Stop Child Abuse Now (SCAN) - 1818

Tonight's special guests are Laura M Parks and Scott MacDonald from Chandler, Arizona. Laura is a returning NAASCA member who's a survivor of child abuse and domestic violence and has written several books, and Scott is her college friend and partner in the grassroots effort, 'End of Innocence Project.’ Together they are working to reduce the incidence of sexual harassment and sexual assault, and raising awareness of the root causes. Laura says of her childhood experiences, "By my teen years I didn't know which way was up.” She was brutally raped by her older brother, molested regularly and beaten by her father and emotionally abused by her mother, leading Laura down a very destructive path in her early adult life. She says, “I made some bad decisions and the cycle of abuse continued," until she decided, "enough is enough." Laura says her message to survivors is to stop considering themselves victims. "If I did it, so can you. We don’t have to stay victims, we can all become survivors." Scott, a math professor and software engineer, is not a survivor himself. He was moved to start the 'End of the Innocence Project Facebook Group' after learning a coworker had been raped and beaten. For info or to join the project team, listeners are invited to send an email. Listeners are also invited to contact Laura with public speaking engagement opportunities.