Erin’s Law (See Bill Attached)
I am so grateful for state senator of Illinois Tim Bivins. I met with him on April 19th and 9 days later he attached a bill to Erin’s Law. He is asking me to testify at the capital before the senate. When I ended my 2nd book saying I am going after legislation that will mandate education in schools on sexual abuse I meant it. Will the bill currently says schools may obtain, it will eventually change to mandated. Tim just needed to get the ball rolling with the senate before they went of session for the summer on May 7th.
http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/96/SB/09600SB2843sam001.htm
Erin–Good luck to you on the bill. I wondered if you have seen or heard of the Keeping Children Safe program that the Diocese of Rockford is using in their schools and religious education classes. There is a teacher training and also grade level lessons that goes beyond stranger danger. Children as young as kindergarten and 1st grade, children are taught about keeping your body safe, trusting your gut when something feels wrong, and telling an adult every time. As a parent, it was one of the most beneficial lessons of the entire year. There is also a gut-wrenching video for teachers and parents about being aware of and recognizing the signs of sexual predators and their victims. I left both sessions wishing that such a program could be provided at the public school level. I am so grateful for your efforts. Good luck.
I think it is wonderful what you are doing. You have been so brave; I admire your courage. A law definitely has to be passed, but something also has to be done with DCFS workers who don’t/won’t/can’t take complaints about suspected abuse. Such is the case with my granddaughter, who told me and her mom that “daddy hurt my peepee”. DCFS refused to take the complaint saying it was a revenge thing due to a nasty divorce/custody battle. Found out later that the father’s aunt worked for DCFS. An alarming number of children are being molested and abused. Thank you Erin for being the voice for these tiny victims.
[...] about how to recognize, report and get help for sexual abuse. On April 19, Tom Bivins formally turned her proposed school code ammendments into a bill and asked her to testify You can see the proposed ammendments here. If you live in Illinois and [...]
Thank you after sharing this knowledge!