A Child Advocate's Blog

The Boston Globe, July 25, 2010 STRUGGLING FAMILIES and their children across the country are breathing a little easier now that legislation to extend unemployment benefits has advanced. Massachusetts residents in the tens of thousands will benefit, and the state’s economy will percolate as these dollars are spent. Unfortunately, Senator Scott Brown opposed extending this critical, short-term spending. He has another chance, however, to help revive the state from a lethargic economic recovery. Legislation to extend FMAP — the federal medical assistance percentage — has been stalled in the Senate for weeks. The latest version of this bill includes $16 billion in fiscal relief to the states, and these funds are fully offset so they won’t increase the deficit. Without this support, Massachusetts faces $690 million in reduced revenue and an avalanche of cuts that are certain to further bury already vulnerable children and families. Senator Brown gets it. He knows that extending FM...

O’Malley has unfinished business here in Boston - The Boston Globe

The Boston Globe recently wrote an op editorial in which they rightly described Cardinal O'Malley's responses to clergy sexual abuse as "a push and pull between the old forces of secrecy and the new pressure for transparency." In March 2009, the Cardinal publicly stated that "in the very near future" the Archdiocese would revise its policy on "disclosing information about accused clergy and the status of cases against them." Fifteen months later, despite urgings from child advocates and abuse victims, and the fact that two dozen other Bishops have released this information, we in Boston still wait. The Cardinal's new Vatican assignment to help Ireland address its clergy sex scandal should prompt him to resolve unfinished business in his own Archdiocese. He must release now the names of all proven, admitted or credibly accused Archdiocesan priests, religious order priests and brothers, deacons and nuns - whether living or deceased. Included mus...

The unprecedented outpouring of deep-felt concern from MySpace members to Kaleb Schwade, a young infant and victim of Shaken Baby Syndrome, has left me once again with a strange mix of both sadness and excitement. Sadness because since the late 80s when our child abuse prevention organization, Massachusetts Citizens for Children, first began educating parents and professionals about the problem, too many other SBS victims' names have crossed my desk .... Patrick, 6 months old, Boston; Natalie, 5 months, Brockton; Josh, 3 months, Dracut; Theresa, 2 months, Worcester; Harry, 4 months, Framingham; Jack, 1 month, Holyoke; Adam, 2 months, Leominster; Melissa, 3 months, Lynn; Frank, 6 months, Brighton; Heather, 3 months, Rockport; Michael, 2 months, Holden; Patricia, 1 month, Springfield . . . Behind each name is the story of a child's broken trust and a parent or caregiver's broken promise to care for and protect. Each name tells a story of frustration escalating to anger a...

I regularly receive calls from reporters covering stories about shaken babies. The questions are always the same. How could anyone do this to a child? How can these tragedies be prevented? Here are some facts everyone should know: The most frequent trigger involved in these shaking incidents is infant crying and fussiness. All of us, whether we are parents or not, have likely experienced that physical gut-wrenching reaction when we hear a baby's sharp or constant cry. It commands our immediate attention. Mother Nature intended it to be like that to give babies a way to ensure their survival. If they only wimpered softly when they needed to be fed, or were cold and wet, or needed to feel close to us, adults might not respond and babies' critical needs might not be met. Some people manage to cope well when confronted with a fussy, crying infant or child particularly when they have the support of their spouse, partner, or other family and friends. But others, particularly those ...