When Elliot Costello and a group of other people visited Cambodia, he had an encounter with a young girl named Thea.
Little did Elliot know that this encounter would have an impact so profound on him that it would help start a movement whose goal is to end sexual abuse against children.
Namely, Thea always had nail polish on her tiny nails. One day, as she and Elliot chatted, she asked to paint one of his nails. He agreed and was happy to speak to the chatty girl, but he then learned that she was once a victim of sexual abuse.
“As she painted one of my nails, I assured her I would always keep it that way to remember her, and by extension, her suffering,” Elliot said.
This motivated Elliot to try and make positive change among men so that less and less children fall victims of sexual abuse.
That is when he came up with the movement called #PolishedMan where men put nail polish on one of their nails. That one nail represents the one in five children who will be victims of sexual violence.
Polished Man works towards ending sexual violence against children. According to the organization, “being a Polished Man means challenging violent behavior and language, both locally and globally.”
Elliot believes that since men are responsible for 96% of this type of violence against children globally, they should be catalyst for change if we are ever to see an end to the abuse of innocent children.
The goal with the painted nail isn’t just to remind people of the number of children who are abused every single day, but to serve as a conversation starter about this reality, leading to new ideas about prevention. He also hopes that people will start donating to “support educational programs and resources for child survivors of abuse,” as per APlus.
We hope that more men, including celebrities
Neighbor Asked My Son to Wash His Car for a Month but Refused to Pay – So I Gave Him a Lesson He’ll Never Forget
When Irene’s 14-year-old son, Ben, came home looking frustrated, she quickly found out that their smug neighbor, Mr. Peterson, refused to pay Ben for washing his car all month. Mr. Peterson claimed the car wasn’t spotless and used it as an excuse not to pay the $200 Ben had earned for his hard work.
Furious but composed, Irene decided to take matters into her own hands. The next morning, she approached Mr. Peterson, reminding him of their verbal agreement and mentioning the pictures Ben had taken of the car after every wash. Irene hinted at potential legal action, warning Mr. Peterson of the consequences if he didn’t pay. Startled, Mr. Peterson quickly handed over the $200 in cash.
When Irene returned home and gave Ben the money, he was shocked but proud of his mom’s determination. She taught him an important lesson: never let anyone take advantage of your hard work. They celebrated with lunch together, and Ben even considered applying for a new job at an ice cream parlor, knowing that if anything went wrong, his mom had his back.
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