How to Stop Sex Crimes
In the United States, one of every eight girls will develop breast cancer at some point in her life. One of every four girls, however, will be sexually abused before her 18th birthday, as will one of every six boys before he turns 18. Despite these staggering statistics, far less time, attention and resources are devoted to ending sex crimes than to finding a cure for breast cancer. Directly or indirectly, every person in the United States is affected by sexual assault, and the financial impact is significant: A Minnesota Health Department study found the cost associated with the state's 61,000 victims is $8 billion. To stop the violence, there are several steps we can take.
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Things You'll Need
- Education: websites and other sources of information
- Investigatory tools: for law enforcement, social workers, attorneys and others who deal with child victims
- Legislation: understand the laws and how they need to change
Instructions
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How to stop sex crimes
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Knowledge is power, and gaining accurate knowledge is the first step in solving any problem. Most people have a picture in their minds of what a sexual predator looks like: the stranger in the alley waiting to pounce on a young woman, or the creepy guy in the trench coat, stalking the schoolyard looking for children to molest. But most sex offenders look like ordinary people and are known to their victims. Eighty percent of children who are sexually assaulted are assaulted by someone they know and trust, and about three-fourths of women who are raped know the rapist. Many males are victimized as well: In 2002, one in every eight rape victims was a male.
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There are programs available to educate various groups about sexual violence. PAVE (Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment) offers workshops and campaigns for students, military personnel and others. Although many social workers and child advocates laud the "Stranger Danger" programs currently used in elementary schools for teaching children they have the right to say "no" to unwanted touching, these programs sometimes fail to take into account the ability of predators to manipulate and intimidate children into keeping silent. Research has shown programs that involve parents are more effective in preventing childhood sexual assault (Finkelhor, Asdigian and Dziuba-Leatherman, 1995).
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Childhood sexual assault is a particularly troubling crime. One man, Victor Vieth, is convinced we can solve this problem in three generations by improving the way these crimes are investigated. He helped found the National Child Protection Training Center, which trains law enforcement officers, social workers, child advocates and attorneys in premier investigative techniques and how to recognize, react and respond to children who are being abused. The center has trained more than 40,000 child protection professionals.
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A weakness with our current laws is the brief window of opportunity for reporting the assault, especially for child victims. Children are often too frightened to come forward until they are adults, and by that time the statute of limitations (SOL) might have expired. Attorney and children's rights advocate Marci Hamilton has written a book, "Justice Denied: What America Must Do to Protect Its Children," designed as a road map or how-to guide for lawmakers in effecting SOL reform. This is a necessary step to end sex crimes against children.
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Tips & Warnings
How to get involved: Contact your local sexual assault outreach center to see how you can help. Ask your legislators to change the statute of limitations laws in your state (unless you live in Delaware or California, where SOL legislation already has been enacted). Stand up for victims: Don't tolerate jokes or negative remarks about those who have suffered the humiliation of sexual assault.
Change comes slowly. Try to be patient so you don't get burned out.
