On November 18, the global community comes together to confront a truth too often ignored: every child deserves safety from sexual exploitation and abuse, and every survivor deserves meaningful support in healing. In 2022, the United Nations General Assembly established the World Day for the Prevention and Healing from Child Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Violence, declaring it an annual call to action for justice, awareness, and protection.
At Andreozzi + Foote, representing survivors of child sexual abuse is not only our work it is our mission. On this day, we recommit to using every legal tool, every story, and every survivor’s voice to demand accountability, prevent future harm, and promote healing.
Why this day matters
Sexual exploitation and abuse of children is a global crisis. According to the UN, hundreds of millions of children are exposed to these harms. The trauma is real, the silence pervasive and the consequences lifelong. Recognizing this day signals that survivors are not hidden, forgotten, or ignored.
Prevention, Accountability & Healing: A Triad of Action
Prevention begins with institutions taking responsibility schools, churches, youth organizations must not wait for a tragedy to act.
Accountability means that when abuse occurs, survivors should have access to civil justice, institutions must face the consequences, and systemic failures must be exposed.
Healing demands trauma-informed care, survivor empowerment, and legal representation that supports dignity, not re-victimization. That is the cornerstone of our work.
What survivors and allies can do
- Speak up: Use the platforms you have your community, social media, your voice to raise awareness about child sexual abuse and its prevention.
- Educate: Learn what trauma-informed legal practice looks like, how statutes of limitations may be changing, and how survivors can seek redress.
- Support: If you’re not the survivor, be the ally. Advocate for institutions to adopt reporting mechanisms, support networks, and meaningful accountability.
- Choose representation wisely: A law firm that understands the trauma of childhood sexual abuse isn’t optional it’s essential. At Andreozzi + Foote, we pair legal strategy with survivor care.
A call to institutions
On this day and every day after institutions must ask themselves: are our policies strong enough? Do we train staff, protect children, provide safe reporting, and respond swiftly? The world recognizes November 18 but safety for children must be year-round, embedded into every culture and system.
Today is not simply a day of remembrance, it’s a day of resolve. Survivors, We see you. You matter. Your story matters. For those who serve, teach, protect, or advocate: it is a call to action. At Andreozzi + Foote, we proudly stand with survivors, working for justice that honors truth, healing that honors the heart, and change that honors the future.