About CHILD
MISSION STATEMENT
Since 1983 when Rita and her husband, Doug Swan, founded Children’s Healthcare Is a Legal Duty, its mission has been to end child abuse or neglect related to religion, cultural practices, or quackery through public education, research, legal action, and a limited amount of lobbying.
CHILD has supported
- Laws requiring medical care of children, including preventive and diagnostic measures, without exception for religious belief
- Reporting of child abuse and neglect without religious exemption
- Licensing of child care facilities including those run by churches
- Ratification of the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child
CHILD has engaged in
- Publishing newsletters (usually quarterly)
- Filing lawsuits and amicus briefs
- Supporting laws that protect children against medical neglect
- Providing emotional support for victims of religion-based medical neglect
- Providing speakers
- Collecting and disseminating information about court cases and state and federal laws
For a partial history of CHILD’s founding, see CHILD NEWSLETTER 2013 vol.2 (30th anniversary issue)
“The Last Strawberry”, Rita Swan’s memoir about the loss of her son Matthew, can be ordered here.
Rita’s Curriculum Vitae
CONTACT INFO
Rita welcomes your comments and appreciates your sharing information about cases of child neglect or abuse related to rigid belief systems.
Rita Swan – 136 Blue Heron Place, Lexington, KY 40511 – 859-255-2200 – rita@childrenshealthcare.org