With the abundance of problems currently surrounding the citizens of this country, decisions need to be made when it comes to prioritizing these challenges to resolve them in the most effective way. Different groups of people have different opinions in terms of what is most important to work on. Because of this disagreement, there is a stalemate and some issues are left to grow while being overshadowed. While the U.S. government focuses its attention primarily on the economy and foreign affairs, the issue of protecting children from abuse and neglect is an ongoing struggle that needs to be more recognized. There are many aspects to being a parent and the parental role includes the legal authority to make choices for the child. Along with this control comes the duty to raise and protect them. Children should have the right to basic necessities, such as a safe place to live and livelihood, as well as the opportunity to go to school. From an emotional point of view, children should receive care beyond these basic needs and receive love. This love should consist of guidance and appropriate consequences for behaviors, as well as the unconditional support and affection on which a human being thrives. (Fass, 2004). In the mid-1800s, a man named Charles Brace noticed the damage done to abused children and decided to found an organization called the New York Children's Aid Society that sought to relocate abandoned or abused children from the city. to farms in rural areas. This was the beginning of advocacy for children's rights, and by the 1880s the pattern of abuse was noticed. Another organization was formed, called the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. This was put in place after you…middle of paper…benefit from a new system that focuses on preventing rather than punishing offenders. This will be a cost-effective change for society and children will receive the protection and care they deserve. Works CitedBatten, D. (2011). Children's rights. In Gale encyclopedia of American law (3 ed., Vol. 2, pp. 382-385). Detroit, MI: Gale, Cengage Learning.Fass, P. S. (2004). Children's rights. In Encyclopedia of Children and Childhood: In History and Society (Vol. 1, pp. 186-187). New York, NY: Macmillan Reference USA.Fisher, BS, & Lab, SP (2010). Family violence. In Encyclopedia of victimology and crime prevention (Vol. 1, pp. 382-391). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications Inc. Post, S. G. (2004). Children: Children's rights. In Encyclopedia of bioethics (3 ed., vol. 1, pp. 385-387). New York, NY: Reference Macmillan USA.