By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
A national organization dedicated to protecting children and families has launched a new program to educate mothers and enable them to become proactive in protecting their children from the dangers of wireless technology.
The program, known as iCare, is the brainchild of Dr. Jerry Kirk, founder and chairman of the board of the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families. After 25 years of fighting pornography in the media, Dr. Kirk saw that technology was gradually putting access to prurient material into the very hands our children.
“We’re not saying ‘don’t use cell phones’ or ‘don’t use IPods’,” said Kari Glemaker, National Director for iCare. “We believe technology is neither good nor bad, it’s how you use it.”
Parents don’t realize the many safeguards available for these products because none of the major wireless companies share this kind of information with purchasers at the point of sale.
“What we’re doing is getting this information into the hands of parents so they can make good choices for their children when it comes to technology,” Ms. Glemaker said.
Modeled after Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), the iCare program is directed toward women mostly because women tend to serve as the “gatekeeper” where children are concerned. They’re usually the ones who are with them after school, who drive them here and there, and put them to bed at night.
“Not that the dads don’t care but the moms tend to be the gatekeepers on these kind of issues,” Ms. Glemaker said. “And women also tend to come together, share experiences and mobilize when it comes to protecting their kids.”
The program has three components – prayer, education and mobilization.
Prayer is essential, Ms. Glemaker said. “We’ve got to be praying for our kids, and the world we’re living in, and for protection from our sexualized society.”
Second is the educational piece. Parents don’t use technology the same way kids do, she pointed out. For example, most adults use their cell phones to make phone calls. Kids tend to use them mostly to send text messages. This has led to a variety of problems, such as the current rage among teens known as “sexting,” where they send racy pictures of themselves to their friends.
“They’re also using their cell phones to get information,” Ms. Glemaker said. “Most cell phones have internet capability now so they’re going out and gathering and posting information on the web and most parents don’t even realize the phones have this capability.”
The third component is mobilization. When a problem such as “sexting” arises, iCare members can form a united front and bring their numbers to bear on organizations such as Facebook to pressure them into doing something about posting of these pictures on their website.
“We believe when we reach a million people as part of ICARE, and a million people are sending messages to wireless companies or to Internet websites, that we will have a voice to make sure our kids are being protected,” Ms. Glemaker said.
Anyone can join iCare. It’s free and entitles members to receive twice monthly e-letters designed to educate them about the latest technology and how to safeguard children from its possible abuses. Members will also be alerted when a petition needs to signed or a phone call made to help pass legislation or encourage a provider to take action to protect our children.
And because iCare has branch offices around the country, local alerts can also be sent out.
“Say something comes up at local library with the Internet. We can alert members in that area about the problem and give them the opportunity to take whatever action they feel is necessary,” Ms. Glemaker said.
“Women have influence,” she said. “We realize it in our homes but we don’t often realize it outside our front door. But we can influence our neighborhood, our community, our churches, our cities, by coming together and being educated on this topic.”
For more information about iCare, visit http://www.icarecoalition.org/icare.asp
© All Rights Reserved, Living His Life Abundantly/Women of Grace. http://www.womenofgrace.com
