Child advocacy means supporting and promoting the rights and well-being of children. When advocating for children, it's essential to ...
Child advocacy means supporting and promoting the rights and well-being of children.
When advocating for children, it's essential to ensure that your efforts are child-centered.
Here are ten signs that your child advocacy is child-centered:
1. You prioritize the needs of children. When advocating for children, you put their needs first and ensure that all decisions made are in their best interest.
2. You actively listen to children, parents, and child experts.
3. You involve a diverse group of children. With diverse meaning: children from different backgrounds, racial groups, religious beliefs, and intellectual/mental capacities.
You involve children in the decision-making process while empowering them to take an active role in their own welfare.
4. You respect their developing autonomy: You respect their growing autonomy while keeping in mind that they are simply too young to make a lot of decisions about their bodies and healthcare that will impact them for a lifetime.
Those types of decisions will require the input of experts and people of respected wisdom and solid integrity who put their love for children first.
5. You promote independence: When advocating for children, you help them build the skills and confidence they need to become independent and self-sufficient.
6. You build relationships: You build relationships with teachers, doctors, and other people who play a role in their life. Just as parents share appropriate information with people charged with teaching and providing medical care to children; these folks provide information to parents.
Parents after all are responsible for caregiving, nurturing, coordinating care, education, and meeting the special needs for children.
Further, a parent's job is to provide medical care and educational needs that will potentially benefit a child well into the future.
7. You advocate for systemic change: You strive to make lasting, systemic changes that will benefit all children and promote equality and justice.
8. You work towards inclusive environments: You work towards creating inclusive environments for all children, regardless of their abilities, race, gender, or socio-economic status.
9. You advocate for your child's education: You advocate for your child's right to access quality education that meets their needs and helps them reach their full potential.
10. You prioritize child safety: You advocate for policies and practices that promote the safety and well-being of all children.
Bottom line, you love children.
Not because "they make you look good."
Not because "they could make you more money"
Not because "they could make you feel good" (I know, yuck.)
You. Love. Children.
You want the best FOR THEM, and you FIGHT for it.
Child-centered advocacy is a critical part of promoting the welfare and rights of children. (Yes, children have rights too.)
By ensuring your advocacy efforts are child-centered, you can make a significant difference in every child's life.