April is Child Abuse Prevention Month

In honor of National Child Abuse Prevention Month, Committee for Children is offering our Hot Chocolate Talk campaign as a free online resource. The Hot Chocolate Talk is designed to help families navigate conversations about child sexual abuse by providing a research-based conversation how-to guide. Even in these difficult times, we know many parents and caregivers are still looking for child sexual abuse prevention materials. The time in the coming weeks may be an opportunity for families to start these critically important safety conversations.

As a former educator, I’ve been in your shoes. I know the feeling of wanting to support your students and their families in times of uncertainty. We want to continue to help you support them, and we hope the Hot Chocolate Talk will be helpful for everyone as we navigate this new normal together.

Watch the Hot Chocolate Talk in action and visit our revamped  Educator Resources page.

Help Start the Conversation

Take your dedication to kids and their families even further by taking part in this year’s Hot Chocolate Talk campaign.

Whether it’s sharing resources from HotChocolateTalk.org with parents and caregivers, posting about the campaign on social media, or downloading our how-to guide for talks with your own children, you can make a difference.

With the help of educators like you, our organization has advocated for child protection for more than four decades. We greatly appreciate your continued support of this important work.

As an organization that is deeply committed to the social and emotional well-being of children and their families, I feel we must address the turmoil that is being felt across our country. At Committee for Children, we resolutely stand with every Black person in this country who has experienced police brutality, racial violence, and oppression.

The murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many others that we never hear about, dramatically underscore the persistent institutional racism and violence that consistently targets the Black community and other people of color. We must stand collectively and support those who are using their voices to affect systemic change, making their communities better places to live, and investing in the children who will be the leaders of tomorrow.

We understand our responsibility to address racial injustice. While we continue to learn the best ways to support the Black community, our focus on using our resources, knowledge, and collective passion to help young people in their journey toward respecting differences, showing empathy, and solving problems constructively is stronger than ever.

And while expressing our solidarity with the Black community through this statement is important, what is most important is what we do as an organization in the weeks and years ahead to demonstrate our commitment and dedication to becoming better and more active allies.

That is why we will continue to advance diversity, inclusion, and equity work inside and outside of our organization. We commit to providing Black students with equitable access to our programs and other culturally responsive social-emotional learning experiences. We will advocate for the integration of anti-racist and Black studies curricula in schools. And we will work to ensure that our products and programs are representative and impactful for all racial and ethnic communities.

Again, we know that words are not enough. We will move forward with humility and vulnerability. So, please do not stay silent. Tell us how we can best support you. Demand that we hold ourselves accountable. Help us drive real change. We are in this for the long haul and will not rest until our vision of safe children thriving in a peaceful world is a reality for every child.

In pursuit of a better future,

Colleen A. Oliver, CEO
Committee for Children