LIHU‘E — Mayor Derek S.K. Kawakami wore a blue jade lei on Monday, the blue symbolizing the color of child abuse prevention.
He was joined in blue by the Children’s Justice Center, a part of the state Judiciary system, and the group’s many community partners, in announcing through a mayoral proclamation that April is National Alcohol Awareness, Child Abuse Prevention and Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month.
“We’ll be doing a statewide sign holding Wednesday from noon to 1 p.m. in the lawn of the Historic County Building,” said the Friends of the Children’s Justice Center. “Every group in the state will be doing it at the same time. We’ll also start planting the blue pinwheel gardens symbolizing child abuse prevention from next Tuesday.”
According to the proclamation, during the month of April many will work to underscore the preventability of alcohol use disorders, child abuse and neglect, and sexual assault and violence, by raising awareness on these critical issues while strengthening partnerships within the community to enhance safety, health and viability of people.
Alcohol use disorder is the most prevalent and fourth-most lethal disorder, with 14.5 million people ages 12 and older having alcohol use disorder in the United States as of 2019, and an estimated 140,000 people dying from alcohol-related causes annually, states the proclamation.
Alcohol exacerbates social, physical, mental and public health problems, such as teenage pregnancy, domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, motor vehicle crashes, property crime and violent crimes. Kaua‘i must provide early intervention to reduce the risk of underaged alcohol use, identifying alcohol problems and fostering a culture of recovery and wellness, the proclamation continues.
Alcohol is also one of the causes of child abuse. More than 1,400 children were reported as abused or neglected to the state’s Department of Human Services over the past five years, and more than 979 children received services through the Children’s Justice Center on Kaua‘i during that period.
For children to thrive, they deserve a community that fosters resilience and stable relationships with supportive adults, the proclamation states. Kaua‘i must continuously support agencies such as the Children’s Justice Center and Child Welfare Services to ensure that families receive coordinated support.
The proclamation addresses sexual assault, another of the results of alcohol abuse, by noting that sexual violence is prevalent on Kaua‘i, impacting individuals, families and communities throughout the island.
The YWCA of Kaua‘i, currently holding a slipper campaign for abused keiki and children, fields an average of 150 sexual assault calls to its hotline per year, and provides an average of 1,200 hours of counseling services to sexual assault survivors and their families each year.
Research has demonstrated that in Hawai‘i, 11.6 percent of adult women have been coerced into sex, 14.9 percent have been raped, and 28.2 percent reported unwanted sexual contact.
Information in the proclamation states that one in 10 children will experience a sexual assault before the age of 18, and approximately 93 percent of children who are victims of sexual abuse know their abuser. The data further reflects that, despite its prevalence, sexual assault remains one of the most underreported crimes.
The proclamation states the importance of learning about the behavioral and physical signs of alcohol addiction, child abuse and neglect, and sexual assault, and in working to reduce the incidence of these public health crises from taking place on Kaua‘i.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 808-245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
