By Eric Coleman

Our children are our future. But some children have difficulty imagining any future for themselves. These children suffer as victims of abuse, sexual exploitation or abandonment.

Each year, thousands of children run away from home or are forced out of their homes. The Second National Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway and Thrownaway Children reports that, in a one-year period, more than 1.6 million children left their homes and stayed away at least one night or were asked to leave by their parents or guardians. This is a staggering number. It is greater than the entire population of Oakland County.

Some of these children leave home to escape physical or sexual abuse and neglect. Without legitimate means of supporting themselves or places to stay, many children end up on the streets. Some become victims of sexual exploitation and physical abuse.

County officials across the country are aware of this problem and the need to correct it. For that reason, the National Association of Counties’ Large Urban County Caucus has joined the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in launching a public awareness campaign against the sexual exploitation of children. The campaign is titled, “We’re here because they’re out there.”

This campaign was created to heighten the awareness of child sexual exploitation and give communities across the U.S. effective strategies to better safeguard their children. The Large Urban County Caucus and the NCMEC will work to educate counties on ways to protect children from being victimized and identify services for those children who are already victims of some form of sexual exploitation.

The need for the campaign is clear. Statistics show that:

• Of the total runaway/thrownaway children, approximately 1,190,900 (71 percent) were estimated to be endangered during their runaway/thrownaway episode by virtue of factors such as substance dependency, use of hard drugs, sexual or physical abuse, presence in a place where criminal activity was occurring, or extremely young age (13 years old or younger).

• Approximately 38,600 runaway/thrownaway children will have some type of involvement in sexual trafficking.

• Children between the ages 15 and 17 made up two-thirds of the youth with runaway/thrownaway episodes during the study year.

• The average age at which a child enters prostitution is reported as 14.

• Many child victims of prostitution are abandoned or neglected children who have not been reported as missing to law enforcement or have runaway from their homes or foster care.

Child sexual exploitation has effects that may last a lifetime. Many children will battle depression, post-traumatic stress syndrome, or become drug abusers; some may even become sexual offenders themselves. This type of victimization often carries with it an enormous social and financial burden, not only on the individual victims, but on an entire community.

Many of those who seek to sexually exploit children look for their victims in places where children traditionally gather, like shopping malls, fast-food establishments, under-21 clubs and through “modeling” agencies. These children are being recruited from communities across the U.S. and across all racial and socio-economic lines.

Counties have broad responsibility for supporting the public’s health and criminal justice system. Throughout the campaign, county officials will be encouraged to convene task forces in their counties on preventing the sexual exploitation of children that can include law enforcement, social services, the clergy and members of the community. They also will be urged to distribute information and begin a dialogue on topics related to child sexual exploitation and the prevention of such victimization.

The campaign goal is to send a clear message that county governments care about the lives of the children in our communities and to make certain that sex offenders understand that their actions will not be tolerated.

Here in Oakland County, I introduced a resolution to put together a task force that shall include key stakeholders, including members from the law enforcement community, a member from the judiciary, health and human services, prosecutor’s office, victim service agencies, community organizations and county officials.