenter.org/pdf/caregiver.pdf

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Sarah sees police breaking up a fight between two groups of teenagers ... In cases ofdomestic violence, knowing what to do can help a child feel safer and in ...

Exposure to domestic violence can limit children's cognitive development and their ability to

[PDF] 

Children Exposed to Domestic Violence - Rhode Island Kids Count!

www.rikidscount.org/matriarch/documents/domesticviolence.pdf

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Exposure to domestic violence can limit children's cognitive development and their ability to .... on the prevalence of teen dating violence among middle-school ..

Teens Exposed to Domestic Violence Page...

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Compiled by the Wisconsin Coalition Against Domestic Violence

www.wcadv.org/.../...

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Feb 2, 2012 – Healthy Relationships & Social Change Page 4-6. Sexual Violence. Page 7. Digital Abuse. Page 8. Teens Exposed to Domestic Violence Page .

National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline: 866-331-9474, TTY 866-331-8453. ..

VAWnet Applied Research Papers

www.vawnet.org/applied-research-papers/

National Online Resource Center on Violence Against Women ... (RAINN) Hotline: 800-656-4673 | National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline: 866-331-9474, TTY 866-331-8453. ....Emerging Responses to Children Exposed to Domestic Violence ..

CHILDREN - THE HIDDEN VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

CHILDREN - THE HIDDEN VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

marinarosa.hubpages.com › ... › Parenting Skills, Styles and Advice

WITNESSING PARENTAL ABUSE – Common effects on children and teens. CHILDREN AND TEENS EXPOSED TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE. At least 3 million ..

Behind Closed Doors The Impact of Domestic Violence on Children

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Behind Closed Doors The Impact of Domestic Violence on Children

www.unicef.org/protection/files/BehindClosedDoors.pdf

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teenagers have been exposed to extreme domestic violence.19. There is a strong likelihood that this will become a continuing cycle of violence for the next 

The Future of Teens Exposed to Domestic Violence as Children

[DOC] 

The Future of Teens Exposed to Domestic Violence as Children

forums.perrla.com/getattachment.ashx?fileid=2

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In teens exposed to domestic violence in the home as children, witnessed or experienced, do peer support groups as compared to formal counseling result in an .

Youth Exposure to Violence - The National Center for Victims of ...

Youth Exposure to Violence - The National Center for Victims of ...

www.ncvc.org › Home › Library › Document Viewer

Stalking Resource Center. Teens. Dating Violence Resource Center ... According to the 2008 National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence, more ... statutes in 22 states and Puerto Rico address children witnessing domestic violence.

3.3 million teens are exposed to domestic violence, especially at home

Physical abuse -the most visible & lethal Domestic violent teens are ...

www.a-troubled-teen.com/Physical-abuse.html

More than 3.3 million teens are exposed to domestic violence, especially at home where they are physically abused and neglected at a rate 15 times higher than ...

2010 -Post-traumatic stress symptoms in siblings exposed to intimate partner violence: the role of mother-child relationships

Post-traumatic stress symptoms in siblings exposed to intimate partner violence: the role of mother-child relationships

[PDF] from umanitoba.ca

A Stewart-Tufescu - 2010 - mspace.lib.umanitoba.ca

It is well documented that exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) negatively affects
children's developmental outcomes (Chan & Yeung, 2009; Evans, Davies & DiLillo, 2008)
and may lead to the expression of symptomatology consistent with post-traumatic stress ...

Related articles - All 3 versions

2008 - Springer Symptom patterns among youth exposed to intimate partner violence

Symptom patterns among youth exposed to intimate partner violence

[PDF] from childwitnesstoviolence.org

JM Lang… - Journal of Family Violence, 2008 - Springer

Abstract Children and adolescents exposed to intimate partner violence display a broad
range of symptoms. We sought to differentiate symptom patterns and predictors of these
patterns using a person-oriented approach. Previous cluster analysis research of exposed ...

Cited by 10 - Related articles - All 5 versions

1999Cited by 19 -Children's understanding of parental violence

Children's understanding of parental violence

SR Ornduff… - Child and Youth Care Forum, 1999 - Springer

This paper describes domestic violence from the perspective of 56 preschool and school-
age children during their temporary residence at a shelter for battered women. Data were
extracted from transcripts of individual counseling sessions that explored the childrens' ...

Cited by 19 - Related articles - BL Direct - All 4 versions

2009 Cited by 11 Children's actions when experiencing domestic violence

Children's actions when experiencing domestic violence

C Överlien… - Childhood, 2009 - chd.sagepub.com

Abstract The aim of this article is, by analysing children's discourses, to investigate their
actions or absence of actions during a domestic violence episode. The empirical data are
recorded group therapy sessions and individual interviews with children who have grown ...

Cited by 11 - Related articles - All 4 versions

Children Exposed to Domestic Violence

Children Exposed to Domestic Violence

C Øverlien - Journal of Social Work, 2010 - jsw.sagepub.com

• Summary: This article examines and discusses the research field of children exposed to
domestic violence, a field which has greatly expanded during the last 10 years. The author
presents an overview of this research, discusses its implications, and describes future ...

Cited by 10 - Related articles - All 2 versions

] The Convergence of Neurobiology and Epidemiology: - (ACE) Study

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The Convergence of Neurobiology and Epidemiology: - (ACE) Study

acestudy.org/.../Review_of_ACE_Study_with_references_summary_t...

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by R Anda - Cited by 5 - Related articles
The ACE Study calls for an integrated approach to intervene early on children growing up being abused, neglected, witnessing domestic violence, or with ..