NEW YORK, Sept. 19, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities (IAFSC), a global interdenominational organization established to empower faith leaders to serve the safety and security of communities, hosts their exhibit "Child Dignity in the Digital World" at Grand Central Terminal in New York City. The tour, which has been featured at The World Economic Forum in Davos, the UN Human Rights Council General Assembly in Geneva, UNESCO headquarters in Paris and the Moscow Global Forum, educates visitors on the critical aspects of online sexual abuse and exploitation of children and the role faith leaders can play in combatting both.
The exhibition launched on September 17th with a private event in the evening in Grand Central Terminal featuring speakers including Professor Ernesto Caffo, Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Modena, Founder of Il Telefono Azzurro and Member of the Pontifical Committee for the Protection of Minors at the Holy See and Hamdan Al Yammahi, Executive Office, Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities. Rebeca Rios-Kohn, Director, Arigatou International New York, also revealed a preview of key findings from Arigatou International and UNICEF's forthcoming study, Faith and Children's Rights:A Multi-religious Study on the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
"The launch of the 'Child Dignity in the Digital World' interactive exhibit at Grand Central Terminal is an important step to engaging a global dialogue on this difficult but very important issue. It is not just a discussion to be had only among experts, but with parents, children, educators, community leaders and concerned citizens wherever they may be," said Rabbi Diana Gerson, Founding Member of the Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities. "Our hope is to educate viewers and shine a light on the horrific crimes that are taking place daily within the shadows of the web."
Notable leaders in attendance include:
- Sonya Ryan, Founder, Carly Ryan Foundation
- Bani Dugal, Principal Representative of the Bahá'í International Community's, United Nations Office; Founding Member, Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities
- Dr. Mustafa Ali, Director, Arigatou International Nairobi; Founding Member, Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities
- Rebeca Rios-Kohn, Director, Arigatou International New York
- Rabbi Diana Gerson, Associate Executive Vice President of the New York Board of Rabbis; Founding Member, Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities
- Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, Executive Vice President, New York Board of Rabbis
- Professor Ernesto Caffo, Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Modena, Founder of Il Telefono Azzurro and Member of the Pontifical Committee for the Protection of Minors at the Holy See
- Dr. Howard Taylor, Executive Director of the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children
The Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities seeks to unite religious leaders from around the world through a series of bi-annual forums and global workshops in order to foster dialogue and take action to address important social challenges. Through "Child Dignity in the Digital World," they aim to raise awareness of online child abuse and exploitation, a hard-hitting global epidemic, by informing faith leaders on what they can do to combat them.
The tour exists on the sideline of this week's 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. It will remain open to members of the public from September 17th through September 26th daily between the hours of 10am and 6pm ET.
For more information and the upcoming schedule of IAFSC event, please go to https://iafsc.org/.
About the Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities
The Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities was established to empower faith leaders to work for the safety and security of our communities, tackling issues such as child sexual abuse, extremism and radicalization, human trafficking, etc. We aim to facilitate the building of bridges between faiths, NGOs and experts in various domains. We are conscious to the importance of empowering faith leaders, both at the institutional and grass-root levels, with knowledge and to mobilize them to play an active role in community safety. Our current themes are 'Child Dignity in the Digital World' and 'Hate Crimes'.
For more information, visit https://iafsc.org/
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