Once Abused American Ninja Warrior Flip Rodriguez Headlining Sinatra Center's FightChildAbuse.org Virtual Series

Episode Geared To Teens Who Face Heightened Risk When Not In School

News provided by

The Barbara Sinatra Children's Center

May 11, 2021, 10:48 ET

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif., May 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- American Ninja Warrior David "Flip" Rodriguez, who survived horrific child sexual abuse at the hands of his father, is partnering with the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center to headline the new episode of its FightChildAbuse.org Virtual Event Series. Rodriguez's episode is geared to combatting child abuse among teens who often face heightened risk when out of school.

The virtual event - the second of the series - is created for adolescents aged 13+ and/or in grades 7-12, and begins streaming Thursday, June 3 at 1:00PM EST on FightChildAbuse.org. Rodriguez will draw upon his own experiences to teach proven tools and share resources for abuse prevention for all teens. Paired with an animated character from FightChildAbuse.org's Protect Yourself Rules Video Series, he will walk students through the steps necessary to empower them to take action when they feel unsafe.

The series will also be available to coaches, counselors, parents and guardians who are actively seeking out educational opportunities to learn how to better respond to and identify unsafe situations on behalf of minors. Developed by the Sinatra Center, the series has also featured Olympic Gold Medalist and child abuse survivor Aly Raisman.

To register for the virtual event with Rodriguez please visit: FightChildAbuse.org/virtualseries. On the day of the event, the program can be viewed at FightChildAbuse.org/watch

For the first seven seasons of American Ninja Warrior, Rodriguez wore a mask on the show to help him feel safe and hide his emotions. During season eight of the hit NBC show, the fan favorite publicly revealed he was sexually abused continuously by his father from ages nine to 15.

Inspired by a story he heard the actor Will Smith relate in a 60 Minutes interview, Rodriguez walked out of his father's house one day and never returned, determined to build his life back. Years later, a chance encounter on the street with an American Ninja Warrior fan led him to finally open up about his abuse.

Since then, Rodriguez has continued to speak out against child abuse and encourage others to come forward in hopes of protecting present and future generations. His partnership with the Sinatra Center and its FightChildAbuse.org campaign reflects his commitment to protect children and raise awareness of the alarming prevalence of the problem - according to the Sinatra Center, some 700,000 children - one in every seven children - are abused each year in the U.S. More than 75% of the perpetrators are a parent to the victim.

"When fans see me on American Ninja Warrior, they see a fearless competitor. What they don't see is what I went through as a child who was abused," said Rodriguez. "I was finally able to overcome this and I want to now use my platform for other abused children to know that there are resources like the FightChildAbuse.org campaign to help them overcome, persevere and emerge strong. And especially after this challenging year, this campaign and the power of education is more important than ever."

The Sinatra Center's virtual event series works to enable young people to identify signs of abuse, and discuss their experiences and emotions with those who can provide guidance about seeking help. Each customized interactive segment features conversations with the animated characters from the FightChildAbuse.org campaign and real-life guests.

"Every child has the right to a normal, health and secure childhood," said John Thoresen, Director and CEO of the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center Foundation." But this past year has been challenging for children of all ages. Their lives have been especially disrupted, not just by school closures but by the heightened stresses which their parents and guardians have faced - all making for a ripe environment for increased abuse, so it is imperative that we reach them and equip them with resources necessary for protecting themselves. Having the participation in our campaign of someone as courageous, influential and passionate as Flip Rodriguez, someone who has been in their shoes as a victim and who has been able to emerge strong and confidant, helps ensure that our mitigation and prevention efforts reach a wide audience."

The Center's sweeping $1.5M FightChildAbuse.org campaign debuted last summer and was designed in direct response to the heightened risks children were facing because of the pandemic. The campaign has included the participation of such notables as Today Show co-host Al Roker, Olympic Gold Medalist and abuse survivor Simone Biles, model and singer Loren Gray, and media personality Isabella Avila, in addition to Rodriguez and Raisman.

To date, Barbara Sinatra Children's Center's abuse prevention videos have reached over 100 million children worldwide, including 32 million individual and group viewings on YouTube. Translated versions of the videos are now being used in China, Ukraine, Tanzania, and India, and are also available to Spanish-speaking communities in the United States and abroad. All of its videos are produced in conjunction with the Joshua Center for Child Sexual Abuse at the University of Washington and Wonder Media, LLC.

The Sinatra Center also provides forensic services and child abuse counseling services to more than 1000 children a year at its facility on the campus of Eisenhower Health in Rancho Mirage, California. To learn more about the program, please visit: FightChildAbuse.org

To register for the second virtual event in this series with Flip Rodriguez please visit: FightChildAbuse.org/virtualseries. On the day of the event, the program can be viewed at FightChildAbuse.org/watch

About the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center
Founded in 1986 by Barbara and Frank Sinatra, the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center is dedicated to ensuring every child's right to a normal, healthy and secure childhood. Since its creation, about 23,000 children have received outpatient mental health and counseling services at the Center. The Center provides individual, group, and family therapy and special programs that address issues associated with children suffering the effects of child abuse and neglect. An estimated 700 children are counseled annually on an outpatient basis, and no child is ever turned away because of a family's inability to pay. For more information, visit BarbaraSinatraChildrensCenter.org. The animated video series, funded by the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center Foundation, has reached over 100 million children worldwide and generated over 32 million individual and group viewings on YouTube throughout the United States and abroad.

SOURCE The Barbara Sinatra Children's Center