August 25, 2022 • 20 mins
Bryan has a moving conversation with Katelyn Brewer of Darkness to Light - the nations leading advocate for child sexual abuse prevention. As President & CEO, she lends invaluable insight to the larger conversation of child protection as a collective adult responsibility. She outlines the National Blueprint for reform and its impact on legislation.
(Originally aired 24Aug22)
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Episode Transcript
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S1 (00:01):
(SFX:OLAS Media). OLAS Media Presents Nation State of Play. Welcome to
(00:27):
the Nation State.
S2 (00:28):
Of Play podcast. I'm your host, Bryan Miller. And each
episode we explore the political stories that are driving public
policy in California. We explore these stories with political insiders,
business leaders, journalists and policymakers themselves to get below the
surface of the headlines and show you the true forces
shaping our nation state. Katelyn, thanks so much for being
here today. It's a pleasure to have you on the show.
S3 (00:49):
It's a pleasure to be here.
S2 (00:51):
Could you start off by telling us a little bit
about your organization and what you focus on at high level?
S3 (00:56):
Yeah, absolutely. So I actually.
S4 (00:59):
Am working on two things. I am the CEO of
Darkness to Light, which is an adult education oriented organization
that focuses on child sexual abuse prevention.
S3 (01:09):
But I'm here today to.
S4 (01:10):
Talk about the Keep Kids Safe Movement, which.
S3 (01:12):
Is a collection.
S4 (01:14):
Of national organizations who have come together to ask the government,
both the legislative and the executive branch.
S3 (01:21):
To finally make a difference in.
S4 (01:23):
Terms of this silent epidemic we have of child sexual violence.
S2 (01:28):
So how did this coalition come together? What was the
impetus for it?
S4 (01:32):
That's a great question.
S3 (01:34):
So many of you.
S4 (01:35):
Might not know that there is actually legislation out there
in states across the country.
S3 (01:42):
Some of them are called Erin's Law. Some of them
are called Jenna's Law. And they've kind of been a
patchwork of legislation.
S4 (01:48):
For the last ten years growing.
S3 (01:52):
And I'll talk a little bit more about those. But,
you know, on the federal level, there.
S4 (01:57):
Are a few organizations that during COVID.
S3 (02:00):
Came together and said. They're paying attention to everything in.
S4 (02:05):
These in these bills.
S3 (02:07):
You know, giving away tens of billions of dollars. And
yet no one is.
S4 (02:12):
Paying attention to the needs of children. Child advocacy centers
weren't getting any funding. We were quarantining. And so kids
were quarantining with their abusers. And so.
S3 (02:23):
Organizations.
S4 (02:24):
Like Darkness Light came together and said, we need to
request that in some of these relief bills.
S3 (02:29):
There is money to.
S4 (02:30):
Keep these child advocacy centers open. And as many of
you probably read, news ers were reporting higher frequency and
severity of abuse. And so the need for people to
pay attention to child safety during COVID became incredibly important.
S3 (02:48):
And about 18 months after we sort of advocated for that,
we all came.
S4 (02:53):
Together and said.
S3 (02:55):
You know, this is actually really working.
S4 (02:57):
We think we should focus on federal legislation on the whole.
And so here we are two and a half years
later with a national blueprint and an amazing coalition.
S2 (03:08):
Great. So let's talk about the federal efforts first. What
what is the federal legislation do?
S3 (03:16):
There isn't any federal legislation that standardizes.
S4 (03:20):
What a mandatory reporter is, what.
S3 (03:23):
Prevention education is.
S4 (03:24):
Necessary for youth serving organizations or schools. All of this
is mandated right now at the state level.
S3 (03:30):
So going back to sort of that, Erin's law and
Jenna's law, there are two very similar.
S4 (03:34):
Laws that states choose to pass.
S3 (03:37):
Erin's law in.
S4 (03:38):
Particular is passed in 36 states, but only two of
those states have actually given an appropriation to.
S3 (03:45):
Fund all of.
S4 (03:46):
The work that that is mandated in the law.
S3 (03:49):
And so you'll what you'll see at the federal level
is a lot.
S4 (03:52):
On human trafficking, which is connected to child sexual abuse,
but it's not exactly the same thing.
S3 (03:59):
But we're really trying to make some.
S4 (04:01):
Some headway at that federal level.
S2 (04:03):
So the focus then right now is really on working
at the state level. Is that correct? I take it
there's a federal blueprint to really look and just implement
that at the state level.
S3 (04:15):
You know, so we we appreciate what's happening at the
state level and we support and applaud everyone that's doing
work at the state level. But truly, for us, our
attention is.
S4 (04:26):
Focused on the federal legislative branch and the executive branch.
S3 (04:32):
And to demand that both.
S4 (04:34):
Branches and their capacity take action steps forward.
S3 (04:38):
What we are doing in order to.
S4 (04:41):
Support that work at a state level is I'm not
sure you're familiar with Everytown for Gun Safety.
S2 (04:47):
I think we actually had them on the show a
couple months back, but.
S3 (04:50):
Oh, amazing. So whether you agree with their approach or
their position on.
S4 (04:56):
Gun safe laws or not, what is brilliant about their
strategy is.
S3 (05:00):
That they take federal action and.
S4 (05:03):
Localize it. And so they have.
S3 (05:05):
Moms out there.
S4 (05:06):
In red T-shirts.
S3 (05:07):
Demanding that.
S4 (05:08):
Their communities and that their legislators are paying attention to
the level of safety in schools for kids and guns
and cents.
S3 (05:18):
And so we believe that that is a model that.
S4 (05:20):
We could replicate for legislation around child sexual abuse prevention.
There's no reason why you should live in California and
then move to Iowa. And your child is more or
less safe, depending on the state laws. You should you
should have that equanimity across all states. And so.
S3 (05:38):
What we're doing is we we piloted this campaign.
S4 (05:42):
Just recently actually called the Power to protect.
S3 (05:45):
In both California and in Michigan and were testing whether
or not everyday average.
S4 (05:52):
People are.
S3 (05:53):
Are even interested in.
S4 (05:55):
Engaging with.
S3 (05:56):
Our content and writing letters.
S4 (05:59):
And texting and all of those things to their.
S3 (06:02):
Either their current current representatives or their individuals.
S4 (06:08):
Who are running for office.
S2 (06:10):
And are those pilot programs focused on specific bills in
California and Michigan?
S3 (06:16):
No. So this is a little geeky, but.
S4 (06:19):
501c threes are not actually allowed to support specific.
S3 (06:25):
Bills or candidates.
S4 (06:27):
So we are.
S2 (06:28):
Familiar with all of these areas. Right. I take it
you're just doing your a see through online?
S3 (06:33):
Yeah, well, we have registered a C4. We just registered it.
But the current grant.
S4 (06:38):
That we have is ac3. And so we are not
not specifically endorsing anyone.
S3 (06:45):
And really, I would say this, you know, no matter
what side of the political aisle you sit on or
maybe you sit in the middle, there doesn't tend to.
S4 (06:55):
Be a person.
S3 (06:56):
In politics.
S4 (06:57):
That doesn't agree that children need to be safe.
S3 (07:00):
And so even at the.
S4 (07:01):
Federal level, like you look at James Cornyn, who's the
senator in Texas.
S3 (07:05):
And he has some very interesting views for liberals, but
liberals can work with him.
S4 (07:10):
On this because he's been spearheading the Deniliquin law at
the federal level.
S3 (07:16):
And then you look at Democrats and you have Democrats
in the.
S4 (07:21):
House who are.
S3 (07:22):
Pushing for a similar.
S4 (07:23):
Version of the Jenna Quinn law where they don't agree
is the appropriations aspect and how to pay for things.
It's definitely not the content of this law that either
party disagrees with, which is shockingly refreshing, to be quite honest.
S2 (07:39):
Okay. Well, let's talk about some of those specifics. So
could you kind of walk through how those different laws
work at this at the state level? And I think
you said only two states have fully funded it, but
can you use sort of the mechanics of how they
actually work?
S3 (07:52):
Yeah, sure. So there's it really depends on each state.
As you well know, the.
S4 (07:57):
Political process is messy. And so.
S3 (08:00):
When I say these generalities about Erin's law.
S4 (08:03):
Erin's law in your state might look a little bit different.
But Erin's Law. Generally has a list of people who
are mandated reporters. And so mandated reporters are people like
therapists or teachers or.
S3 (08:18):
You know, you serving organization professionals, anyone that comes in.
S4 (08:22):
Contact with children, doctors, nurses, etc..
S3 (08:25):
In other states they take it to the other extreme,
and every single.
S4 (08:29):
Citizen is a mandated reporter.
S3 (08:31):
Which from a professional.
S4 (08:33):
Aspect I think is not helpful, that everyone is a
mandated reporter only because it's not enforceable.
S3 (08:42):
Most people don't even know they're mandated reporters and.
S4 (08:44):
States that have that law and no one enforces it.
S3 (08:49):
So in general, Erin's Law has.
S4 (08:51):
A list of.
S3 (08:51):
Professions.
S4 (08:52):
That are mandated reporters.
S3 (08:55):
The law then goes on to talk about the fact
that those.
S4 (08:59):
Mandated reporters should be.
S3 (09:02):
Forced to take specific training that helps them identify and prevent.
S4 (09:08):
Child sexual abuse.
S3 (09:10):
And so in Erin's.
S4 (09:11):
Law, that specifically focuses on educating the child.
S3 (09:15):
Indiana's law that focuses on the.
S4 (09:19):
Child and the adult.
S3 (09:21):
And so and I know in some states they've added
the adult to Erin's Law. And in some.
S4 (09:27):
States, they've taken away.
S3 (09:28):
The adult in Jenna's law. And so, as you can see,
it starts.
S4 (09:32):
To be.
S3 (09:33):
Incredibly complicated.
S4 (09:34):
For national organizations like A Big Brother, Big Sister or
a YMCA to.
S3 (09:39):
Fully comprehend.
S4 (09:41):
What their responsibilities are in terms of keeping kids safe
in their federated, wise or know Boys and Girls clubs
across the country.
S2 (09:51):
I wonder how much you take a position. You, of course,
media organization takes a position on penalties and law enforcement
mechanisms for these type of crimes. This episode become a
very controversial issue in California. Do those like zero bail
working their way through the legislature and other things? Do
you do you have a take on that as part
(10:12):
of this blueprint or otherwise?
S3 (10:15):
Yeah, listen, we the the blueprint is comprehensive.
S4 (10:20):
So again, nerd out a little bit with you. We
based our national blueprint off of the Ryan White Care Act,
which for those of you who were alive during the nineties,
you will remember Ryan White was the young white boy
who contracted HIV through a blood transfusion and all of
a sudden everyone was up in arms and everything needed
(10:41):
to be fixed. With regards to HIV.
S3 (10:46):
It didn't matter.
S4 (10:46):
That gay individuals were dying from it in droves four
years before that.
S3 (10:52):
So what was amazing about.
S4 (10:54):
The Ryan White Care Act was that it was.
S3 (10:57):
It was incredibly comprehensive. And Congress.
S4 (11:01):
Passed it, you know.
S3 (11:03):
And it really did.
S4 (11:04):
Stem the tide of the HIV AIDS epidemic in the
United States.
S3 (11:08):
And we believe that child.
S4 (11:10):
Sexual abuse is as prevalent, if not more prevalent than
HIV was back at its height.
S3 (11:17):
With one in.
S4 (11:18):
Four girls and one in 13 boys having experienced sexual
abuse before the age of 18. And I will tell you,
those stats are a little outdated.
S3 (11:28):
And so because of that, it's not just a.
S4 (11:31):
Prevention oriented law or national blueprint that we would be suggesting.
It's prevention, justice and healing.
S3 (11:39):
And so that justice.
S4 (11:40):
Component that you're getting to and you're asking about really.
S3 (11:44):
Is important. And I recommend that if you're.
S4 (11:47):
Interested in learning more of the specifics.
S3 (11:49):
You go into our.
S4 (11:50):
National blueprint and you read.
S3 (11:52):
The pages and.
S4 (11:53):
Pages that we've written about in terms of the justice.
But what I will say to you is this survivors
do not have justice. Currently, only 36% of all cases
of abuse are reported.
S3 (12:07):
And only 4%.
S4 (12:09):
Of those are actually ever convicted. They're never. Days across
the country often do not take these cases because they're
not sure fire wins. And as you know, days weren't
really great when records. And so we have forensic interviewers
that work at cases to talk to us all the
time about the fact that straight.
S3 (12:31):
Forward cases with evidence.
S4 (12:33):
Are not taken by the DA's because they're scared that
they won't win. Judges do not are not educated on this.
And so oftentimes the abusive parent will still maintain custody
of the child. I mean, the justice system really has
a lot of work to do in order to figure
out how to keep.
S3 (12:53):
Children.
S4 (12:53):
Safe, how to help survivors, etc..
S2 (12:56):
And are there specific changes that either the state or
federal level that you'd like to see made from a
legislative point of view in that justice package? Or is
it more about. This and that enforcement of existing laws.
S3 (13:11):
It's definitely malpractice. There is a lot of.
S4 (13:13):
Conversation about statute of.
S3 (13:15):
Limitations in our.
S4 (13:17):
National blueprint. We do not believe that statute of limitations
should be in existence. One of our founding members, USA,
works on that work and has worked on that work
for well. Marcy herself has worked on it for 2020
some odd years, but Child USA has definitely done a
lot and they.
S3 (13:35):
Find really big organizations that spend tens of millions of dollars.
S4 (13:40):
Trying to keep statute of limitations in existence because they
know that there is a history within the organization and
it would be it would be detrimental to them, to
both insurance companies and to their bottom line if statute
of limitations went.
S2 (13:55):
Away. So who are those organizations? Who's fighting or who's,
I should say, who's protecting statute of limitations on child
sexual abuse?
S3 (14:04):
I don't think it will be. And I say this
as a.
S4 (14:06):
Born and raised Irish Catholic woman, it's not very surprising
that the Catholic Church is the first on everybody's mind.
S3 (14:13):
They spend a considerable.
S4 (14:14):
Amount of money fighting against the statute of limitations being removed.
S3 (14:19):
There is also currently, you know, organizations.
S4 (14:23):
Who are using bankruptcy as a way to get out
of accepting financial responsibility for the tens of thousands of
people who have been hurt under their watch. The Boy
Scouts is currently using that. USA Gymnastics also use bankruptcy
as a way to delay and postpone payment out to
(14:43):
all of the gymnasts who deserved, you know, retribution. And
so I just think it's really important for us to
think about how laws.
S3 (14:54):
Can help.
S4 (14:55):
Those who are affected receive some level of justice. And
I just want to add, you know, we're talking a
lot about money here.
S3 (15:06):
The third part.
S4 (15:07):
Of the blueprint is healing.
S3 (15:09):
And I will tell you, there isn't a.
S4 (15:11):
Survivor I've met in the last six years of me
doing this work that really cares deeply about getting rich,
like the idea that someone would come out and tell
the world their deepest, darkest, most horrific story.
S3 (15:28):
In order to just.
S4 (15:29):
Become rich. It's I mean, it just doesn't exist. I'm
not saying that there aren't people who falsely report, but it's.
S3 (15:38):
It's not.
S4 (15:39):
At this national level to the extent that people think
it is. And I just I want to give a
shout out to survivors who are listening to this podcast that.
S3 (15:49):
If you haven't told, it's.
S4 (15:50):
Okay. If you want to tell, you know, find a
safe space to do it in.
S3 (15:56):
And if you need someone to talk.
S4 (15:57):
To and you don't have anyone in your life, you can.
S3 (16:00):
Call.
S4 (16:01):
Darkness hotline 18664 light. It's free. And there are people
on the other end of the phone who will be
happy to listen.
S2 (16:08):
And that's information. Okay. So back to your pilot. I'm curious,
how is it going so far, what you see?
S3 (16:19):
Yeah. So the pilot is it's going well. I would
say a couple of things. One.
S4 (16:26):
We chose areas where the concept, the lines were already drawn.
As you know, it was a census here. And so
we wanted to work in states where the redistricting had
already happened. That happened to be California and Michigan. We
chose areas where there were were representatives and not senators necessarily,
(16:49):
because I don't know if you know this, but it's
a lot cheaper to advertise in a representative.
S3 (16:54):
District than it is a Senate district. And we're a
nonprofit and we have a very small budget. So we
wanted to make some sort of dent. We also targeted
individuals in our campaign.
S4 (17:07):
Based on who we expected potentially.
S3 (17:11):
You know, would support key issues regardless.
S4 (17:17):
Of political factors. So, for instance, Garcia, Representative Garcia in
Southern California, he really focuses a lot on the.
S3 (17:28):
Military.
S4 (17:29):
Supporting law enforcement.
S3 (17:31):
Lowering taxes. And so when we looked at individuals.
S4 (17:35):
Who may or may not have voted for him, we
were sort of thinking about who are the staunchest supporters
and who are the individuals who maybe could persuade him
to talk about this because they're a swing vote, if
you will.
S3 (17:50):
And so we thought about some of those.
S4 (17:51):
Personas and we said it's really it's really important for
us to speak to all people.
S3 (17:57):
And we found a lot of success in both students
in his his area, as well as.
S4 (18:05):
Those who outwardly on social media. Support military and law enforcement.
And they really have been very active in.
S3 (18:13):
Signing on and, you know, advocating that.
S4 (18:17):
Representative Garcia.
S3 (18:21):
Pay attention to.
S4 (18:21):
Child sexual abuse in his campaign.
S2 (18:26):
Well, that's great results so far. What do you think
of everyone involved?
S3 (18:32):
If you want to get involved, I would recommend.
S4 (18:34):
Going to our website which is WW Keep Kids Safe
dot org.
S3 (18:41):
There you can read the full blueprint.
S4 (18:43):
There's also an executive summary for those of you who
don't read 40 page documents on the regular.
S3 (18:49):
And you can endorse the.
S4 (18:50):
Blueprint either as an individual or an organization.
S3 (18:55):
I would also look.
S4 (18:56):
Up our social media. Right now we are running our
Power to Protect Campaign, which you'll see a lot of
the messaging that we were talking about just now. And
follow us on social media. And yeah, we'd be very
happy to have the support.
S2 (19:12):
Thanks so much for the work you're doing and great
to have you on the show so we can start
to make this connection to more of our listeners. And
we'd love to have you back on the podcast some
more and talk about the progress you make both at
the federal and state level. But a pleasure to have
you on the show .
S3 (19:29):
Thank you so much. I appreciate that. And just one
more shout out to our hotline for those survivors.
S4 (19:34):
It's 1-866-4- LIGHT.
S3 (19:37):
And you can also text the word.
S4 (19:39):
LT to 741741 and have a.
S3 (19:42):
Text conversation.
S4 (19:43):
If you need any assistance. Thank you so much for listening.
S1 (19:47):
Thank you. We invite you to share ideas for.
S2 (19:54):
Guests, ask questions in the comments. You can find us
at Neptune Ops.com, follow us and subscribe wherever you subscribe to your
podcasts as we continue to explore the inside stories driving
California politics. This is The Nation State of Play podcast.
I'm your host, Bryan Miller, and thank you for listening.
(20:16):
OLAS media.
(SFX:OLAS Media). OLAS Media Presents Nation State of Play. Welcome to
(00:27):
the Nation State.
S2 (00:28):
Of Play podcast. I'm your host, Bryan Miller. And each
episode we explore the political stories that are driving public
policy in California. We explore these stories with political insiders,
business leaders, journalists and policymakers themselves to get below the
surface of the headlines and show you the true forces
shaping our nation state. Katelyn, thanks so much for being
here today. It's a pleasure to have you on the show.
S3 (00:49):
It's a pleasure to be here.
S2 (00:51):
Could you start off by telling us a little bit
about your organization and what you focus on at high level?
S3 (00:56):
Yeah, absolutely. So I actually.
S4 (00:59):
Am working on two things. I am the CEO of
Darkness to Light, which is an adult education oriented organization
that focuses on child sexual abuse prevention.
S3 (01:09):
But I'm here today to.
S4 (01:10):
Talk about the Keep Kids Safe Movement, which.
S3 (01:12):
Is a collection.
S4 (01:14):
Of national organizations who have come together to ask the government,
both the legislative and the executive branch.
S3 (01:21):
To finally make a difference in.
S4 (01:23):
Terms of this silent epidemic we have of child sexual violence.
S2 (01:28):
So how did this coalition come together? What was the
impetus for it?
S4 (01:32):
That's a great question.
S3 (01:34):
So many of you.
S4 (01:35):
Might not know that there is actually legislation out there
in states across the country.
S3 (01:42):
Some of them are called Erin's Law. Some of them
are called Jenna's Law. And they've kind of been a
patchwork of legislation.
S4 (01:48):
For the last ten years growing.
S3 (01:52):
And I'll talk a little bit more about those. But,
you know, on the federal level, there.
S4 (01:57):
Are a few organizations that during COVID.
S3 (02:00):
Came together and said. They're paying attention to everything in.
S4 (02:05):
These in these bills.
S3 (02:07):
You know, giving away tens of billions of dollars. And
yet no one is.
S4 (02:12):
Paying attention to the needs of children. Child advocacy centers
weren't getting any funding. We were quarantining. And so kids
were quarantining with their abusers. And so.
S3 (02:23):
Organizations.
S4 (02:24):
Like Darkness Light came together and said, we need to
request that in some of these relief bills.
S3 (02:29):
There is money to.
S4 (02:30):
Keep these child advocacy centers open. And as many of
you probably read, news ers were reporting higher frequency and
severity of abuse. And so the need for people to
pay attention to child safety during COVID became incredibly important.
S3 (02:48):
And about 18 months after we sort of advocated for that,
we all came.
S4 (02:53):
Together and said.
S3 (02:55):
You know, this is actually really working.
S4 (02:57):
We think we should focus on federal legislation on the whole.
And so here we are two and a half years
later with a national blueprint and an amazing coalition.
S2 (03:08):
Great. So let's talk about the federal efforts first. What
what is the federal legislation do?
S3 (03:16):
There isn't any federal legislation that standardizes.
S4 (03:20):
What a mandatory reporter is, what.
S3 (03:23):
Prevention education is.
S4 (03:24):
Necessary for youth serving organizations or schools. All of this
is mandated right now at the state level.
S3 (03:30):
So going back to sort of that, Erin's law and
Jenna's law, there are two very similar.
S4 (03:34):
Laws that states choose to pass.
S3 (03:37):
Erin's law in.
S4 (03:38):
Particular is passed in 36 states, but only two of
those states have actually given an appropriation to.
S3 (03:45):
Fund all of.
S4 (03:46):
The work that that is mandated in the law.
S3 (03:49):
And so you'll what you'll see at the federal level
is a lot.
S4 (03:52):
On human trafficking, which is connected to child sexual abuse,
but it's not exactly the same thing.
S3 (03:59):
But we're really trying to make some.
S4 (04:01):
Some headway at that federal level.
S2 (04:03):
So the focus then right now is really on working
at the state level. Is that correct? I take it
there's a federal blueprint to really look and just implement
that at the state level.
S3 (04:15):
You know, so we we appreciate what's happening at the
state level and we support and applaud everyone that's doing
work at the state level. But truly, for us, our
attention is.
S4 (04:26):
Focused on the federal legislative branch and the executive branch.
S3 (04:32):
And to demand that both.
S4 (04:34):
Branches and their capacity take action steps forward.
S3 (04:38):
What we are doing in order to.
S4 (04:41):
Support that work at a state level is I'm not
sure you're familiar with Everytown for Gun Safety.
S2 (04:47):
I think we actually had them on the show a
couple months back, but.
S3 (04:50):
Oh, amazing. So whether you agree with their approach or
their position on.
S4 (04:56):
Gun safe laws or not, what is brilliant about their
strategy is.
S3 (05:00):
That they take federal action and.
S4 (05:03):
Localize it. And so they have.
S3 (05:05):
Moms out there.
S4 (05:06):
In red T-shirts.
S3 (05:07):
Demanding that.
S4 (05:08):
Their communities and that their legislators are paying attention to
the level of safety in schools for kids and guns
and cents.
S3 (05:18):
And so we believe that that is a model that.
S4 (05:20):
We could replicate for legislation around child sexual abuse prevention.
There's no reason why you should live in California and
then move to Iowa. And your child is more or
less safe, depending on the state laws. You should you
should have that equanimity across all states. And so.
S3 (05:38):
What we're doing is we we piloted this campaign.
S4 (05:42):
Just recently actually called the Power to protect.
S3 (05:45):
In both California and in Michigan and were testing whether
or not everyday average.
S4 (05:52):
People are.
S3 (05:53):
Are even interested in.
S4 (05:55):
Engaging with.
S3 (05:56):
Our content and writing letters.
S4 (05:59):
And texting and all of those things to their.
S3 (06:02):
Either their current current representatives or their individuals.
S4 (06:08):
Who are running for office.
S2 (06:10):
And are those pilot programs focused on specific bills in
California and Michigan?
S3 (06:16):
No. So this is a little geeky, but.
S4 (06:19):
501c threes are not actually allowed to support specific.
S3 (06:25):
Bills or candidates.
S4 (06:27):
So we are.
S2 (06:28):
Familiar with all of these areas. Right. I take it
you're just doing your a see through online?
S3 (06:33):
Yeah, well, we have registered a C4. We just registered it.
But the current grant.
S4 (06:38):
That we have is ac3. And so we are not
not specifically endorsing anyone.
S3 (06:45):
And really, I would say this, you know, no matter
what side of the political aisle you sit on or
maybe you sit in the middle, there doesn't tend to.
S4 (06:55):
Be a person.
S3 (06:56):
In politics.
S4 (06:57):
That doesn't agree that children need to be safe.
S3 (07:00):
And so even at the.
S4 (07:01):
Federal level, like you look at James Cornyn, who's the
senator in Texas.
S3 (07:05):
And he has some very interesting views for liberals, but
liberals can work with him.
S4 (07:10):
On this because he's been spearheading the Deniliquin law at
the federal level.
S3 (07:16):
And then you look at Democrats and you have Democrats
in the.
S4 (07:21):
House who are.
S3 (07:22):
Pushing for a similar.
S4 (07:23):
Version of the Jenna Quinn law where they don't agree
is the appropriations aspect and how to pay for things.
It's definitely not the content of this law that either
party disagrees with, which is shockingly refreshing, to be quite honest.
S2 (07:39):
Okay. Well, let's talk about some of those specifics. So
could you kind of walk through how those different laws
work at this at the state level? And I think
you said only two states have fully funded it, but
can you use sort of the mechanics of how they
actually work?
S3 (07:52):
Yeah, sure. So there's it really depends on each state.
As you well know, the.
S4 (07:57):
Political process is messy. And so.
S3 (08:00):
When I say these generalities about Erin's law.
S4 (08:03):
Erin's law in your state might look a little bit different.
But Erin's Law. Generally has a list of people who
are mandated reporters. And so mandated reporters are people like
therapists or teachers or.
S3 (08:18):
You know, you serving organization professionals, anyone that comes in.
S4 (08:22):
Contact with children, doctors, nurses, etc..
S3 (08:25):
In other states they take it to the other extreme,
and every single.
S4 (08:29):
Citizen is a mandated reporter.
S3 (08:31):
Which from a professional.
S4 (08:33):
Aspect I think is not helpful, that everyone is a
mandated reporter only because it's not enforceable.
S3 (08:42):
Most people don't even know they're mandated reporters and.
S4 (08:44):
States that have that law and no one enforces it.
S3 (08:49):
So in general, Erin's Law has.
S4 (08:51):
A list of.
S3 (08:51):
Professions.
S4 (08:52):
That are mandated reporters.
S3 (08:55):
The law then goes on to talk about the fact
that those.
S4 (08:59):
Mandated reporters should be.
S3 (09:02):
Forced to take specific training that helps them identify and prevent.
S4 (09:08):
Child sexual abuse.
S3 (09:10):
And so in Erin's.
S4 (09:11):
Law, that specifically focuses on educating the child.
S3 (09:15):
Indiana's law that focuses on the.
S4 (09:19):
Child and the adult.
S3 (09:21):
And so and I know in some states they've added
the adult to Erin's Law. And in some.
S4 (09:27):
States, they've taken away.
S3 (09:28):
The adult in Jenna's law. And so, as you can see,
it starts.
S4 (09:32):
To be.
S3 (09:33):
Incredibly complicated.
S4 (09:34):
For national organizations like A Big Brother, Big Sister or
a YMCA to.
S3 (09:39):
Fully comprehend.
S4 (09:41):
What their responsibilities are in terms of keeping kids safe
in their federated, wise or know Boys and Girls clubs
across the country.
S2 (09:51):
I wonder how much you take a position. You, of course,
media organization takes a position on penalties and law enforcement
mechanisms for these type of crimes. This episode become a
very controversial issue in California. Do those like zero bail
working their way through the legislature and other things? Do
you do you have a take on that as part
(10:12):
of this blueprint or otherwise?
S3 (10:15):
Yeah, listen, we the the blueprint is comprehensive.
S4 (10:20):
So again, nerd out a little bit with you. We
based our national blueprint off of the Ryan White Care Act,
which for those of you who were alive during the nineties,
you will remember Ryan White was the young white boy
who contracted HIV through a blood transfusion and all of
a sudden everyone was up in arms and everything needed
(10:41):
to be fixed. With regards to HIV.
S3 (10:46):
It didn't matter.
S4 (10:46):
That gay individuals were dying from it in droves four
years before that.
S3 (10:52):
So what was amazing about.
S4 (10:54):
The Ryan White Care Act was that it was.
S3 (10:57):
It was incredibly comprehensive. And Congress.
S4 (11:01):
Passed it, you know.
S3 (11:03):
And it really did.
S4 (11:04):
Stem the tide of the HIV AIDS epidemic in the
United States.
S3 (11:08):
And we believe that child.
S4 (11:10):
Sexual abuse is as prevalent, if not more prevalent than
HIV was back at its height.
S3 (11:17):
With one in.
S4 (11:18):
Four girls and one in 13 boys having experienced sexual
abuse before the age of 18. And I will tell you,
those stats are a little outdated.
S3 (11:28):
And so because of that, it's not just a.
S4 (11:31):
Prevention oriented law or national blueprint that we would be suggesting.
It's prevention, justice and healing.
S3 (11:39):
And so that justice.
S4 (11:40):
Component that you're getting to and you're asking about really.
S3 (11:44):
Is important. And I recommend that if you're.
S4 (11:47):
Interested in learning more of the specifics.
S3 (11:49):
You go into our.
S4 (11:50):
National blueprint and you read.
S3 (11:52):
The pages and.
S4 (11:53):
Pages that we've written about in terms of the justice.
But what I will say to you is this survivors
do not have justice. Currently, only 36% of all cases
of abuse are reported.
S3 (12:07):
And only 4%.
S4 (12:09):
Of those are actually ever convicted. They're never. Days across
the country often do not take these cases because they're
not sure fire wins. And as you know, days weren't
really great when records. And so we have forensic interviewers
that work at cases to talk to us all the
time about the fact that straight.
S3 (12:31):
Forward cases with evidence.
S4 (12:33):
Are not taken by the DA's because they're scared that
they won't win. Judges do not are not educated on this.
And so oftentimes the abusive parent will still maintain custody
of the child. I mean, the justice system really has
a lot of work to do in order to figure
out how to keep.
S3 (12:53):
Children.
S4 (12:53):
Safe, how to help survivors, etc..
S2 (12:56):
And are there specific changes that either the state or
federal level that you'd like to see made from a
legislative point of view in that justice package? Or is
it more about. This and that enforcement of existing laws.
S3 (13:11):
It's definitely malpractice. There is a lot of.
S4 (13:13):
Conversation about statute of.
S3 (13:15):
Limitations in our.
S4 (13:17):
National blueprint. We do not believe that statute of limitations
should be in existence. One of our founding members, USA,
works on that work and has worked on that work
for well. Marcy herself has worked on it for 2020
some odd years, but Child USA has definitely done a
lot and they.
S3 (13:35):
Find really big organizations that spend tens of millions of dollars.
S4 (13:40):
Trying to keep statute of limitations in existence because they
know that there is a history within the organization and
it would be it would be detrimental to them, to
both insurance companies and to their bottom line if statute
of limitations went.
S2 (13:55):
Away. So who are those organizations? Who's fighting or who's,
I should say, who's protecting statute of limitations on child
sexual abuse?
S3 (14:04):
I don't think it will be. And I say this
as a.
S4 (14:06):
Born and raised Irish Catholic woman, it's not very surprising
that the Catholic Church is the first on everybody's mind.
S3 (14:13):
They spend a considerable.
S4 (14:14):
Amount of money fighting against the statute of limitations being removed.
S3 (14:19):
There is also currently, you know, organizations.
S4 (14:23):
Who are using bankruptcy as a way to get out
of accepting financial responsibility for the tens of thousands of
people who have been hurt under their watch. The Boy
Scouts is currently using that. USA Gymnastics also use bankruptcy
as a way to delay and postpone payment out to
(14:43):
all of the gymnasts who deserved, you know, retribution. And
so I just think it's really important for us to
think about how laws.
S3 (14:54):
Can help.
S4 (14:55):
Those who are affected receive some level of justice. And
I just want to add, you know, we're talking a
lot about money here.
S3 (15:06):
The third part.
S4 (15:07):
Of the blueprint is healing.
S3 (15:09):
And I will tell you, there isn't a.
S4 (15:11):
Survivor I've met in the last six years of me
doing this work that really cares deeply about getting rich,
like the idea that someone would come out and tell
the world their deepest, darkest, most horrific story.
S3 (15:28):
In order to just.
S4 (15:29):
Become rich. It's I mean, it just doesn't exist. I'm
not saying that there aren't people who falsely report, but it's.
S3 (15:38):
It's not.
S4 (15:39):
At this national level to the extent that people think
it is. And I just I want to give a
shout out to survivors who are listening to this podcast that.
S3 (15:49):
If you haven't told, it's.
S4 (15:50):
Okay. If you want to tell, you know, find a
safe space to do it in.
S3 (15:56):
And if you need someone to talk.
S4 (15:57):
To and you don't have anyone in your life, you can.
S3 (16:00):
Call.
S4 (16:01):
Darkness hotline 18664 light. It's free. And there are people
on the other end of the phone who will be
happy to listen.
S2 (16:08):
And that's information. Okay. So back to your pilot. I'm curious,
how is it going so far, what you see?
S3 (16:19):
Yeah. So the pilot is it's going well. I would
say a couple of things. One.
S4 (16:26):
We chose areas where the concept, the lines were already drawn.
As you know, it was a census here. And so
we wanted to work in states where the redistricting had
already happened. That happened to be California and Michigan. We
chose areas where there were were representatives and not senators necessarily,
(16:49):
because I don't know if you know this, but it's
a lot cheaper to advertise in a representative.
S3 (16:54):
District than it is a Senate district. And we're a
nonprofit and we have a very small budget. So we
wanted to make some sort of dent. We also targeted
individuals in our campaign.
S4 (17:07):
Based on who we expected potentially.
S3 (17:11):
You know, would support key issues regardless.
S4 (17:17):
Of political factors. So, for instance, Garcia, Representative Garcia in
Southern California, he really focuses a lot on the.
S3 (17:28):
Military.
S4 (17:29):
Supporting law enforcement.
S3 (17:31):
Lowering taxes. And so when we looked at individuals.
S4 (17:35):
Who may or may not have voted for him, we
were sort of thinking about who are the staunchest supporters
and who are the individuals who maybe could persuade him
to talk about this because they're a swing vote, if
you will.
S3 (17:50):
And so we thought about some of those.
S4 (17:51):
Personas and we said it's really it's really important for
us to speak to all people.
S3 (17:57):
And we found a lot of success in both students
in his his area, as well as.
S4 (18:05):
Those who outwardly on social media. Support military and law enforcement.
And they really have been very active in.
S3 (18:13):
Signing on and, you know, advocating that.
S4 (18:17):
Representative Garcia.
S3 (18:21):
Pay attention to.
S4 (18:21):
Child sexual abuse in his campaign.
S2 (18:26):
Well, that's great results so far. What do you think
of everyone involved?
S3 (18:32):
If you want to get involved, I would recommend.
S4 (18:34):
Going to our website which is WW Keep Kids Safe
dot org.
S3 (18:41):
There you can read the full blueprint.
S4 (18:43):
There's also an executive summary for those of you who
don't read 40 page documents on the regular.
S3 (18:49):
And you can endorse the.
S4 (18:50):
Blueprint either as an individual or an organization.
S3 (18:55):
I would also look.
S4 (18:56):
Up our social media. Right now we are running our
Power to Protect Campaign, which you'll see a lot of
the messaging that we were talking about just now. And
follow us on social media. And yeah, we'd be very
happy to have the support.
S2 (19:12):
Thanks so much for the work you're doing and great
to have you on the show so we can start
to make this connection to more of our listeners. And
we'd love to have you back on the podcast some
more and talk about the progress you make both at
the federal and state level. But a pleasure to have
you on the show .
S3 (19:29):
Thank you so much. I appreciate that. And just one
more shout out to our hotline for those survivors.
S4 (19:34):
It's 1-866-4- LIGHT.
S3 (19:37):
And you can also text the word.
S4 (19:39):
LT to 741741 and have a.
S3 (19:42):
Text conversation.
S4 (19:43):
If you need any assistance. Thank you so much for listening.
S1 (19:47):
Thank you. We invite you to share ideas for.
S2 (19:54):
Guests, ask questions in the comments. You can find us
at Neptune Ops.com, follow us and subscribe wherever you subscribe to your
podcasts as we continue to explore the inside stories driving
California politics. This is The Nation State of Play podcast.
I'm your host, Bryan Miller, and thank you for listening.
(20:16):
OLAS media.
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