Over the last year and a half, discussions of abolition, defunding the police, re-funding social services, etc. have been widely debated, but not unexpectedly, few actual initiatives have to come to fruition. One of the areas, however, where some productive shifting of funding, staffing, and vision has occurred is in relation to school resource officers,…
Our words matter, and being intentional with the message we are trying to convey can have a huge impact on the lessons (intended or not) that we are teaching young folks. Seemingly minor interactions or word choices can have significant impact on a person’s emotional state. Words that encourage dialogue and that are not shaming…
This post came across my Facebook recently, and it really struck me. Not only is this short story humanizing of young children, a plea for empathy and understanding, it is also incredibly effective at challenging a commonly accepted notion—the terrible 2s—demanding that we rethink what we believe we know about the behaviors of toddlers. The…
It should not come as a surprise that some of the best resources I have found for parents to discuss seemingly tough topics with their young children comes from Planned Parenthood. Discussing bodies and bodily autonomy is a topic covered in a variety of ways on The Bridges We Burn as we believe it is…
This past August I had the pleasure of attending the 2018 National Sexual Assault Conference in Anaheim with frequent contributor and member of our Board of Directors, Brian Heilman (also representing his work with Promundo), along with Aapta Garg, Promundo Program Officer, and Elizabeth Miller, Director of the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Children’s…
The vast majority of violence in all forms is perpetrated by men (against women, other men, queer folks, children, etc.). In order to stop cycles of violence, we need to challenge toxic masculinity and expectations of manhood that discourage emotionality, empathy, communication, cooperation, and so many other productive characteristics. This is may seem easier said…
Empowering children with information and knowledge is one of the most effective means of protecting them from sexual abuse and at the same time fostering empathy and consent-based relationships. In the United States, we often want to shelter children from sex and sexuality, which tends to create a culture of shame and confusion around our…
Another post on teaching consent, you ask? Yes! Because there are never enough resources or discussions on teaching consent, and because these conversations need to happen over and over again, and because we all need refreshers and best-practices on bringing the essential and foundational concept of consent to younger and younger audiences. And especially because…