| | “My child just feels so isolated, like this has only ever happened to them. They are so confused … we just don’t know where to turn to help them understand.” – Allison, Mother* Dear John, This quote is from Allison, the mother of a 12-year-old victim of online enticement who came to us for help after her child sent explicit pictures to a friend. The “friend” turned out to be an adult male who also sent the child explicit images of himself. Unfortunately, in 2020 the number of online enticement reports to our CyberTipline here at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) skyrocketed, growing from 19,174 in 2019 to 37,872 in 2020—that’s an almost 97% increase. John, please remember that behind every single one of these reports is a real child being victimized and feeling confusion, shame, betrayal, isolation, fear, or distrust. These feelings and experiences at such a young age are worrisome to family members and the team here at NCMEC. We advocate for victims so they have resources that can help them overcome difficulties with self-esteem, depression, anxiety, maintaining healthy relationships or any other challenges they may face. This week, April 18-24, is National Crime Victims’ Rights Week and NCMEC wants all victims of abduction and exploitation to know you have rights and deserve the opportunity to receive support, encouragement and hope from our team. When Allison’s child said, "I should just run away with him" and "You all don’t understand, we love each other,” that's when Allison knew they needed help and contacted NCMEC. Your support allows NCMEC to provide a wide range of support services for child victims and their families including crisis intervention, emotional support, referrals to appropriate community agencies and mental health professionals, legal referrals, peer connection, and reunification assistance. Now, through the help their family was able to find, Allison’s child can tell us, “Yes I did feel funny sending those pictures" and "Yes I thought we were in a relationship together, I never thought he could be someone else online.” We are so grateful for these moments of learning, healing and growth that can happen when families have the right type of support around them. Because of you, John, we are able to work hard to protect children, both online and offline—because we know how harmful the trauma of abuse is. You support programs that educate children and families to help prevent victimization before it happens, and to provide counseling and education to families suffering now. Thank you for supporting this important work. We wish you and your family safety and health this spring. Sincerely, Your Friends at The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children *Names and other identifying information were changed in order to protect their privacy. | The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children is a private, non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation whose mission is to help find missing children, reduce child sexual exploitation, and prevent child victimization. NCMEC works with families, victims, private industry, law enforcement, and the public to assist with preventing child abductions, recovering missing children, and providing services to deter and combat child sexual exploitation. | | | |
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