Editorial
Commercial Sexual Exploitation and Sex Trafficking of Minors as Child Abuse
Commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) has been the focus of a lot of national attention recently. What distinguishes CSEC from other forms of child abuse is the abuse of children for economic gain of perpetrators (Grace, Starck, Potenza, Kenney, & Sheetz, 2012; Mukasey, Daley, & Hagy, 2007). As recent as December 2012, we published an article in The Journal of School Nursing that provides guidance for school nurses to recognize CSEC and intervene in the care of victimized children (Grace et al., 2012). The authors outline symptoms that should be recognized including bruising, black eyes or other trauma, symptoms associated with posttraumatic stress disorder, runaway behavior, changes in physical appearance that makes female students appear more sexual, and many other graphic symptoms (Grace et al., 2012). Why should the editorial focus now on a concern that has been so well described? A recent publication from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) outlined the history of the recognition of child abuse in the United States (Institute of Medicine [IOM] & National Research Council [NRC], 2013). This historical review is relevant to promoting how we recognize and address solutions for CSEC. Although it took several decades to formulate accepted signs and symptoms of child abuse and neglect and treatment and prevention, the hope is that we can draw on the process from history and move more quickly to address CSEC. Child abuse has been endemic for centuries. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, the first child protection agency in the United States, was established in New York city in 1874. Throughout the early 20th century, protective residential services were created to address child abuse that was perpetrated at home. The landmark work of C. Henry Kempe in 1962 provided evidence for a diagnosis called The Battered Child Syndrome (Kempe, Silverman, Steele, Droegemueller, & Silver, 1962). The effectiveness of Kempe’s work is reflected in the move to make mandatory reporting of child abuse law in all 50 states. In 1962, Kempe was concerned that over 700 children in the United States might be victims of child abuse. History shows us that the prevalence skyrocketed from 60,000 reported cases in 1969 to 3 million in 1990, with over 1 million cases confirmed. These increases were directly related to early mandates for reporting and the acceptance of responsibility of designated reporters. What this history illuminates is a process that needs to be developed to stop the sexual exploitation of children. First, recognition of the problem not only by the health care system,
The Journal of School Nursing 2014, Vol. 30(2) 87 ª The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permission: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1059840514524732 jsn.sagepub.com
including school health services, but also by the child protective services and the criminal justice system. As programs are developed to raise awareness, it is mandatory that exploited children are not labeled as criminals but as victims (IOM & NRC, 2013). The growth of public awareness can influence the development of laws that change the focus on criminalizing behavior of the victims to services that would support recovery. Further laws should focus on the perpetrators as exploiters, traffickers, and solicitors, thus decreasing demand. Research needs to be advanced not only to understand the prevalence of sex trafficking but also to develop prevention strategies that would build children’s skills to avoid falling victim. Now, more than ever, collaboration across service sectors including the criminal justice system must be enhanced. Common resources across sectors must be developed. School nurses are on the front lines and can start the movements at the school level. While sex trafficking may seem like a crime that happens in other communities, newspapers across the country report criminal behavior in local communities by adults using children for economic gain in pornography and prostitution. No matter what our roles are, school nurse, researcher, or school health services leader, we need to accept the fact that protecting children is paramount and turning a blind eye will only delay the next steps to rescuing a child. Be sure to make the IOM report and the JOSN article available to your communities. See Grace, Starck, Potenza, Kenney, and Sheetz (2012) subsequently as well as the IOM citation. Julia Muennich Cowell, PhD, RN, APHN-BC, FAAN Executive Editor References Grace, L. G., Starck, M., Potenza, J., Kenney, P. A., & Sheetz, A. H. (2012). Commercial sexual exploitation of children and the school nurse. Journal of School Nursing, 28, 410–417. Institute of Medicine and National Research Council. (2013). Confronting commercial sexual exploitation and sex trafficking of minors in the United States. Washington, DC: National Academies Press. Kempe, C. H., Silverman, F., Steele, B., Droegemueller, W., & Silver, H. K. (1962). The Battered-child Syndrome. Journal of the American Medical Association, 181, 17–24. Mukasey, M., Daley, C., & Hagy, D. (2007). Commercial sexual explitation of children: What do we know and what do we do about it? Washington, DC: Department of Justice.
Downloaded from jsn.sagepub.com at Glasgow University Library on June 24, 2015
Commercial Sexual Exploitation and Sex Trafficking of Minors as Child Abuse
Commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) has been the focus of a lot of national attention recently. What distinguishes CSEC from other forms of child abuse is the abuse of children for economic gain of perpetrators (Grace, Starck, Potenza, Kenney, & Sheetz, 2012; Mukasey, Daley, & Hagy, 2007). As recent as December 2012, we published an article in The Journal of School Nursing that provides guidance for school nurses to recognize CSEC and intervene in the care of victimized children (Grace et al., 2012). The authors outline symptoms that should be recognized including bruising, black eyes or other trauma, symptoms associated with posttraumatic stress disorder, runaway behavior, changes in physical appearance that makes female students appear more sexual, and many other graphic symptoms (Grace et al., 2012). Why should the editorial focus now on a concern that has been so well described? A recent publication from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) outlined the history of the recognition of child abuse in the United States (Institute of Medicine [IOM] & National Research Council [NRC], 2013). This historical review is relevant to promoting how we recognize and address solutions for CSEC. Although it took several decades to formulate accepted signs and symptoms of child abuse and neglect and treatment and prevention, the hope is that we can draw on the process from history and move more quickly to address CSEC. Child abuse has been endemic for centuries. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, the first child protection agency in the United States, was established in New York city in 1874. Throughout the early 20th century, protective residential services were created to address child abuse that was perpetrated at home. The landmark work of C. Henry Kempe in 1962 provided evidence for a diagnosis called The Battered Child Syndrome (Kempe, Silverman, Steele, Droegemueller, & Silver, 1962). The effectiveness of Kempe’s work is reflected in the move to make mandatory reporting of child abuse law in all 50 states. In 1962, Kempe was concerned that over 700 children in the United States might be victims of child abuse. History shows us that the prevalence skyrocketed from 60,000 reported cases in 1969 to 3 million in 1990, with over 1 million cases confirmed. These increases were directly related to early mandates for reporting and the acceptance of responsibility of designated reporters. What this history illuminates is a process that needs to be developed to stop the sexual exploitation of children. First, recognition of the problem not only by the health care system,
The Journal of School Nursing 2014, Vol. 30(2) 87 ª The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permission: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1059840514524732 jsn.sagepub.com
including school health services, but also by the child protective services and the criminal justice system. As programs are developed to raise awareness, it is mandatory that exploited children are not labeled as criminals but as victims (IOM & NRC, 2013). The growth of public awareness can influence the development of laws that change the focus on criminalizing behavior of the victims to services that would support recovery. Further laws should focus on the perpetrators as exploiters, traffickers, and solicitors, thus decreasing demand. Research needs to be advanced not only to understand the prevalence of sex trafficking but also to develop prevention strategies that would build children’s skills to avoid falling victim. Now, more than ever, collaboration across service sectors including the criminal justice system must be enhanced. Common resources across sectors must be developed. School nurses are on the front lines and can start the movements at the school level. While sex trafficking may seem like a crime that happens in other communities, newspapers across the country report criminal behavior in local communities by adults using children for economic gain in pornography and prostitution. No matter what our roles are, school nurse, researcher, or school health services leader, we need to accept the fact that protecting children is paramount and turning a blind eye will only delay the next steps to rescuing a child. Be sure to make the IOM report and the JOSN article available to your communities. See Grace, Starck, Potenza, Kenney, and Sheetz (2012) subsequently as well as the IOM citation. Julia Muennich Cowell, PhD, RN, APHN-BC, FAAN Executive Editor References Grace, L. G., Starck, M., Potenza, J., Kenney, P. A., & Sheetz, A. H. (2012). Commercial sexual exploitation of children and the school nurse. Journal of School Nursing, 28, 410–417. Institute of Medicine and National Research Council. (2013). Confronting commercial sexual exploitation and sex trafficking of minors in the United States. Washington, DC: National Academies Press. Kempe, C. H., Silverman, F., Steele, B., Droegemueller, W., & Silver, H. K. (1962). The Battered-child Syndrome. Journal of the American Medical Association, 181, 17–24. Mukasey, M., Daley, C., & Hagy, D. (2007). Commercial sexual explitation of children: What do we know and what do we do about it? Washington, DC: Department of Justice.
Downloaded from jsn.sagepub.com at Glasgow University Library on June 24, 2015
