Riverside County officials hold ceremony to raise awareness about child abuse prevention
April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and officials in Riverside County held a flag-raising ceremony for the second year in a row to honor the lives of young people lost due to abuse, neglect and violence.
More than 100 community members gathered outside the Riverside County Administrative Center on Monday morning to pay respect to victims and demonstrate a commitment to creating a safer environment for children, according to a release from the Family Service Association (FSACA), a nonprofit public health and human service agency serving Inland Empire communities.
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Prominent figures who attended the ceremony included Riverside County Second and Third District Supervisors Karen Spiegel and Chuck Washington, as well as Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.
Also in attendance were representatives from several community organizations and child abuse prevention services, including the Riverside County Child Assessment Team (RC-CAT) and the HOPE Collaborative, the latter of which serves as the county’s Child Abuse Prevention Council.
Health officials at Monday’s event emphasized that abuse, neglect and violence towards children continue to plague the county.
“Not a year goes by when we aren’t astonished at the level of maltreatment that some of our most vulnerable children experience at the hands of someone who was supposed to protect them,” said Dr. Sophia Grant, who serves as the Chief of Medical Services at the Riverside University Health System. “Last year, RC-CAT served 1,650 children with forensic interviews, medical examinations and family advocacy support.”
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Local government officials also spoke out against child abuse and vowed to “protect those who cannot protect themselves.”
“We stand united to ensure a comprehensive system of care is available to support children who have been subjected to the trauma of abuse and neglect and to provide ample services that will empower them to heal,” Supervisor Spiegel said. “It remains our fundamental responsibility to protect those who cannot protect themselves.”
For more information, visit the Child Welfare Information Gateway.
A link to the Child Welfare Information Gateway’s 2023-2024 Child Abuse Prevention Resource Guide can be found here.
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