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 would be willing to join this movement.
For Years My Neighbor Comes Home for 15 Minutes in the Middle of the Day — I Finally Dared to Take a Peek
As I hurried to my front door, I realized that I only had fifteen minutes left. I quickly headed toward the open window as soon as I thought no one was watching. I was happy that no neighbors were observing when I peered over the windowsill.
Their living area was same to all others. Mike faced away from me while holding a high-end camera. With a subtle smile, Jill turned to face him. My attention was drawn to a brief glimpse of motion near the room’s edge. Mike had my whole attention. His wife yelled, “Someone’s there!,” as our eyes locked, and I lost my breath. There’s someone looking inside!
No, no, no! I pondered. This is not possible!
With my heart racing, I hurried back to my house and secured the door. What was going through my mind? I peeked inside their house, but why? Had I caused them any offense? I thought they were going to call the cops.
The quiet was broken the following day by a knock on my door. Taking a glance through the peephole made my stomach turn. It was Mike. He pulled out a picture from an envelope he was holding. My picture. “Want to elaborate?” he inquired, seeming amused.
I admitted, embarrassed. To my astonishment, Mike grinned and extended an invitation to visit, stating that he loves Jill by taking her picture every day. I treasured their endearing custom and never looked out the window again after that day.
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