8-Year-Old Sexual Predators
Many people seem unaware that children do sexually abuse other children, and CNN--possibly ignorant of this before now--is stunned by a clear case of it at an elementary school in St. Louis. The report doesn't get very specific about what happened, but apparently it takes twelve 6-to-8-year-old boys attacking an 8-year-old girl for people to realize that children are capable of being sexual predators.
When we hear about childhood sexual activity, it's always presented as though the almost-innocent "I'll show you mine if you show me yours" play is the only type that exists. There are two things everyone seems to forget about childhood once their own is over: 1) Children are manipulative, bestial and conniving little creatures, especially when dealing with each other outside of direct adult supervision; 2) Children have sexual urges that are unfocused, and their sexuality can therefore be pointed in any number of directions. It seems to me that children could be more likely, not less, to express their sexuality in immoral, violent ways, because sexuality is something outside of their understanding or control.
Childhood sexuality is extremely complex, and there is a broad spectrum of types of activities that go on between children without adult knowledge. Children do all kinds of immoral things to each other that they would never do in their adult life. The kinds of influences kids get--whether from entertainment, adult conversations, or pedophilia--coupled with children's ignorant nature make it very understandable that this would take place.
This is an issue that is ignored altogether in most books about childhood sexual abuse, so the moral lines and the psychological consequences of different levels of childhood sexual activity are rarely drawn. Where does play end and trauma begin?
When we hear about childhood sexual activity, it's always presented as though the almost-innocent "I'll show you mine if you show me yours" play is the only type that exists. There are two things everyone seems to forget about childhood once their own is over: 1) Children are manipulative, bestial and conniving little creatures, especially when dealing with each other outside of direct adult supervision; 2) Children have sexual urges that are unfocused, and their sexuality can therefore be pointed in any number of directions. It seems to me that children could be more likely, not less, to express their sexuality in immoral, violent ways, because sexuality is something outside of their understanding or control.
Childhood sexuality is extremely complex, and there is a broad spectrum of types of activities that go on between children without adult knowledge. Children do all kinds of immoral things to each other that they would never do in their adult life. The kinds of influences kids get--whether from entertainment, adult conversations, or pedophilia--coupled with children's ignorant nature make it very understandable that this would take place.
This is an issue that is ignored altogether in most books about childhood sexual abuse, so the moral lines and the psychological consequences of different levels of childhood sexual activity are rarely drawn. Where does play end and trauma begin?
posted by Chris Althouse Cohen at 12:54 PM
6 Comments:
wickedpinto: Thanks for sharing. And, yes, it's still the fault of adults if this stuff happens. Do parents EVER talk to their children about this? It's the combined effect of children by nature having little to no self-imposed morality and parents not educating their children. The question of what the consequences should be for the children, then, are highly contentious. Along the same lines, I've found that strangely few parents actively try to prevent their children from becoming bullies.
...the "are" should be "is" in the second to last sentence of that last one.
Chris does your mother vet these blogs before publication?
Just curious.
Peace, Maxine
Maxine: No. Why do people keep asking about that?
Kids will act out what they see at home and elsewhere. It is probably more aggression, bullying and intimidation than sexuality.
wickedpinto: Thanks for your support, but I deleted the second of those comments, because I don't want people swearing at each other here.
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