Press Release: Child Abuse Prevention Must Happen All Year-Round to Keep Children Safe
CONTACT INFORMATION:
CornerHouse
Ivy Estenson Abdullahi
612-445-9416
ivy@cornerhousemn.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CornerHouse, a Minneapolis child abuse organization, implements abuse prevention programming amidst record demand for services
Minneapolis, Minn.: One in 10 children will experience sexual abuse by age 18. This statistic is probably even higher, as many children do not disclose the abuse and carry the weight of it for years. As Child Abuse Prevention Month begins in April, CornerHouse, a local Children’s Advocacy Center, is committed to reducing that statistic and has increased its effort to raise awareness and provide critical prevention training classes across the state.
CornerHouse provides response, advocacy and mental health services to children and their families when abuse has occurred. The organization has seen unprecedented numbers of referrals to its abuse response services in recent months. In the first 3 months of 2023, staff have performed 170 forensic interviews, nearly 30% more than previous years during this same time. In 2022, calls to our Community Call Line – where concerned parents, educators, or citizens can speak to an advocate for guidance on suspected abuse – rose by 265%.
Staff are working diligently to respond to the influx of cases and requests for community support but know more help is needed to stop abuse before it occurs.
CornerHouse has built a community prevention program to provide safety messaging and strategies to parents, educators, coaches, and anyone who wants to protect children. Participants will learn how to talk to children about safety, identify concerning behavior, create and reinforce safety rules, and intervene when necessary.
CornerHouse is actively seeking resources to expand services and provide this needed prevention training far and wide. They are hosting the Brave Kids Breakfast on Thursday, April 13th to honor the brave children who come to CornerHouse each day, as well as raise funds to help prevent abuse and keep kids safe.
Two bills in the legislature seek to provide funding for CornerHouse’s prevention programming and a new, expanded location. The bills have gone through the House and Senate committees and are being considered for inclusion in omnibus bills. If passed, CornerHouse will embark on a two-year pilot project in partnership with First Witness in Duluth to bring prevention programming to 20,000 families. “With an average of 9.5% of children self-reporting sexual abuse from a casual/serious relationship, it is critical to normalize conversations around body safety and empower our parents, children, and professionals with to identify treats and use strategy to improve safety,” says Mitzi Hobot, Executive Director of CornerHouse.
CornerHouse is a Child Advocacy Center based in Minneapolis, Minn. The organization’s mission is to partner with families, communities, and systems - entrusted with the safety of children, youth and vulnerable adults - to reduce trauma and end abuse through trauma-informed forensic interviews, advocacy and family support, and therapeutic services for healing. More information regarding CornerHouse can be found here.
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