Henry Kempe’s Legacy: National and International Impact

Abstract

The impact of Henry Kempe’s work was not limited to the USA. His landmark article in 1962, inspired people in other countries, for instance, in the Netherlands, to initiate public discussions and to undertake actions for the prevention of child abuse and neglect. In addition, it was Henry’s intention to develop a truly global movement for the protection and treatment of abused and neglected children. Henry was a man with a long-term vision evidenced by the establishment of the International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (ISPCAN), the International Journal, and the broadening of “child abuse and neglect” as a form of domestic violence to all other forms of violence against children. From a children’s rights perspective, Henry’s views and practices were well ahead of the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). He was a children’s rights defender “avant la lettre.” Article 19 of that Convention and the General Comment on this article adopted by the CRC Committee in 2011 can be considered as some of the lasting legacies of Henry’s pioneering work.