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We dont distinguish between the various forms of child abuse. Emotiona — Andrew Vachss

"We dont distinguish between the various forms of child abuse. Emotional abuse ... is pretty much ignored. When someone spends their life being told, Youre stupid, youre a disgrace, I should have aborted you, you ruined my life, it scars them in ways that are almost impossible to describe with words. And yet, such a person describing their life would be told, Oh, you werent an incest victim? Oh, you werent burned with cigarettes? So, how abused were you really?"
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Andrew Vachss
Andrew Vachss
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Andrew Henry Vachss was an American crime fiction author, child protection consultant, and attorney exclusively representing children and youths.

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"The biggest threat to children is always inside their houses. The predator with the ski-mask who grabs the kid out of a van, while a real thing, is a tiny percentage of those who prey upon children. Most victimization of children is within the Circle of Trust—not necessarily a parent, but somebody who was let into that circle, who can be a counselor, or a coach, or someone at a day-care center. The biggest danger to children is that theyre perceived as property, not human beings."
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Andrew Vachss