WHAT IS A MOTHER TO DO?

...when she is in prison, by the dictates of the American "justice" system...when she is--by the dictates of that same system--deprived of any but minimal contact with her children, and that only through the custodial parent... when she has heard the children disclose terrible sexual abuse by their father, the custodial parent mentioned previously...when the children are so frightened of their father that they will no longer attempt disclosure to anyone...when no one in the legal system will acknowledge the possibility that she might be right...when all she can do for her herself is try to hold her head up and deal with the realities of her imprisoned life.. when all she knows in the deep places of her spirit that her children are in a prison that is, if anything, worse than her own...when all she can do for those children is weep.

Besides begging authorities to listen to her and take her seriously, what on earth is this mother to do???

Courageous Kids....a message for ******** and ****

COURAGEOUS KIDS NETWORK P.O. Box 1903, Davis, CA 95617 www.courageouskids.net

We, the Courageous Kids Network, are a growing group of young people whose childhood was shattered by biased and inhumane court rulings, which forced us to live with our abusive parent, while restricting or sometimes completely eliminating contact with our loving and protective parent. We know how horrible it is to be forced into the arms of an abuser. We have been there. We are now free.

We have some suggestions for you who have to live with a batterer or molester because an attorney, an evaluator, a mediator, or a judge did not believe you.

1. Contact us at www.courageouskids.net from a safe computer (your friend, school, library) and post a blog on our messageboard with your name, age, school, and what you have suffered.
   
   
2. Mail pictures of your bruises or other pictures to P. O. Box 1903, Davis, CA 95617.
   
   
3. Keep telling people about the abuse. Don�t stop, no matter what. Tell someone new at least once a month. Tell your teacher. Tell your principal. Tell your school counselor. Tell your coach. Tell your therapist. Tell your friends� parents. Tell the police. Call 911. Keep on telling. Ask for advice and protection.
   
   
4. File a complaint against your court-appointed attorney if your were not protected by the attorney. Just write what the attorney did or did not do and fill out the form at www.calbar.ca.gov/state/calbar/calbar_generic.jsp?cid=10179
   
   
5. Call a good attorney and tell him or her exactly what is happening to you � when, where and how often you are abused. Ask that the attorney replace your court-appointed attorney.
   
   
6. Write a letter to the judge asking the judge to get rid of the attorney.
   
   
7. Get evidence. If you get raped, don�t wash. Go right to the emergency ward of a hospital with a rape trauma unit so they can do a DNA test on the sperm. If you can get pornographic computer pictures with you in the pictures, give them to the police right away and let us know who you gave the pictures to.
   
   
8. Always tell the truth about the abuse, even if you are threatened or hurt, or if there are threats against people you love. This is really important, especially when you talk to court people.
   
   
9. Don�t hurt yourself! You will one day be free. We care about you and need you to join us.
   
   
10. This needs to come from you. The court always blames things on our mothers, so be careful not to tell the perpetrators about the Courageous Kids. We are counting on you.
    
    

With honor and respect for all your courage,

The Courageous Kids