June 14th is “National Alienated Grandparents Awareness” Day?
By Pat Hansen, Ph.D.
Did you realize that grandparents have no automatic legal “rights” to see or “visit” their grandchildren in any state?
June 14th 2016 is the second annual Grandparent Alienation Awareness Day. Three years ago after desperately searching for assistance and finding no organization solely dedicated to creating laws regarding grandparent visitation, Lilly Black and a small group of grandmothers founded Grandparent Rights Advocates National Delegation of the United States of America GRAND-USA.org. GRAND has chapters in all fifty states, and delegates actively organizing campaigns for changes in grandparent visitation laws. It is a grass roots effort that connects grandparents and extended relatives and works to obtain legislative sponsors to introduce amendments and/or bills that will create a legal pathway to connect children with their family.
June 14 was specifically chosen as it is the day before Elder Abuse Awareness Day. GRAND-USA plans to continue to work with each state’s Centers for Aging to create education and awareness for our most vulnerable populations and obtain official proclamations The ‘whereas’s and ‘therefore’s state that alienation behaviors are common; that mental health professionals and the DSM-5 manual of disorders reference parental alienation syndrome (PAS) and that this deprives children of the right to love and be loved by their extended families.
On Cape Cod, MA a monthly support group for these invisible or alienated Grandparents is starting on June 8th and will continue from 2:00-3:30 on 2nd Wednesdays monthly at Barnstable Senior Services, 825 Falmouth Road, Hyannis, MA. 02601. For further information contact: AGA.CapeCod@gmail.com.
At Yarmouth Senior Services, on Tuesday, June 14th at 1:30 PM Dr. Pat Hanson, author of Invisible Grandparenting: Leave a Legacy of Love Whether You Can Be There or Not will talk about Healing Separation and Leaving a Legacy of Love … Now. She will address all of the ways we can leave our heritage behind, especially those of us distant or estranged from adult children and/or grandchildren. Learn healthy ways to deal with separation from anyone, and how to work towards transforming negative energy and moving toward forgiveness. Call to reserve a seat for this free talk: 508-394-7606.
The official colors for June 14th are white, navy blue and neon green and GRAND USA asks individuals to make ribbons and wear clothing in these colors this June 14th. “It is important for people to share their stories. It is a common tactic of alienators to shame and guilt their victims into silence. Grandparents that are in active litigation are often unable to speak publicly about their personal cases. The children have no voice, and it is up to the grandparents to become a big, GRAND voice for them. We become one collective force and voice for these children and families” says Lilly Black.
It is a common tactic of alienators to shame and guilt their victims into silence. Grandparents that are in active litigation are often unable to speak publicly about their personal cases. The children have no voice, and it is up to the grandparents to become a big, GRAND voice for them. We become one collective force and voice for these children and families” says Lilly Black.
If not for your grandchild, for someone’s, become active on June 14th and beyond, so no grandchild in your community experiences estrangement of any kind. “It is a cycle that must stop with our generation,” stated Lilly Black. The founder of GRAND-USA.org sees the work delegates are doing in each state as part of their legacy of love for their alienated grandchildren. It is with great hope that this advocacy will bring light to the epidemic and public health crisis that alienation truly is for our society.
