Posted by AG on March 10, 2004 at 10:17:55
The statistic for sexual abuse of girls growing up in "the system" is one in every four. The statistic for boys is one out of every six. To say the odds of sexual abuse for a kid growing up in The Family today is the same as for kids in "the system" is not very comforting, imo. And probably not true, depending on what part of world you're growing up in.
There are social conditions called "risk factors" that predict when the probability of abuse is greater for some kids than others. In other words, not all kids growing up in the world are at equal risk of maltreatment.
Known risk factors for all forms of child abuse include: Single parent households, poverty, frequent moves/relocations, social isolation and subculture involvement, substance abuse, family violence, poor education, and cultures that condone harsh punishment and promote the subjugation of women and children.
How many of these risk factors still describe The Family today?
When researchers calculate a figure like one in four girls or one in six boys, their estimates are based on a sampling of adults who grew up in all risk categories. People who grew up in The Family during the 1980s--when sexual abuse was institutionalized in doctrine--probably represent something of a statistical anomaly. Yet it is exactly people coming from such high risk backgrounds that make up the general prevalence estimates.
General prevalence estimates are also modified by adults like my own children, who grew up in families that taught them concepts like "good touch/bad touch" and "It's good to question authority." So even though my children were raised within a culture that promoted the subjugation of women and children (catholicism), there were protective factors at work.
I've had conversations with my adult sons about Father Pedophile, who was their parish priest as they were growing up. When thinking about why they were not targeted while other boys in their group were, they concluded: "He must have known I would have told him off and screamed bloody murder about it."
Do the parents of kids growing up in The Family today empower their children to confront authority figures who overstep their boundaries? Do parents confront authority figures who overstep? Do they teach their children that they have a right to determine FOR THEMSELVES who touches them in what ways and under what conditions? Or does some version of "your body is not your own" continue to be taught unofficially?
Finally, do kids in today's Family still get beatings? Are they slapped across the face? Are they hit with sticks, switches, paddles, belts, or cords? If so, what happens if someone protests this sort of "discipline"? Is it considered an excommunicatable offense? Is it reported to child welfare authorities?
I don't think kids in The Family today are at as high of a risk as they once were. However, previous conditions were extreme. The current odds of growing up without experiencing some form of maltreatement are NOT as good for Family kids as for other groups of children growing up today in certain parts of the world.
The risk of abuse is much less for kids growing in homes with adequate financial resources, well-educated parents, roots in stable neighborhoods, less social isolation from the larger community and extended family, less tolerance of physical violence and threats, less substance abuse, and within belief systems that value children's rights.