“I reported my abuser more than 10 years after it happened because your videos gave me the courage. After almost 2 years he was sentenced to 16 years.” － TikTok User, April 2022

“Finding your page today was the best thing ever. I am a victim about to testify in March and you’re answering a lot of questions I have. You’re amazing.” － TikTok User, January 2022

“I just wanted to thank you. I am a survivor of child sexual abuse, incest, and neglect from 15-20 years ago. Nobody was educating kids on what abuse was or how to protect yourself. It was shut up, stay quiet, and keep your head down until you can escape. You using TikTok and current trends increases the chances of your information reaching the people who need this information the most. THANK YOU.” － TikTok User, March 2021

“I did it. I told someone. It felt good to tell someone something that I have been keeping inside for so long. Thank you.” － TikTok User, December 2020

“I just wanted to let you know how amazing you are! My sisters and I are currently awaiting trial against our step-dad for sexual abuse. It’s people like you who give people like us HOPE! Thank you for all you do.” － TikTok User, October 2020

Amber posts videos on a social media platform called TikTok to engage with young audiences, spread awareness about sexual assault and child abuse, educate the public, and support victims.

Born out of a desperate need to connect with children and child victims during the early days of the COVID-19 health pandemic, Amber developed a novel way to message directly to kids in need.

Sadly, home is not a safe place for many children. During the pandemic, our community isolated children with abusers and deprived them of safe adults in their lives. The 2020 COVID pandemic shut down public schools in Oregon for nearly a grade and a half. While children were at home for 14 months instead of in school, calls to the Child Abuse Hotline dropped significantly both in Oregon and around the country. Amber saw this trend and knew the declining calls to the Hotline did not indicate safer children. Rather, the number of reports went down because the largest category of reporters to the Child Abuse Hotline were teachers and school staff. Without school, kids in our community and across the country were no longer interacting with mandatory reporters on a consistent basis.

In fact, Amber could only assume incidents of child and domestic abuse were on the rise during this time. The overwhelming majority of child abuse occurs within the family unit. And abuse occurs when families experience stressors such as joblessness, low income, housing instability, food instability, lack of childcare, and lack of community support for ongoing mental health and substance abuse issues. The COVID pandemic brought these stressors to the forefront for many struggling families across the country.

Amber started posting educational videos on TikTok in late 2020 － a social media platform that at the time had about 1 billion global users and is particularly popular among the younger generation. In early 2021, 25% of TikTok users were under the age of 20; and 50% were under the age of 30. TikTok viewing history is not traceable and is therefore a safe medium for victims to consume educational content.

Up until this point, Amber had plenty of experience presenting on topics such as mandatory child abuse reporting and how to identify and investigate child abuse. However, her field of practitioners almost exclusively presented to adult audiences. This was the first time a practitioner was messaging directly to children and offering education and support about child abuse through online videos.

The results were overwhelming. Amber’s following grew rapidly to over 140,000 followers. She has received hundreds of messages from victims and has placed calls to child abuse hotlines, initiating investigations across the country. It is clear there is a great need for abuse education across social media platforms.

Follow Amber on TikTok @KnowAbuse for regular, updated, educational content on abuse education, prevention, awareness, and support.