Читать книгу Predators Live Among us - Diane Roblin Lee - Страница 7

Among all the opportunities available to Oprah Winfrey to pursue after ending the “Oprah Show,” she once claimed she would become an activist against child sex-offenders. Having been abused in childhood, she has journeyed to the dark places of the soul of an abused child. She knows about the damage inflicted in the hidden places and vowed to devote her life to making sure that abusers pay heavily for their crimes against children.

Until recent years, no one talked about child molestation. Pedophiles hid in the shame they brought on their victims. With all the hoopla surrounding high profile cases and sad revelations like those of the Mount Cashel Orphanage, sexual abuse has slowly emerged from the shadows of shame to revelations of reality. Now people are talking and victims are beginning to understand that they have nothing to be ashamed of. The shame belongs only to the perpetrator.

While the spotlight on the Michael Jackson case (whether warranted or not) and others gradually faded, the increased awareness of the crisis of child sexual abuse has risen like a giant mushroom spawned from mould. But what do we do with it?

We have to understand the impact that it has on those who are molested, the pornographication¹ of society, the consequences of failing to protect children and the way victims can find healing.

And then there’s the problem of the offenders. What do we do with them on a long-term basis? Oprah’s plan seems to be to round them up, slam the iron doors and throw away the keys. For violent, repeat offenders, that’s a no brainer. However, as a just society, we condemn a criminal to a proscribed prison term and then, after serving the time, he or she is released—usually having lost everything required to try to reshape his or her life. What do we do with pedophiles to make sure they don’t re-offend? Do we require them to wear a scarlet “P” on their shirts? Do we march in front of their homes until they give up trying to redeem themselves and sink into recidivism? Or is there another, smarter solution? (See “Smart Justice” - Chapter Eight)