By Paul Waldmiller
Did you know that in America, there were approximately 430,000 children that entered foster-care during 2017 and during that same year, 70,000 parents had their parental rights-terminated? Were you also aware that 88% of missing, sex-trafficked kids come from foster care?
The State of Florida ranks third in the U.S, for human trafficking. Throughout America, as well as here in Florida, we spend billions of federal and state taxpayer dollars every year to separate families. These taxpayer dollars support thousands of judges, lawyers, guardians, law enforcement officers, DCF agents, court clerks and others–all in an effort to separate children from their biological families. What if we took those same tax dollars and instead, use those same funds to help families, equipping them with the educational tools they need to become better parents and or family members?
Some years ago, I was a group facilitator for a wonderful family-based educational organization called Every Person Involved with Children. This organization had wonderful teaching tools, mostly through their educational booklets where parents were able to attend group sessions and hear from both professionals treating family dysfunctions as well as from every-day parent’s themselves. Through this program, parents had a chance to learn healthy parenting techniques from counselors as well as other parents who had success in raising their children. At completion, none of the attending moms and dads had lost their parental rights.
Too often, we see children used as chattel so others may profit from troubled homes. Family law in America is now a $100 billion per year industry.
To keep your children and family from becoming another statistic for Family Law, I suggest the following points of prevention;
1) Always take time to listen as well as talk with your children.
2) Spend quality time with your children. This means no electronic devices such as cellphones!
3) Be patient. In a culture where we expect immediate results, this may be difficult, but kids need patient parents.
and
4) Remember that kids have stress too! Learn to deescalate rather than confront angry kids.