How to reduce a child’s risk for sexual abuse — and why it’s especially important in summer

When a child heads off to summer camp or to a beach house with friends, it’s common for parents to fret over sunscreen and manners — rarely is sexual abuse top of mind.

But it should be, said Michele Booth Cole, executive director of Safe Shores, a D.C.-based organization that works with, and advocates for, youth affected by trauma and violence.

In the U.S., one in 10 children will be sexually abused before the age of 18 — and that statistic is based on reported cases of abuse. Research shows more than 60%of child victims don’t disclose the fact that they have been sexually abused.