Family Vioelence and Abuse - 2114 Words

Abuse within Families Family violence and abuse is a prominent issue in our society that has maintained its presence throughout our history. Familial abuse has a tendency to be masked by emotions, not being classified as â€Å"abuse† by the victims until it has become a reoccurring issue. In fact, most unreported violent acts are due to the victim’s desire to protect the related offender. The media usually develops news stories and articles revolving around the most sensational cases of family violence; their representation of the sensationalism of the issue is of no uniqueness. But due to the sensual aspect that the media seeks in presenting stories to the public, people are not aware of the commonality and routine violence that occurs†¦show more content†¦In addition in 1866 Massachusetts passed a law permitting judges to interfere with the upcoming of a child if the parents exercised neglect, harm and/or crime (Myers, 2011). Myer’s second era of child protection ranges from 1875 to 1962, the emergence of organized child protection. After the creation of the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, approximately 300 nongovernmental societies sprung up across America with a goal of providing child protection. Although these societies provide a critical factor to child protection the establishment of the juvenile court was the most critical innovation to child protection. The court was initially founded primarily for delinquent juveniles but it later served as a means of intervention for the neglected and abused. Started in Chicago in 1899, it took 20 years to establish a juvenile court in every state but three (Myers, 2011). This was a monumental moment because there was a shift in child protection from nongovernmental societies to government agencies, increasing the state’s role in social services. In addition, the federal government played a significant role in child prot ection in 1912 when it created the federal Children’s Bureau followed by the Sheppard-Towner Act that supplemented mothers and babies with federal money for health services. The formation of the Social Security