The Child Welfare System© Dena Standley
Apr 22, 1999
Imagine that you are curled up on the couch watching TV. Suddenly you hear a knock at the door. A stranger comes into your home and tells you to pack a suitcase. You don't know what is going on, but you know that everyone in your family is very upset. You have ten minutes to decide what you will take with you and what must be left behind. Leaving with the stranger, you don't know if you will ever return.
It is hard to imagine such a scenario. Unfortunately, it happens to children every day as they enter the custody of Child Protective Services. They are being removed from their homes because of substantiated reports of abuse and/or neglect. These victimized children are then subjected to a child welfare system that is already overextended and poorly equipped. The 1996 Annual Fifty States Survey conducted by the National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse estimates that six out of every 1,000 children in the United States under the age of 18 are in foster care. Three children die every day as the result of abuse or neglect at the hands of their parents or caretakers. The Committee has a wealth of information available on their web site http://childabuse.org/. The laws governing the child welfare system are designed to protect the rights of parents. Under these laws children have few rights and no trusted adult to make sure that those few rights are protected. There is an organization dedicated to becoming a voice for these children. CASA, which stands for Court Appointed Special Advocates, provides thousands of volunteers to work with individual children and speak for them and in court hearings and family planning sessions. CASA can also be found on the web at http://www.nationalcasa.org. Every child deserves a safe, loving and permanent family. Children in foster care spend months and often years in placements that are designed to offer temporary care. The average length of time a child spends in foster care is fourteen months. Too often, they then return to homes that are not much safer than when they left. The damage that this can do is immeasurable. We have to find a way to hold the system that is responsible for these children accountable. New laws are needed to deal specifically with the rights of children and we need a stronger watchdog organization to make sure these laws are upheld in individual state agencies. We each have the power to become a voice for a child that doesn't have one.
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You are right. I have to believe that if people knew what life is like for most children in foster care things would change. These children have been abused and neglected and in the name of "saving" t ...
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I was a CASA for two years (until I had my third child and no longer had time). I was appalled by the way so many children are treated (at home and by the system). I was also involved with a grou ...
-- posted by KellyMaureen
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Hello again Dena,Our subjects are so closely related. I think we'll have a lot of the same issues, links, etc. I will visit often to see what is new and if there is anything I can help with, let m ...
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I was a foster parent for several years. Nothing in my life has ever been any harder or more rewarding. If I can help in any way please feel free to email me. Good Luck!!! ...
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Dena, This information couldn't be at a more perfect time for me. I just made some calls this morning (before seeing your site) to inquire about possibly becoming a foster parent. I look for ...
-- posted by Time_To_Spare
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