Editorial, April 3, 2009: Child abuse rising sharply in Darlington County, Pee Dee

The latest numbers on child abuse in our area point to an alarming trend in Darlington County and the Pee Dee region.

From July 1, 2007, to June 30, 2008, there were a total of 1,544 child victims reported in the Pee Dee region, according to figures from the S.C.
Department of Social Services. That’s up sharply from the 1,283 child victims reported in the year before, a 20.3 percent increase.

And in Darlington County, the number went up from 264 to 290 during the same one-year period. That’s a 9.85 percent increase.

The Pee Dee Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault served 551 child and adolescent victims of abuse last year. That’s up from 411 the previous year, an increase of 34.1 percent.

What’s going on here? And what does it say about our community? It certainly doesn’t reflect well on it.

Robin Griggs, program director for the Durant Children’s Center, a program of the Pee Dee Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Assault, said one factor behind the rising numbers appears to be that more people are reporting incidents of child abuse and neglect when they occur. But at the same time, she said, the number of incidents actually occurring is on the rise.

“It’s some of both,” she said. “More people are seeing the importance of reporting incidents. But we’re also seeing an increase in the number of incidents. And unfortunately, we think we’re going to see more increases with the economic times the way they are. People are under more pressure, and that leads to more physical abuse.”

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. It’s a time to focus on the protection and care of our most vulnerable and trusting — and our most precious. Of course, that time ought to be year round.

Only by raising public awareness about the problem can we hope to eradicate it.

South Carolina ranks 46th in the nation for the overall well-being of children, according to the 2007 Kids Count State of Child Well-Being report.

The latest figures from the Children’s Trust of South Carolina indicate that there were 16,898 reports of child abuse or neglect in the state, but the actual number of incidents occurring is estimated to be three times that — 53,881. Far too many incidents still go unreported, and that’s a problem.
The Children’s Trust Fund also reports that 4,894 children around the state are in foster care, with 53,881 being raised by their grandparents. In Darlington County, 119 children were placed in foster care from July 1, 2007, to June 30, 2008, according to Darlington County Department of Social Services, and DSS officials say more foster homes are needed in Darlington County to meet the growing need.

Here are some more statistics provided by the Pee Dee Coalition. Some 61 percent of child maltreatment victims suffer neglect; 19 percent are physically abused; 10 percent are sexually abused; and 7 percent are emotionally or psychologically maltreated. In addition, 18.9 percent of victims experience “other” types of abuse or maltreatment, such as abandonment, threats to harm the child and congenital drug addiction.

Across the U.S., child protective services find an estimated 896,000 children to be victims of neglect or abuse.

The Pee Dee Coalition is sponsoring a series of events throughout the region during the month of April to shine more light on the problem of child abuse and how to prevent it.

The Pee Dee Coalition, Prevent Child Abuse Pee Dee and the Durant Children’s Center offer a number of services and resources to serve victims of child abuse and to educate the public in our region about the problem. To learn more, call the Pee Dee Coalition at 669-4694 (crisis line at 669-4600 or 1-800-273-1820), Prevent Child Abuse Pee Dee at 669-3391 ext. 26, or the Durant Children’s Center at 664 HELP (664-4375).

To find out about becoming a foster parent call SCDSS at (843) 616-0778 or locally at 332-2231.