꧁ 𝒮𝒾𝓁𝑒𝓃𝒸𝑒 𝒾𝓈 𝒸𝑜𝓂𝓅𝓁𝒾𝒸𝒾𝓉𝓎. 𝒜𝓃𝒹 𝐼 𝓇𝑒𝒻𝓊𝓈𝑒 𝓉𝑜 𝒷𝑒 𝒸𝑜𝓂𝓅𝓁𝒾𝒸𝒾𝓉 ❣︎ ꧂
Tuesday shopping.
It was supposed to be just a normal Tuesday shopping trip but then I saw something I couldn’t walk away from.
A man. A woman. A child. The woman wasn’t crying—she was trying to stay calm. To protect her daughter. The child was clinging to her, saying, “No. I want mama. I don’t want papa.” And the man? He was yelling. Pushing the woman away. Trying to tear the girl from her arms.
I didn’t run in to “save” anyone. I just walked up and asked, “Are you okay?” The mother said, “No.” Then I gently asked the child—and she also said “No.” When I asked her if she wanted to go with her father, she clung tighter to her mom, whispering “No” again.
And that’s when the man turned to me, shouting, “She’s just a child! She doesn’t know what she wants!”
But if a child can count chickens in a picture book and name a toy “Sparkly” on the spot, then she’s old enough to say who makes her feel safe.
I stood between them. And the mother told me something I’ll never forget: “We left Warsaw because of him. He doesn’t have the right to take her from school. The school director called me.”
In that moment, everything in my body shifted. A year of Krav Maga training flashed through my muscles. My whole nervous system was ready. If he touched me, I would put him on his knees. Because yelling at a woman is one thing. Yelling in front of your child? Trying to tear her from her safe person? No.
So I called the police. Because no one else did. People stood and stared. Some even told me not to get involved—“It’s not your business.”
But if it’s done in public, it becomes everyone’s business.
According to the National Children’s Alliance, in 2022, an estimated 558,899 children were victims of abuse and neglect in the United States, equating to 8 children out of every thousand. Source: National Children’s Alliance
These figures underscore the critical need for intervention and support. By speaking out and taking action, we can help prevent these statistics from growing and ensure that children are protected from harm.
And yet—we still live in a culture of silence. A culture where victims are blamed. Where a child’s voice is dismissed. Where abuse is ignored because it’s “not our problem.” But silence is not gold. Silence protects abusers. Silence feeds trauma.
So let’s break the silence. Let’s stop turning away. Let’s make it clear: if it happens in public, it is everyone’s business.
Stand up. Speak out. Because a single moment of courage might save a child from a lifetime of pain.
Let’s break the silence—together.
⸻
References:
• National Children’s Alliance. (2022). National Statistics on Child Abuse
Have you ever stepped in when something didn’t feel right—or did you tell yourself it wasn’t your place?
What does ‘not my problem’ really mean, when a child is crying for help?
Do you believe stopping child abuse is only the government’s job—or should we, as a society, step in when we see it happening?
If it was your child crying for help, would you still hope someone says ‘It’s not my problem’?
Are you ready to break the cycle of silence?
Join the conversation below. Your voice matters.
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