Why do children suffer.

[Tony]

I've read all these terrible stories about Pokrovsky family. And all my worst thoughts about the social workers work have obtained confirmation.
What can I say? Certainly there is a need for the work of social workers. The world is really full of various dangers and we all want to protect children. They are so small. They are so defenceless. A social worker has a real shield, guard and safeguard them from the cruelty of the world. If that were the case, it would be the ideal.
But look at how it works in real world. Children now can get a good legal background. Already you can hear from the kid "I will sue in court" if the mother suddenly found it worthy to spank. And it really can happen. And then for a long time this mom has to try to prove that she is not guilty and try to explain that this slap was done due to the fact that the child was playing with matches. Moreover, even a child can not be punished because social workers believe that it is psychological violence. A psychological abuse can be implemented to anything, even the requirement to collect toys, if the child currently is watching cartoons .
I can remembering my own childhood, I think at that time removing children from their parents must have been massively. From the point of view of social workers our lives were a nightmare and physical and psychological abuse at the same time, plus public humiliation, destroying the child's psyche . And once how our minds have survived in these extreme conditions? I'll never know ...
The worst thing is that we can get unmanageable children and adolescents due to a lack of punishment. Creating a children's criminal gangs. The sharp decline in the level of education. The mass cultivation of infantile people (after all, children do not have to do something, but parents must do all that children desire).

[andrew]

The Pokrov story raised the problem of the role of Social services in education children. In case of Pokrov we saw the direct implication of ACS in the life of the family. It was the abuse behavior in that case, but what is their principal role in our society?
It is clear that social services should look into the situation of each family and try to help if they need. I repeat – TO HELP, but not to take out children. They should pay special attention to the families who need housing and/or financial support or if the children in such families are disabled or there are situation when a child is in need.
In my opinion the following categories of children need help from ACS:
- Orphans
- Disabled children
- Children in need
Orphans – children who remain by different causes without parents. These persons need help in the first turn. The need accommodation and financial support from social services. Social services should provide ongoing help them until age 21. Also ACS should provide education to these children.
If the child has a disability and his family is vulnerable, homeless or out of money, then this child should automatically is eligible to be offered help by social services.
The child should be considered to be a “child in need” if he or she needs help to manage the things that affect health and education. This happens in case if:
• The family don't have money for food
• The family is homeless
• The family has great problems affecting health or education of the child
• The child lives in violent conditions.
The children can be in need even if the family has temporary problems. For example, in case of fire or flood the family remains homeless. The children should be helped in the first turn.
In these cases the ACS should intervene and help children, even take the children temporarily to other families.
But did such conditions exist in case of Pokrov family? Definitely NO! The Pokrovs’ children are not orphans, they are not disabled and they are not children in need. ACS should focus over other vulnerable families and let this family grow their children.

[FENIX]

Of course, there is no objection to social workers removing children from parents who have genuinely abused them. As we know from many notorious examples, social workers have failed to take such children into care and even there are many tragic examples when they are died as a result. But a key reason for the rise in the number of children now being seized from their parents is that social workers have gone to the opposite extreme, becoming trigger-happy and snatching children for no good reason. What is most shocking about is that the families then find themselves in the grip of a system which seems horribly rigged against them! It is unfair thing and it is very bad that social workers do so. So, if things have gone so terribly wrong with our child protection system, why has this happened — and why have we not hear that social workers made ever conclusion about it?
On such dubious grounds, the social workers may arrive to snatch children from their beds, all too often accompanied by a gang of policemen, who seem only too willing to comply with any demands the social workers make. The parents in such cases often find themselves treated like criminals, held for hours in police cells before being released without charge. How long will it be going on?
I think that everybody has to fight to recover the official kidnapping of the children and never, never give up!

[Valya]

Yes I agree as some people said before Pokrovski family are very strong people. Not to get lost and confused in this horrible situation takes a lot of guts! The even made a big poster and went to Times Square, the center of New York City every day! Talked to people , created an organization to help people in similar situation! I think that far not all people would be capable of doing such things after dealing with what this family had to. I don’t understand how easy it is for those in power destroy people’s lives and separate close people. At firs the children were removed violently from the loving parents. And after this , as if was a small thing to suffer, they separated a wife and a husband by putting him in prison for 6 months! It is so outrageous that these days there is no security at all. One peaceful moment of our lives can become a nightmare in a second! And you can fight with it but the others will do everything to destroy you and everything that is dear to you. Some people do have the strength, the health, energy, enthusiasm, money to fight till the end. But we are all just humans. Some people wouldn’t be able physically, mentally, financially withstand such pressures and aggression. And how did it all go thus far that it has become so easy to ruin and manipulate people’s lives? I don’t think that it was like that before. I suppose the values of people has changed and they preferred material to spiritual, forgot what is more important in life. In the fast pace of life majority pursue only what will benefit to them and don’t take into consideration the other people who live with them and no less important at all. They send people to parental courses to teach what they already know and did they ever go themselves or read anything about children’s psychology and how important it is to be with family not with some strange people? It doesn’t look like people who are in charge of children’s welfare are aware of what is actually good or bad to the children.

[Tomer]

The main task of social workers is to work with incomplete, antisocial, criminal family. And Pokrovsky family is not this case. It was a prosperous, happy family. Before they were separated.
If such nightmare workers fulfil their duties they bring harm to soviet. If should be made by responsible people, and what is the most importantly, by people who love children, and doing job for their benefit a lot of, so in that case their work will be successful.
People who carry it out must to carefully and with utmost responsibility to approach the children because mindlessly withdraw children from families can not be done! But at the same time it's impossible to do it thoughtlessly, as do modern welfare authorities do, and send children to just anyone (foster family etc).
Again, maybe, that people who are now engaged in this, can not do anything good.
Social workers have no right to touch normal families. If the family is a normal, happy, so society have no rights to put any claims. Why family Pokrovsky was offended? I do not know. But it's awful. The basic principles of these workers were violated.
Unfortunately, in reality, people think only about money and not about the happiness of children.

[Tomer]

Additional I want to express my support to Pokrovsly family.
They are great people. And I'm sure that they are doing their best to return children.
Unfortunately, I’m absolutely sure that they suffer. I cannot imagine how this poor mother is missing her children. And further, he cannot behave his own children, pass then his wisdom.
But these parents will keep fighting till the end. And they will win.
Such great and purposeful people always win.
Maybe it will take some time and a lot, a lot of efforts but in the end this family will be together and reunited. And they will spend a lot of great hours together.
And all guilty people will be punished. If not by other people but by the Fate.
Now they are not afraid and think that they can do anything, but in the future they will repent.

[pumpkin]

Dear people, I believe that everyone has already seen trouble that is hanging over our families, over our children.
Pokrovsky family is glaring example. Our children can be taken any moment without any reason. Even if you are the greatest mother and father in the world, it is doesn’t matter.
In my opinion the problem is that people do not have information. There is complete silence about this topic. No news, no articles. We do not know all the stories. How many children were taken? State hides all the stories.
We have to convey the horror of the situation to the people.
If we sit in silence and think that nothing is impossible change, they (these people) will change us.
The system itself assumes the total control over the "rights" of the child in the family, school, etc. You can not "trespass" child's territory (go to his or her room) without his or her permission, you have no right to prohibit a lot of things (as example, going to night club), as it is a violation of "the right of the child on rest." To 18 years of the child, we can not force a child to do any homework work, including cleaning rooms, washing dishes, going to a store etc . When child reaches 14 years, he or she can sue their parents. And much more.
Is it normal? I think no.
Officials can break into any home without any notice. It sounds like science fiction, but it is already up and running.
All people are under risk of losing their children. It can be as needy, and millionaires . These officials are not subject to anybody! Imagine the field for corruption.

[andrew]

I would like to continue to speak about the role of ACS in helping families with many children. I repeat in helping children, and not in taking them away. It is their duty to assist the poor families or families with disabled children.
In case of Pokrovsky ACS didn’t help children, the ACS employee threw into the house and provoked violence actions. It is very weird from their side such behavior.
We all must condemn their attitude to this family and I advise them to direct their energy to the really needed families and suffering children.
If the family has no house, it does not mean that the children should be taken out. ACS should do everything to keep the family together. It should assist in providing accommodation for the entire family.
We should understand that taking away the children is a great psychological trauma for them that is hardly recovered. Each day lived out the family by the children tells on their character and conscious. Children must live with their parents.
There are only few exceptions. The principal is violence in the family. It is practically only one case that can justify taking out the children for care. May be also if both parents are drug addicts or alcoholics.
But al this does not apply to Pokrovsky parents.

[pumpkin]

andrew, I agree with you that such bodies as ACS are necessity for the modern society.
Unfortunately, there are too many irresponsible parents in the word. There are too many people with drug or alcohol addiction.
And their children have to be protected.
But such a wonderful initiative have just became nothing (((
This is all matter of money and power. They rule the world.
So people who were meant to protect children actually become a threat to them.
This situation must be changed. And this is responsibility of government to fight this situation.
I'm afraid if situation is not changed these days, in the future something terrible can happen.
I would like to advice to read some books of Oruel. It's just a fiction. But who knows ....

[Claire]

Unfortunately, there are too many irresponsible parents in the word. There are too many people with drug or alcohol addiction.
And their children have to be protected.

Right, they have to be protected, but not taken from good families which they don't want to leave. Did they ask children what they want? Where to stay? I don't think so. Why do they think that social workers know everything better than children and their parents what is good for them. It's so unfair...Like many people said here they should protect children whose parents are either alcoholics or drug addicts and so on. This system is so imperfect! They take children from good families and give them to those who cannot take care even of themselves, not speaking about kids. Or, even worse, they take them from complete families and give them to gays or lesbians, or single moms. Do they think this kid will grow healthy, psychically speaking? Not at all. That kid will have a psycological disorder which will haunt him/her for entire life.
Dear ACS workers, please consider all these comments and make our life better, not worse. Remember, you will pay for every bad thing that you have done, if not in this life, then in the next.
Pokrovsky family and all families which are in the same situation should get their kids back!