Too Many Children Die in America as a Result of Abuse and Neglect. We Can Do Better.

In late October 2009, Every Child Matters released a report “We Can Do Better: Child Abuse and Neglect Deaths in America” (latest version) during a public rally on the lawn of our nation’s capitol. According to the report, nearly five children die in America every day from abuse or neglect. In fact, federal data show that 10,440 children in the U.S. died from abuse and neglect between 2001 and 2007, but experts say the real number may be as many as 5,000 higher. A weak economy and resulting state budget cuts are putting even more children at risk, as evidenced by the nultitude of newspaper stories from across America that link an increase in child abuse to the worsening recession. To see a compendium of these stories, entitled “The Growing Crisis in Child Protection,” click here.

The rally was followed with a Summit to End Child Abuse Deaths in America attended by some 150 experts from across the country. Their discussions resulted in recommendations for ending fatalities. Click here to see the recommendations.

We are proud to be a founding member of the National Coalition to End Child Abuse Deaths.  Every Child Matters and its partners in this effort—the National Center for Child Death Review, the National Children’s Alliance, the National Association of Social Workers, the National District Attorneys’ Association, formed this coalition in order to launch a campaign to urge Congress and the Administration to address the fatalities that claim the lives of innocent children every day. Specifically, we are asking our government to hold hearings, provide emergency funds to stop state cuts in child protective services, and adopt a national strategy to prevent child abuse and stop child deaths.

Click here to download a copy of the fourth edition of "Child Abuse and Neglect Deaths in America"

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