We Must Change The Way We Talk To Kids & Teens About Predators To Prevent Sexual Harm
Because we've been doing it all wrong.
The language used in most school curriculum sets kids up to be misinformed and blind to harm.
The direction we give kids to protect themselves sets them up to fail, tethering them to shame.
The instruction we give them around reporting all but guarantees they will stay quiet.
The assumptions we make about what kids and teens think, believe, and understand creates direct access points for predators to reach them.
About Mandi P.
I was violated in elementary school and sexually assaulted in middle school. This, along with other childhood pressures, led me to dangerous acts of rebellion and depression. In an effort to save my life, I was sent to a program masquerading as a young people’s recovery group. That group turned out to be a cult and child sex trafficking ring, trapping me from the age of 15 until I escaped at 22.
A large part of my healing involved autopsying these life-altering webs of sexual violation— deconstructing the people, factors, and information gaps that ushered me into all of this harm. Along the way I sat with, listened to, and read the stories of hundreds of other child and teenage victims as we all attempted to understand the how and why of sexual trauma.
All of this research and reflection allowed me to chart patterns and consistencies: how the predator manipulated and gained access, how they kept us silent, and—because of old, uninformed language and instruction— the ways in which the parents and victims were unprepared or blind to what was happening.
As a result, I’ve made it my life’s work to educate kids and parents about those patterns, information gaps, and missteps in hopes of increasing the prevention and detection of child sexual harm.
Book Me To Speak
I am delighted to be of service to groups, schools, conferences, nonprofit events, and podcasts.
Parent Audiences
Changing The Way We Talk To Kids About Predators and Body Boundaries
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The 3 words parents and educators must STOP using
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Why you should stop teaching your kids to say NO
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The one phrase we must repeat every time we talk to kids about predators
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Why we must educate kids on how they might FEEL if they are being violated
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The critical importance of teaching WHO BROKE THE RULE
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Why boys are at even greater risk and how to protect them
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Easy openers for having these hard talks with kids
A Parent’s Guide To Reducing Their Kid’s Risk of Sexual Abuse
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Risky places, people, and scenarios that demand extra caution (it’s not who or what you think)
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The top 4 ways predators groom parents into trusting them with their child
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The 6 major reasons why kids don’t tell their parents they’ve been violated and how to change that
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The portal of entry we create for predators to reach our children
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Signs your child might have been violated
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The truth about technology and parental controls
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The unfair additional responsibility of single moms
Community Audiences
How An Upper-Middle Class Girl Full of Potential Gets Trapped in Child Sex Trafficking: Educating through my personal story, I'll share what human trafficking really is, what it isn't, who's at risk, and how to spot it.
Coercive Control, Brainwashing, and Grooming: How the tactics used by cults and traffickers can be used to trap people in personal relationships. How to spot them, how to get free from it, and what to do if someone you love has lost their way
School Talks
Elementary age groups:
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Good secrets vs. bad secrets
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Listening to our tummy
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3 things SAFE adults will never do
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Faking an urgency to stay safe
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“Who broke the rule?”
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Identifying 2 safe people we can share uncomfortable things with.
Middle and high school girls:
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Using my experience of being sexually assaulted at 14 after sneaking out, we’ll talk risks and long-term consequences
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Safety in numbers and handling pressure from boys.
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Why no adult should ever pursue you, and what to do if one does.
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What is grooming and how to know when you are being groomed
Stay Informed
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