|
|
 |
|
|
Talking Points
- {ORGANIZATION} joins hundreds of corporate, civic and advocacy organizations nationwide giving their "Endorsement for Enforcement," to show their gratitude for every officer’s devotion to safely buckling up children. We support the efforts of the thousands of law enforcement agencies nationwide to urge zero tolerance for unbuckled kids by using every means at their disposal to get kids buckled up during the Operation ABC Mobilization.
- We have almost achieved the goal of decreasing child fatalities in crashes 15 percent by the year 2000. Between 1996 when the Operation ABC Mobilization began and 1998, child fatalities in crashes decreased by 12.3 percent (Fatality Analysis Reporting System).
- The Operation ABC Mobilization: America Buckles Up Children is the largest-ever coordinated nationwide enforcement initiative aimed at drivers who don’t buckle up children. Officers in {TOWN/STATE} and towns across America will be out in force the week of November 22-28 protecting children from the greatest risk they face: being unrestrained in a crash.
- We support this mission of law enforcement: The law requires that all children be buckled up at all times. If they’re not, drivers will get a ticket. No exceptions. No excuses. Public opinion surveys show that nine out of ten Americans support strong enforcement of child passenger safety laws.
- The success of previous Operation ABC Mobilizations illustrates that high visibility enforcement works – nineteen million more people buckled up in 1998. This translates into an estimated 1,500 lives saved each year if these people continue to use their seat belts. Nationwide, since Operation ABC began in 1996, child restraint use in toddlers has increased 30 percent – now almost 90 percent of toddlers are restrained. In the same time period, the use of seat belts for children ages 5-15 has risen to almost 70 percent. But there is still much to be done.
- Although only law enforcement officers can write the tickets, we stand firmly behind the lifesaving message each ticket delivers.
- Traffic crashes are the leading cause of death to American children. Each year, six out of ten of the children who die in crashes are unrestrained. Tragically, nearly half of these unbuckled children would be alive today if only they had been restrained properly.
- Increasingly, law enforcement officers are also strengthening enforcement of adult belt laws during the Operation ABC Mobilization. Strong enforcement of adult belt laws saves lives – both adult’s and children’s. Studies consistently demonstrate that unbelted drivers have a dangerous impact on children. A study reported in the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, found "driver restraint use was the strongest predictor of child restraint use...a restrained driver was three times more likely to restrain a child." And NHTSA observational research shows that when a driver buckles up, children are buckled 87 percent of the time. However, when a driver is unbuckled, children are restrained only 24 percent of the time.
- {ORGANIZATION} supports the Operation ABC Mobilization through {LIST ACTIVITIES THAT SUPPORT PASSENGER SAFETY}.
- The Mobilization will provide special benefit for certain groups in our society, especially Hispanics and African Americans.
- Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for Hispanics through the age of 24, and the second leading cause of death for Hispanics between the ages of 25-44.
- Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for African Americans through the age of 14, and the second leading cause of death for African Americans between the ages of 15-24.
- Meharry Medical College of Nashville, TN, and General Motors Corporation conducted a study confirming that African American youth are 50 percent less likely to be buckled up than whites or Hispanics. The study also confirmed that 100% seat belt use by African Americans could save as many as 1,300 lives per year and prevent 26,000 injuries at a cost of nearly $2.6 billion.
- The National Black Caucus of State Legislators, the National Urban League and the Children’s Defense Fund support strong laws that increase seat belt use and include safeguards for uniform enforcement.
- The importance of seat belt use was underscored recently by the U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher who said, "We know that increasing seat belt use will save thousands of young lives each and every year." He stressed the need for seat belts in every community by saying, "The more we know about the particular needs of diverse populations, the more we are able to develop sound prevention strategies to produce healthy communities for Americans."
|
|
