In fact, in an overwhelming number of cases, it is a parent who abducts the child and leaves the other parent behind with little to no clue about where the child has been taken.
In these cases, the parent who has lost their child is referred to as “left behind.” But the left-behind parent is not the only victim. The child who has been forced into the sole care of a parent who is willing to break the law, and crush the spirit of a former partner, is by far the biggest victim. A parent willing to illegally separate their own child from the other parent is unlikely to have the mental energy or the moral fortitude to provide a worthy upbringing for the child.
If you are a left behind parent, you know the pain of losing a child is horrific, and not knowing where your child has been taken is an open wound that will be with you for life.
However, you should know that there is hope. There are organizations out there full of dedicated men and women who are committed to finding lost children. These groups can and have helped many rightful parents to be reunited with their children.
5 Organizations That Help Find Missing Children
The task of finding missing children is a serious challenge. Too often, law enforcement organizations lack the leads, the resources, or the authorization to actively search for missing children. Courts can only issue bench orders for police to act on when the law has been clearly violated. Sadly, the laws governing what can and cannot be done in a parental abduction are blurry at best.
Fortunately, there is no law that prevents private citizens from doing everything in their power to fill these gaps in our legal system. The following groups are made up of people
just like you and me, and professionals who commit their training and resources to help reunite abducted children and their left behind parents.
The Committee for Missing Children
The Committee for Missing Children is an advocacy group. They are committed to assisting left behind parents and seeing that their parental rights are protected. They print and distribute images and information of missing children far and wide to aid in the search. They gather information about missing children and share it. They collect and share information, and function as a clearing house for information about abducted children. They are developing the world’s largest online database on the subject.
Global Missing Children’s Network
The Global Missing Children’s Network, also known as the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children, conducts one of the world’s largest efforts to protect the rights of missing and exploited children. Their initiatives include an open invitation for anyone who wants to help to join. Their website offers access to the largest global database of missing children in the world with resources on children who have gone missing. The website enables anyone to report a missing child to the network. They also offer parents a wealth of resources to help protect their children.
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
The NCMEC is a private, non-profit organization built around the sole purpose of finding missing children, to prevent the victimization of children, and reducing the prevalence of child sexual exploitation. They work with families and victims, law enforcement, private corporations, and the public to prevent abductions, recover lost children, and provide services to prevent the sexual exploitation of children. They run a 24-hour hotline and online portal, print missing posters, generate AMBER alerts, and more.
When one left behind parent was alerted that his child had been located over 2,000 miles away, American Airlines and NCMEC wired him airline tickets enabling him to recover his child before she was committed to a foster home.
Family Advocacy Outreach Network
The Family Advocacy Outreach Network supports and strengthens families via education and direct services, to break the cycle of abusive behaviors. They provide forensic interviews and medical Examinations, SANE Examinations, testing for drug
exposed children, referral and advocacy services, case coordination, and training for teams and community members. While FAN does not provide missing children related services directly, their work can be essential in protecting the rights of children and left behind parents facing the indifference of the legal system.
The International Child Abduction Attorney Network
This network of legal professionals known as I CARE provides desperately needed legal services to parents and children whose rights have been forgotten. They are constantly searching for new legal professionals willing to give their time and energy to the cause of protecting the rights and dignity of the victims of child abduction.