There are currently more than 1,200 children living in foster care in Lane County, the highest rate of any county in Oregon. Nearly half of these children are under the age of six.
Every day, judges decide the futures of abused and neglected children in a system that is too overburdened to focus adequately on the needs for each child. Without a voice in the system, these children are at high risk for homelessness, unemployment, incarceration, and drug and alcohol abuse as adults.
Multiple stresses contribute to child abuse, including substance abuse, unemployment, parental involvement with law enforcement, and domestic violence. The majority of child abuse cases in Oregon involve drug and alcohol abuse. Poverty also puts children at high risk: children raised in families with annual incomes of less than $15,000 are 22 times more likely to be abused.
Failure to intervene in cases of child abuse can have dire long-term consequences, including death. According to the federal government, abused children can suffer from:
- Physical consequences: damage to a child’s growing brain including cognitive delays and emotional difficulties;
- Psychological consequences: depression/anxiety leading to high-risk behaviors including smoking, alcohol and illicit drug use and abuse, and overeating;
- Long-term physical health problems like sexually transmitted diseases, cancer, and obesity.
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