The crime of child sexual abuse is sadly a familiar one to the American public.
Cases involving multiple victims, “celebrity perpetrators,” or perpetrators associated with positions of prestige and trust can foment intense media interest. Against this backdrop, another category of child sexual abuse has largely escaped the public’s attention: child-on-child sexual abuse.
We know of children as young as 8 years old sexually harming other children.
A review of state education agency information from fall 2011 ‒ spring 2015, as well as data from the National Incident-Based Reporting System, the Associated Press identified approximately 17,000 official reports of student sexual assault. This number reflects significant undercounting due to significant underreporting of CCSA by schools, as well as misclassification of sexual abuse as bullying.[1]
Unfortunately, research on the problem of child-on-child sexual abuse is scattered and difficult to find. That is why, when we launch the Out of the Shadows campaign on this issue later this year, we will release a research summary that collects this important information into one place, so that policy makers, teachers, and parents can know the facts.
This Out of the Shadows educational and advocacy campaign will produce a national symposium, activate a taskforce of experts, and begin honing in on policy solutions that can create long lasting improvements for schools, families, caregiver services, and more.
But we need your help to do it.
June 30th is the end of our fiscal year, and we need to know you support our work on this cause as we set our plans for the next year. Will you donate to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation today?
If you give $100 or more, you will become a Founding Supporter of our Out of the Shadows Campaign Against Child Sexual Abuse! Your name will be recognized on our campaign, and you will receive a special invitation to the national symposium in Washington DC this October.
Reese Dunklin, Emily Schall, and Michael Sirolly, “Student Sex Assault Reports and How They Vary by State,” AP.org, May 1, 2017, https://www.ap.org/explore/schoolhouse-sex-assault/student-sex-assault-reports-and-how-they-vary-by-state.html (accessed May 7, 2018).
