Why Pinwheels for Prevention?
In 2008, Prevent Child Abuse America introduced the pinwheel as the new national symbol for child abuse prevention through Pinwheels for Prevention®. By its very nature, the pinwheel connotes whimsy and childlike notions. In essence, it has come to serve as the physical embodiment, or reminder, of the great childhoods we want for all children.
Why Do We Care?
Because we all play a role in children’s lives…
Whether you are an employer enacting policies that impact the work-life balance or a neighbor who offers parents time away from stress, we all have an effect on the lives of children. The responsibility is ours to contribute to the kind of nation in which we want to live. When all children don’t have equal opportunity for healthy growth and development, we put our future as a society at risk. Every day is your call to action and an opportunity for you to recognize that we all play a role in children’s lives.
Because children are our future…
Our most basic obligation is to support the healthy development of our nation’s children. The great childhoods we want for our children require a loving and supporting environment. Children who are raised in supportive and stable environments are more academically and financially successful, and great childhoods help children grow into productive, contributing adults who help their community, and our country, be prosperous and competitive in the global economy.
Because the costs are too high…
When we invest in healthy child development, we are investing in community and economic development. Unfortunately, children are sometimes exposed to extreme and sustained stress like child abuse and neglect, which can undermine a child’s development. Research conducted by Prevent Child Abuse America estimates that implementing effective policies and strategies to prevent child abuse and neglect can save taxpayers $80 billion per year. The cost of not doing this is measured in increased costs for foster care services, hospitalization, mental health treatment and law enforcement, as well as loss of individual productivity and expenditures related to chronic health problems, special education and the justice system.