Pinwheels are popping up in parks and green spaces around Raleigh to raise awareness during National Child Abuse Prevention Month.

“It’s a visible sign of a childhood treasure. A sweet simple pinwheel,” said Cristin DeRonja, the executive director of SAFEChild.

According to data from UNC, from July 2016 to June 2017, 127,199 children were involved in investigated reports of abuse and neglect.

“It’s common for a child who has been physically abused to also be dealing with issues of neglect, emotional abuse. Same with sexual abuse,” said DeRonja.

DeRonja says there are four types of a abuse a child can become a victim of; sexual, physical, emotional, and neglect. She says identifying that abuse can be difficult.

“Their eating patterns have changed, they have a hard time making friends, they have a hard time sleeping. They may not be growing and developing as they should be at certain stages,” said DeRonja.

North Carolina has mandatory reporting laws if you think child is being abused, something DeRonja says not enough people speak up about.

“You can report anonymously. You’re not saying something is wrong. You’re saying you have a concern,” she said.

This link has a list of Social Service contacts in all 100 counties in North Carolina, click here.