“I reported him to the police, but they released him. When he came home, he would beat me and threaten to stab me to death. I can’t tell the police about the rape; he will kill me.”
Listening to and seeing a nine-year-old girl narrate how her biological father raped her, we could tell that she was terrified.
The young, heartbroken little girl believes that people dislike children, which is a sad perspective for anyone to have, especially a child. But that has been her experience.
Her mother left her at a very early age with a father who verbally, physically, and sexually abused her. She is one of the many children in Lesotho who continue to experience terror at the hands of people she is supposed to trust—people who are supposed to protect and care for them.
When she first came to the Beautiful Dream Society shelter, she could not speak and was always absorbed in her emotions. It was evident that she did not trust anyone. However, after her enrollment in the crisis shelter services, she gradually regained some of her childhood cheer and trust in adults. She can now narrate her story, which will enable the law to take action and run its course so she can live peacefully.
We enrolled her also in psychotherapy, which she says is a great help. She wishes to have a safe and loving home in the future, as BDS has been to her. Because of her former situation, she had gotten behind in her school work, but we are excited to share that she will be re-joining public school. We are hopeful and ready to walk the journey of healing with her!
Unfortunately, many children have these traumatic experiences. If you’d like to help these children, please consider donating on the Beautiful Dream Society website. We are so grateful for our donors and supporters; we couldn’t do this without you!