Child Abuse Story From Harriet

by Harriert Dawes
(Gallup, New Mexico, USA)

I'm 26 years old now. I was adopted when I was a baby, but didn't realize this until I was about 11 years old. I have 2 other siblings who were adopted with me. My stepmother is still around. I have a stepbrother.

When we were little, my stepmother used to get so mad about the littlest things. I remember when we didn't massage her feet. She would grab a hanger or a stick and hit us with it, or throw a shoe at us. We were punished for things like not taking care of my little brother. She would get some sort of object to hit us with. My other sisters would also get hit. We were hit for such small things.

I remember when we were at my auntie's house. I don't remember what I did wrong, but she made us take all of our clothes off and she spanked us with a belt or a stick and made us sit there naked, in front of our step-cousins, who were boys and girls. Then, whenever we got sick, she made us drink almost half a bottle of cough syrup. About 30 or 40 minutes later, I felt drunk.

One day, she had gotten after my older sister about something and beat her with a stick, then made her sit outside. That's when my sister made a break for it and ran away. She returned to my biological family.

On another day, my stepmother told me to cook for my stepbrother. The skillet we used was not too good; it electrocuted me. My stepmother just laughed and then told me to cook. I was scared and crying. I screamed out loud when that happened.

Before I found out I was adopted, I thought to myself, aren't real mothers supposed to be nice to their kids and spoil them? She put us in boarding schools. I tried my hardest to make her proud, but no matter what I did, it was never enough. The things she used on us: wires, ropes, shoes, hangers. She slapped us around and pulled our hair. The way she use to give us a bath, she would put her hands up our vaginas and tell us, "Wash it here. You're gonna have a boyfriend later in life and he is gonna say it stinks." I cried when she did that. I never understood why she adopt us if she was gonna do that to us, be her slaves and punching bag.

Now I am a mother of 4 boys. I lost custody of my first son due to child abuse which happened when I was at work. My ex-boyfriend had been watching my son. During that time, he burned him with hot water and his little sisters bit him and scratched him. They charged me and not him. My son is now with his dad's parents. His father is a deadbeat dad. He just makes babies and doesn't care for them. But I told myself I would be a better parent for my kids. I want them to have fun and laugh, something I could not do as a child.

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