Washington, D.C. — Congresswoman Annie Kuster (D-NH) and Congressman Dave Joyce (R-OH), co-chairs of the Bipartisan Task Force to End Sexual Violence, hosted a roundtable with award-winning actor and child sexual abuse survivor Anthony Edwards and other advocates. During the roundtable, the group discussed the need for policy reforms to prevent future children from experiencing sexual violence and expand access to support and justice resources for survivors.

“No child should be subjected to sexual assault or abuse — yet, that is the chilling reality for millions of kids across our country,” said Congresswoman Kuster. “We must do more to end the scourge of sexual assault, hold abusers accountable, and support survivors as they recover and heal. Thank you to my fellow co-chair Congressman Joyce, Anthony Edwards, Grace French, and all the advocates who joined us today. Together, we will change this conversation and keep our youngest generations safe.”

“Every child deserves to grow up in a safe household. Unfortunately, that is not the case for so many children across the country,” said Congressman Joyce. “I appreciate my fellow Co-Chair, Congresswoman Kuster, and the panelists for coming to the table today to have an open, honest conversation. I look forward to continuing to work to help effectively prevent child sexual abuse and provide survivors with the support and resources needed to heal and seek justice for the atrocities committed against them.”

“I want to thank Representatives Dave Joyce and Annie Kuster for hosting a roundtable with members of the Bipartisan Task Force to End Sexual Violence to discuss the important issue of preventing child sexual abuse. I was honored to participate in this important discussion and proud to join my fellow survivors and advocates of the Keep Kids Safe movement in Washington, D.C., to give voice to this often-overlooked issue that affects millions of children and adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse. The power to change is directly related to our ability to lessen the stigma around the issue. It’s time for survivor voices to be heard, and together change the way we protect our children. I appreciate members of the Task Force helping to ensure the conversation around keeping kids safe gets louder and louder,” said Anthony Edwards, Actor/Producer, Survivor Advocate and Board Chair of 1in6.org.

“The Army of Survivors thanks Representatives Dave Joyce and Annie Kuster for centering the voices of survivors while supporting efforts to help survivors of child sexual abuse heal. We were honored to be a part of the bipartisan Congressional Task Force event which brought together leading national organizations of the Keep Kids Safe movement to end sexual violence against children; As the only national organization advocating for child athlete survivors of sexual violence, committed to ending sexual violence against young athletes through transformative culture change, The Army of Survivors is grateful to have allies like Representatives Dave Joyce and Annie Kuster,” said Grace French, Founder of the Army of Survivors.

The roundtable included child sexual assault advocates from across the country:

• Anthony Edwards, award-winning actor, Chairman and National Spokesperson, 1 in 6
• Grace French, President and Founder, The Army of Survivors (TAOS)
• Denis Edwards, Co-Chair of Keep Kids Safe and Director of Government Affairs, National Children’s Alliance (NCA)
• John Peracchi, Program Manager, National Criminal Justice Training Center (NCJTC) of Fox Valley Technical College
• Michelle Booth Cole, Executive Director, Safe Shores-The D.C. Children’s Advocacy Center

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