Not all the scars left behind when a child is abused are visible, physical scars. All too often the scars of maltreatment manifest themselves in other disturbing ways. Abused and neglected children are 53% more likely to be arrested for juvenile crime and 38% more likely to be arrested as an adult. More than 50% of the women in the nation's jails and prisons reported abuse as a child; teenagers with alcohol problems are 21 times more likely to have been sexually abused than those without such problems; and 59% to 70% of women and a substantial number of men treated in psychiatric settings have histories of sexual and/or physical abuse. There are an estimated 39 million survivors of child abuse in the United States today.
But there is hope. Each year thousands of young victims begin their journey to recovery through a children's advocacy center, a child-friendly place where even the smallest and most vulnerable of child victims can feel safe telling what has happened to them and where their healing can begin. Last year more than 37,000 children received these caring and compassionate services from one of 61 local children's advocacy centers across Texas.
