Child Advocates Rally At State Capitol

{Frankfort, Kentucky}...More than 5,000 silver pinwheels glittered on the front lawn of the state Capitol Thursday representing child victims of sexual abuse served by the children's advocacy centers across Kentucky in 2011. The gathering was a celebration of hope and healing that was part of the National Children's Alliance's ONE With Courage campaign and coincided with April's designation as Child Abuse Awareness Month. Meghan Wright, state coordinator of the Kentucky Association of Children's Advocacy Centers, Laura Kretzer, the association's board president, and Chief Deputy Attorney General Patrick Hughes spoke at a rally on the front steps of the state Capitol to call attention to the problem of child abuse and efforts being made to deal with it. Wright thanked the advocates' supporters and partners, including legislators for their work on several child abuse bills during this year's session of the General Assembly. Two bills in particular stood out, one which would broaden the definition of incest and raise the age of consent from 16 to 18 in some cases and a bill regarding human trafficking. Both bills are still on the table, and advocates hope they will pass on the last day of the session, April 12th.