Utah Company Raises Awareness By Taking Selfies

A company from Utah attempted to break the Guinness World Record for the most selfies taken simultaneously with 5,000 people participating.

#start defending @defendinnocence https://t.co/9K6ub2BVRX pic.twitter.com/eb57U78dIe

— Dionne (@DoubleDLashes) August 6, 2016

Although it sounds like another social media gimmick, Good For Utah said that they do have a good cause: Defend Innocence, a brand partnering with Younique Products is attempting to raise awareness for childhood sexual abuse, with more than 10,000 people attempting the record. The executive director of the foundation shared that he hopes this will lead to action in recognizing and preventing further abuse.

Defend Innocence aims to educate parents and empower them to protect their children from sexual abuse. According to their official website, they also want to lead a public dialogue to bring the issue to light. Working hand in hand with Younique Products LLC, one of the main purposes of the company was to fund the organization and their cause, uplifting, empowering, and validating women everywhere - including those who were survivors of said horrors.

According to the company, one in four girls and one in six boys experience abuse before they reach the age of 18 - and 90 percent of these children actually know their perpetuators. While there are a number of cases reported, most families sweep it under the rug in fear, so the majority of sexual abuse cases are not actually made known.

While most people think that sexual abuse always include physical contact, this is not always the case. In fact, it is considered sexual abuse if someone forces undesired sexual behavior on a person, physical or not. Remember, sometimes words are more damaging than actions. Alleys and cars are not the only places where children can be abused. In fact, they could be attacked anywhere - including schools, churches, online, and even in their own homes, and sex trafficking somehow happens no matter what kind of community you live in.

Raising awareness for sexual abuse is important, not only to protect children, but to protect them from being part of the cycle as well - as many as 30 percent of sexual abuse survivors perpetrate when they grow up, leading to the cycle happening over and over again.