Consequences of Stress on Children's Development

Growing up as a young child in my neighborhood in Queens, New York I witnessed a lot of violence in the community. In the 1980s my neighborhood was known as the epic center of the crack epidemic with many drug gangs ruling the streets with drugs and violence. After the death of a young police officer the law enforcement enforced a harsh crackdown on the drugs and violence in the community. To this day the neighborhood is still known for illicit drug activities and violence.  I believed I coped with the circumstances in my community because of the values and lessons my mother and family set for me. Although we lived in an environment of crime we had a bond, my family valued education and also recognized that I needed to be “street smart.”  I was a curious child and asked many questions, my mother could not hid what was evident, so she would answer many of my questions and teach me “life-lessons”, as she would say. Another way I believed I coped with the violence in my community was my role models, they were working families, striving to make a difference for their families.  Many of the families on my street grew up together and all of the children played together. In the summer time, which was peak season for crime, we often had bbqs in each other’s backyards, organized games on the block, and parents took turns taking us to the park. They attempted to keep the influences of the gangs and drugs away from us by keeping us busy and protecting us by staying together as a community. I would love to say that all my family, childhood friends and their families were untouched by the violence but it would be untrue. I faced many trials growing up in my Queens neighborhood, but it has made me a stronger person today.

Violence in an epidemic that affects everyone in the world, unfortunately it is a part of life, but I believe society can make a difference.   I decided to learn about another factor the affect children and families in Africa.  In Uganda there is a rebel army called LRA tormenting villages, abducting children and forcing them to kill their parents. For the past 20 years the leader Kony, has forced over 30 thousand children to join his violent army, killing and mutilating people and forced them into prostitution. These stressors affect children’s development because many children live in fear and in hiding, sleeping in crowded small spaces to avoid capture during the night. They do not have a family system supporting them and taking care of their needs. Some of their parents are dead and they are on their own. I watched an inspiring video advocating the capture of these ruthless criminals and a young man, a former member of Kony’s army, said that he would rather be dead then to continue to live in fear, because there was no hope. A big campaign Kony 2012 was organized to make the world aware of the rebel violence in Uganda. The hope is to make him famous by exposing his acts of cruelty and recruiting others to capture Kony, disarm his rebels and reunite children with their surviving families. In the meantime, an organization called Invisible Children are in Uganda rebuilding villages, schools, creating jobs and established a warning system protecting villagers from rebel attacks.  US forces were sent to Uganda to assist their army in the capture of the rebels, but the US is contemplating removing soldiers because of the lack of interest from the world hence the campaign Kony 2012, urging that this is the year to stop his reign. To learn more about Kony 2012 or to join the campaign check out the website http://www.invisiblechildren.com/ .