I first heard Erin Merryn speak on the Oprah Winfrey Show in 2010. Her bravery is admirable and inspiring.
She has continued to capture me with her poise, eloquence and determination for spreading Erin’s Law nationwide.
The mission of Erin’s law is to get education in all 50 states on the prevention of sexual abuse by empowering children with their voice instead of allowing sex offenders to silence them.
We would like to help her in her pursuit. Please visit http://www.erinmerryn.net/donate–references.html to help Erin travel across America testifying before lawmakers.
Copy the letter below and paste into word document, read, sign, print, and put it in the mail between today. I am hoping to have everyone sends this letter a month before I speak. Snail mail is the way to go as we will get a better response that way. However you can do both and snail mail it and email Arne Duncan at Arne.Duncan@ed.gov
Be apart of filling Arne Duncan’s mailbox with thousands of letters.
Please pass this on to all your friends you know will support this.
July 14, 2011
Arne Duncan
U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20202
Dear Arne Duncan:
Thank you for seeing the importance of Erin’s Law that was signed by Governor Quinn in February of this year. As someone who supports Erin’s Law I am grateful you and Kevin Jennings have selected Erin Merryn to speak at OSDFS National Conference to bring national awareness to Erin’s Law. By not ignoring this you show that you care about empowering and educating children to use their voice if someone ever tries to hurt them. As you know it is not only children in Illinois that need to be educated on safe touch, unsafe touch, safe secrets, unsafe secrets, and who to tell if ever abused. Statistics show 3 million children in the United States right now are victims of sexual abuse. These are often the children school staff pour hours into each year dealing with behavior and emotional problems due to abuse that has not been disclosed.
There are 907 registered sex offenders in the District of Columbia 19 of them live within half a mile of the White House and these are just the ones that are registered. Right now most children who are sexually abused are only getting one message and that message is coming from the abusers who are silencing children. Children are not being educated in schools on safe touch and unsafe touch yet we do educate on tornado drills, bus drills, fire drills, DARE, internet safety, and bully intervention. With your Chicago roots, President Obama’s Chicago roots, and Erin Merryn a Chicagoan herself, it is time to join forces and not only protect the children from your home state through age appropriate curriculum on sexual abuse but educate children in all 50 states through Erin’s law. I hope that you will encourage President Obama to attend Erin Merryn’s presentation on Erin’s Law on August 10th at the OSDFS National Conference. As President Obama stated in a letter to Erin in 2006 when he was her state senator, “I understand the need to do everything in our power to protect our children. I assure you protecting our nation’s children is on my mind. The time to act is now.” I hope President Obama will show that protecting our nation’s children is on his mind by acting now and attending Erin’s Law at the OSDFS National Conference. Children are waiting to be given the education on how to get away and tell today.
Sincerely,
February 14, 2011
Governor Quinn Signed Erin’s Law Governor
July 14, 2011
Jay Nixon of Missouri Signs Erin’s Law
April 11, 2012
Governor Daniels of Indiana signs Erin’s Law
April 30, 2012
Erin’s Law passes New York Senate 55-1
May 2012
Erin’s Law passed in Maine
July 18, 2012
Erin’s Law Passed in Michigan Senate
2012-2013
Erin’s Law is currently being introduced and voted on in 10 states
Erin Merryn was named GLAMOUR magazine’s Woman of The Year 2012.
She’s taken her personal crusade and turned it into a public one. So many children will be protected because of her.” –TV host Katie Couric, 1992, 2002, and 2006 Woman of the Year.
For more information, visit: http://www.erinmerryn.net/