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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
CHILDHOOD EXPOSURE TO VIOLENCE PREVENTION WEEK
WHEREAS, according to the U.S. Attorney General's National Taskforce on Children Exposed to Violence ("CEV"), "We are facing one of the most significant challenges to the future of America's children that we have ever known;" and
WHEREAS, homicide is the second leading cause of death among youth between the ages of 15 and 24 and is the leading cause of death among African American youth ages 10-24; and
WHEREAS, 75% of all the children who have died from abuse and neglect were younger than four years of age; and
WHEREAS, being abused or neglected as a child increases the likelihood of arrest as a juvenile by 59%; and
WHEREAS, research states that 75% of urban elementary school children living in high-violence neighborhoods have been exposed to community violence, and that 35% of urban youth who have been exposed to community violence have developed post-traumatic stress disorder; and
WHEREAS, children exposed to violence are at a higher risk of developing substance abuse, suffering from depression, anxiety and post-traumatic disorder, engaging in criminal behavior, having difficulty in school, and developing long-term health problems; and
WHEREAS, violence accounts for the majority of premature U.S. deaths and is a factor in the development of chronic diseases and lost productivity; and
WHEREAS, violence claims the majority and fastest-growing percentage of our health care spending; and
WHEREAS, each year, youth homicides and assault-related injuries result in an estimated $16 billion in combined medical and work-loss costs; and
WHEREAS, The Chicago Department of Public Health's Office of Violence Prevention asks all residents to utilize the resources available to them and to unite in the knowledge that violence is a learned behavior that can be unlearned and prevented; and
WHEREAS, residents of Cook County are invited to gather together under this year's CEV Prevention Week campaign, Protecting Every Child, Every Day, led by the Chicago Department of Public Health's Chicago Safe Start Collaborative; and
WHEREAS, CEV Prevention Week aims to defend childhood by raising awareness of the detrimental and enduring effects that exposure to violence can have on children and communities; and
WHEREAS, CEV Prevention Week aims to help end the cycle of violence, and to mobilize caring adults and providers; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the President and Board of Commissioners of Cook County do hereby name April 21, 2014 through April 26, 2014 as "Childhood Exposure to Violence Prevention Week" in Cook County.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Cook County residents are urged to act as ambassadors by not only preventing childhood exposure to violence within their own families but by safeguarding the innocence and promise that should define every child's present and future.
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