Stop Child Abuse Now (SCAN) - 1117

Tonight's special guest is Lakeisha Smith from Rochester, New York and a child abuse survivor. "Everything we do and go through is for a reason. We may not know what those reasons are but we are not the ultimate decision makers...GOD is," she writes. "I am trying my hand at it all. I look forward to pursing my dreams of becoming a successful entrepreneur. As long as God is with me, nothing can stop me! Its just a matter of time, hard work, and dedication before it becomes a reality." Molested as a child by her father (her mother didn't want to hear about it), Lakeisha withdrew inside herself, keeping the secret. Eventually she sought help and was given an understanding that she still has today .. that the sexual abuse was not her fault, and not her mother's fault either. As she says, "Through her therapy she was able to pull herself out of a dark place in my life." Lakeisha has produced a couple autobiographical "My Childhood Story" YouTube videos (part 1 & part 2). She descries them by writing, "My childhood story is an autobiographical documentary about my unfortunate experience with child molestation. This documentary is a brief insight on how child molestation affected my life and how I have moved past that point in my life with the purpose to help others." Lakeisha's been preparing herself to be an even more effective anti-child abuse advocate. "I would love to take part [on our talk show] and tell my story to help others." And she continues, "It is going to be very helpful with my advocacy efforts along with information that I currently have. My interest in CSA comes as a result of my unfortunate experience as a child."