Pedophilia is on the rise; this is a very uncomfortable truth, but we cannot ignore it

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

“I’ve been in pedophile chat rooms that discuss Canada having such a low age of consent that they tell other pedophiles to travel to Canada because of that. Sixty-year-olds engaging in sexual activities with 14 or 15-year-olds is not appropriate, and we need to change that.”
Det.-Const. Paul Krawczyk
Undercover Police Officer with the Toronto Police Service’s Child Exploitation Unit, 2006

I was going through some news research when I came across a terrifying series of reports. In the US there have been at least 135 teachers, teachers’ aides and substitutes that have been arrested so far this year on child sex-related crimes, ranging from child pornography to raping students (Law Enforcement Today, May 2022).

Typically, when the term paedophilia is used, it does not refer to a consensual relationship, but to non-consensual sexual contact between an adult and a child of any age. When we hear the word paedophilia, most of us cringe, and for good reason. We have children, nieces, nephews, and students who we care deeply for. The thought of someone else inflicting harm on them is painful, and it is why this topic must come up in dialogue more.

There are two terms that we must make sure to differentiate: there are child molesters and paedophiles. “If you think of Venn diagrams, there’s a lot of overlap,” said Anna Salter, a psychologist, author, and internationally recognized expert who has done over 500 evaluations of high-risk sex offenders. “There are the people who are sexually attracted to children … (and then) there are some people who molest kids who are not paedophiles. They molest kids because of anger. They molest kids because they’re scared of adult women. They molest kids to get revenge, but they don’t actually have an age preference for prepubescent children.”

Evidence shows men are more likely to be paedophiles than women. This aligns with research showing men are more likely to have other paraphilias, including exhibitionism, voyeurism and sadism. Men are also more likely than women to commit criminal acts.

Research also offers insights into risk factors, and what could have possibly been the cause for this behaviour. Men with paedophilia have a much higher incidence of early childhood head injury, or subsequent trauma. Another study on diagnosed paedophiles showed they are more likely to report having a mother who lived their lives with mental health challenges, which suggest that the disorder may be influenced by genetic factors.

Disturbingly, some states in America have taken a more lenient approach to child abuse. A few years ago, the District of Columbia city council, passed what is called “an affirmative defence to liability” for an adult who has sex with a minor. What does this mean? It means an adult accused of sexual activity with a minor could avoid culpability if found to have “reasonably” believed the child’s claim at the time to have reached the age of consent.

There was a bombshell 400-page report revealing that Southern Baptist leaders routinely silenced sexual abuse survivors. Including a former president now accused of sexual assault. The roster contained the names of 703 offenders.

According to a FOX News report, statistics show that since the beginning of the year, there has been an average of about one sex-crime suspect arrested each day. Now, although a lot of the reports I saw online came from across the border, Canada seems to be a cesspool for child sexual offenders.

In 2018, a paedophile ring was busted in Canada, and they found victims as young as 3-years-old. Police arrested 122 people as part of a massive investigation into a paedophile network that was operating in Ontario, Canada. Can you imagine that?

“Parents are so naive—they’re worried about strangers and should be worried about their brother-in-law. They just don’t realize how devious we can be. I used to abuse children in the same room with their parents and they couldn’t see it or didn’t seem to know it was happening.” (Inmate, The Center for Behavioral Intervention in Beaverton, Oregon)

In a process known as “grooming”, a sexual predator first identifies, and then gains access to a child by any means necessary. After identifying the victim, the predator sets out to gain the parents, and the child’s trust. Eventually they break down defences and convince the child to engage in the desired sex act.

What parents and caregivers must know is that they can never assume someone is trustworthy because he or she attends church, has a job, works with children or “seems nice”. When it comes to your children, don’t be afraid to ask questions or dig a little deeper.

“Parents are partly to blame if they don’t tell their children about sexual matters. I used it to my advantage by teaching the child myself.” (Inmate, The Center for Behavioral Intervention in Beaverton, Oregon)

Not many people will admit it, and for the most part, it is covered up by mainstream media, but let me be clear; our society is in the middle of a covert and committed effort to normalize paedophilia.

I know that it’s hard to believe. We don’t want to think that there are people so evil and misguided in our lives, but we can’t close our eyes to the truth. There are people who are working to reclassify the sexual abuse of children as yet another form of “sexual identity.”

There is no question that this is a very uncomfortable truth, but we cannot ignore it.

Time to adjust our focus!