One doesn't have to form an opinion or pass judgement on Lauren Redfern to engage in the controversy surrounding her arrest.
It's good to see Niki Delson step up and voice an opinion that is being widely talked about regarding Redfern. There are many aspects of what Delson is saying that make sense and ring true.
Niki Delson:
"Sexual abuser. Sexual assault. Child molester. Pedophile. Sex offender.
These words grab our attention, inflame our sensibilities and conjure up images of an innocent victim and predatory offender. We visualize a Jerry Sandusky creating a nonprofit agency to gain access to a helpless child, a priest violating a young boy, a father fondling his daughter, a man creating an online persona in order to gain sexual access to an underage girl.
But should we place a teacher who has a sexual relationship with one of her students in the same category?
The language we use to talk about sexual abuse shapes our conversation and our understanding.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office on Women's Health defines sexual assault as “any type of sexual activity that you do not agree to, including: Inappropriate touching, penetration, sexual intercourse that you say ‘no' to, rape or attempted rape, and child molestation.”
Sexual assault is not consensual. It demeans and diminishes the child victim when the law uses the words “sexual assault on a child by one in a position of trust” to describe both the actions of a priest raping a prepubescent child and the actions of a 25-year-old teacher engaged in consensual sexual activity with an almost 18-year-old student. When we label this type of consensual sex as “assault,” we also minimize the real problem of sexual abuse by females...." (Read more? Click title)
"Unapologetically pursuing and tracking patterns within the news others make since 2010."
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