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Safe Blog

The Inaugural World Day to End Sexual Violence Against Children and Adolescents

17th November 2021

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Preventing abuse and fighting for healing and justice for survivors

November 18 is the Inaugural World Day for Prevention, Healing and Justice to End Sexual Violence Against Children and Adolescents.

#EndChildSexAbuseDay or #Nov18WorldDay is an opportunity to acknowledge the horrific magnitude of sexual violence against children and call for real, lasting change in communities around the world.

The “World Day for Prevention, Healing and Justice to End Sexual Violence Against Children and Adolescents” was developed through the efforts of the Global Collaborative, a survivor-led network of child advocacy organizations, governments, academic, and faith-based institutions committed to ending childhood sexual violence.

Building off the success of the Council of Europe’s “European Day on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse” annual observance on November 18, the Global Collaborative hopes to create an official international day to end sexual violence against children. This year, representatives from more than 55 countries are commemorating the day, including the 47 countries of the European Council, Bolivia, Canada, India, Kenya, Nepal, and the United States.

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"Sexual violence against children is a global crisis – but we know it doesn’t have to be this way. There are effective, evidence-based solutions that work to address violence."

Keep Kids Safe launches U.S. National Blueprint

Keep Kids Safe National Blueprint

In the United States, one alliance commemorating World Day to End Sexual Violence Against Children and Adolescents is Keep Kids Safe. Led by a coalition of survivors, allies and organizations (including Together for Girls), Keep Kids Safe launched the first-ever U.S. National Blueprint to End Sexual Violence Against Children and Adolescents this morning.

Using the framework of prevention, healing, and justice, this Blueprint serves as a roadmap identifying the much-needed changes the federal government should implement to ensure that evidence-based prevention efforts will be taken to scale in families, communities, schools, sports programs, places of worship and online. It also outlines the efforts needed to ensure that children, adolescents and adults who experienced sexual violence will access equitable, child and survivor-centered services and engage in processes designed to help them heal. Finally, it details interventions at the federal level that will ensure survivors who experienced any form of sexual violence—including child sexual abuse—will access fair child- and survivor-centered justice.

Honoring survivor voices

A guiding principle of the communities commemorating #EndChildSexAbuseDay #Nov18WorldDay is that in order to end sexual violence against children and adolescents, it is essential that survivors’ voices and experiences are heard, acknowledged and honored in all decision-making processes.

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“Every child has the right to grow up free from the threat of sexual violence. When we work together, as survivors and allies, we are powerful. We must be brave so that children can be safe.”

Daniela LigieroChief Executive Officer & President, Together for Girls

This video is an excerpt from the Survivor’s Agenda Virtual Town Hall hosted by Together for Girls with Darkness to Light, SNAP, the Army of Survivors and the Survivors’ Agenda.

Join the global #EndChildSexAbuseDay conversation

Stay in the loop and join the global conversation online by using #EndChildSexAbuseDay, #Nov18WorldDay, and #PreventionHealingJustice. Survivors, allies, and organizations from around the world are using these hashtags to share their stories, highlight resources, and connect with each other.

On #EndChildSexAbuseDay #Nov18WorldDay, let’s renew our commitment to end sexual violence against children and adolescents and elevate the voices of survivors and allies to create change. Together, we can create a safer future for all children.