Combined Introduction

When it comes to the Commonwealth of Kentucky many think of rolling hills, blue grass, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Thunder over Louisville. However, people do not think about the violent acts committed against women and children. Although our three papers discuss different aspects of violence, an underlying theme exists that connects the three topics of child abuse, violence against women and human trafficking. All three of these horrific aspects of modern life in Kentucky threated the lives of the innocent and are becoming major issues. Violence against women, such as domestic violence is often connected to child abuse, just as humane trafficking and violence against women often come hand-in-hand. Kentucky has the highest rates of child abuse out of all fifty states, while an alarming number of women and children are being abducted, raped and trafficked, and these rates are only increasing. In 2008 alone there was 14,802 children proven to be abused regularly and thirty died from abuse and neglect (Kentucky Child Abuse and Neglect Statistics). Human trafficking is the fastest growing enterprise of the twenty-first century, and in Kentucky the average age of girls trafficked is thirteen years old, with reports of girls as five years old being taken (Knight). In both issues, children are victims of unnecessary and harmful acts of violence. According to the Kentucky State Police, for every six hours and fifty-three minutes that pass, one woman is raped in Kentucky. Innocent women and children need our help, and only the citizens of Kentucky can provide much needed relief. This web-text, committed to helping the women and children of the Commonwealth, provides in-depth discussions of crimes committed against these individuals and explores several ways to help the beaten and battered.