Giving Compass' Take:

• Rebecca Ruiz argues that although #MeToo started as a movement about sexual misconduct and abuse in the workplace, it is changing to the national conversation and impacting children. 

• How can philanthropy prevent abuse and support victims of abuse? Is there risk of trauma from exposing young people to this conversation?

• Learn more about the phycological impact of #MeToo.

While the #MeToo movement often feels like an adult conversation about the assault that grown women (and men) endure, particularly in the workplace, it's clear that many children and young people are listening. The stories they hear on social media, through television, in school, and in conversations around their own dinner tables can feel empowering. Those stories can also traumatize, especially when young people feel they have no means to stop abuse or report it.

While the taboo of discussing child sexual abuse still persists, Casey Gwinn, president of Alliance for HOPE International, says #MeToo marks a tipping point he's never witnessed in his decades-long career advocating for survivors of sexual violence.

In the last year, Gwinn says campers and kids involved with Alliance for HOPE International have been increasingly interested in discussing their most painful experiences, their candor growing rapidly in the wake of #MeToo.

I do think there is a cultural shift that is happening. The more [young people] see high-profile people, or the victims of Nassar, or Olympians and celebrities talking about sexual harassment and assault, I do think it is creating a platform — almost an invitation for kids to be more open about what they've experienced.

Chris Newlin, executive director of the National Children's Advocacy Center, a nonprofit organization that trains law enforcement and child abuse professionals to prevent and respond to maltreatment with a coordinated approach, says that one teenager cited the Nassar case when she recently reported sexual abuse to the center's forensic interview specialist.

Read the full article on #MeToo and child sexual abuse victims by Rebecca Ruiz at Mashable.