BY ALEJANDRA O’CONNELL DOMENECH | A new public-service campaign for the Child Victims Act was launched in Times Square on Tuesday.
Safe Horizon, the largest victim services nonprofit in the United States, along with New York Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul, unveiled the campaign, designed to educate adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse of their rights under the Child Victims Act enacted this year.
The launch included a video and public-service announcements on Times Square billboards, featuring state Senator Alessandra Biaggi, Assemblymember Catalina Cruz, Assemblymember Yuh-Line Niou and Assemblymember Rodneyse Bichotte, all survivors of sexual abuse.
There’s a special place in hell for child abusers and leaders of institutions who protected them. With #ChildVictimsAct – the day of reckoning is here.
Launched awareness campaign with courageous survivors to say abuse was not ok then, it’s not ok now, and it will never be ok. pic.twitter.com/EXFIwnfNBE
— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) August 13, 2019
The legislation allows accusers to file a criminal claim against their abusers until age 28 and file a civil claim until age 55. The new New York law also includes a look-back period — a one-year window — starting on Wed., Aug. 14, that allows for cases that have expired to be revived. Before the law was enacted earlier this year, New York State required that such lawsuits be filed by the time the victim was age 23.
The PSA has been translated into Spanish, with Mandarin and Haitian Creole versions expected to come.
The campaign is multi-platform and includes ads on Facebook and YouTube, as well as well as placement before movie previews in theaters starting this November. The PSA stills featuring the legislators and fellow survivor Brian Toale, will rotate on Clear Channel’s Times Square screens.
According to a press release, Safe Horizon will announce more partnerships and platforms in the upcoming months.
