Some time has passed since Joe Paterno's funeral. The legendary football coach from Penn State did wonderful things for the university and touched the lives of many people. Inreading the news story of the funeral, I got a chance to see things from the point of viewof his biggest fans and family. Many people adored Joe Pat, and I can understand why. He did do many good things. However, during his eulogy, it was said that Joe was "a hero wronged". Obviously, this was a reference to the child sexual abuse scandal that broke out and resulted in the termination of several prominent staff members, includingMr. Paterno.

Every so often, things happen that jolt our awareness, that open our eyes to problems we didn’t notice, or chose to ignore. Such is the case with the Penn State child sexual abuse scandal.

Most people agree that child trafficking is a horrendous crime that should be punished to the fullest extent of the law, but if this is the popular opinion of society, why are child trafficking and child pornography so prevalent in the U.S. and all over the world?

I've read a few blogs about the challenges faced by convicted sex offenders after they have served their time and are released from prison. One interesting point was that some offenders went to prison for a consensual sexual relationship with an underage girlfriend, or for sexting, or even for urinating in public (though I've never heard of that one before). The point is, not everyone with the title "sex offender" is the same. Some have done things worse than others and yet they all get shunned by society once they're out.

This is a difficult subject to talk about, especially for those who have been victimized or are connected to victims, which is almost everybody considering the statistics. It’s something that stirs up emotions for everyone - anger, disgust, desire for justice. There’s no question that offenders must be punished. For the sake of the victims and the sake of the community, they need to be removed from society for a time and then closely monitored to prevent recidivism.

So, Warren Jeffs has been convicted to life in prison for sexual assault of a 12-year-old girl and 20 years in prison for assaulting a 15-year-old. Good. Thank God. Still, I can't help but think that one of the reasons why his punishment was so severe...I mean fitting... is because of all the press his case has gotten over the months, and the fact that he was the leader of a fundamentalist cult involving thousands of followers.

It was called Dreamboard, but for many child victims, it was a nightmare. The online members-only bulletin board granted membership to men from the U.S. and several countries around the world when they submitted child pornography of children age 12 and younger. Officials said some victims were infants.

Members had to continue submitting content to maintain their membership, and elevated access was given to those who submitted more. The highest status was given to those members who submitted photos or video made personally of them abusing children.

Have you heard about internet pornography? If you haven’t, then you’ve probably not used the internet your entire life. For every person who has tried to surf the web, check email, or simply research on something useful, there’s almost a one hundred percent chance of stumbling on an internet porn site.

Pornography these days is permanently attached to the internet. This is primarily caused by two factors. One is the fact that the demand for porn is very great and that the World Wide Web is the best place to spread and share it. In fact, people these days are slowly thinking that the practice of viewing, sharing, and producing pornographic material is okay. Every second, there are almost thirty thousand people viewing pornography websites at the same time. This means that this industry is becoming a big business for those who produce and distribute them.

For casual observers, this trend is probably a normal consequence of the convenience brought by the internet technology. However, it’s another case if children are involved.

The advancement of communication and information through the web has allowed the emergence of another breed of criminals – child pornographers and offenders. Before the web was born, there was little known information about the extent of child pornography. Most cases involved recording and taking photos of child victims forced to do sexual acts. But today, the crime has alarmingly evolved. Child pornographic material these days are not limited to private collections. Pedophiles and predators are exchanging and sharing this stuff for their sexual pleasure.

With child pornography, the children who are used as the subjects for the material are not the only victims. Minors who unknowingly view them over the internet become victims as well. Statistics show that the average age of a child who gets his first exposure to pornography is 11. Additionally, almost eighty percent of teens aged 15-17 become exposed to hard-core pornographic material.

Exposure to pornography can result to grossly negative consequences for children and teens. Not only will they become influenced by what they see, it can also lead to confusion and stress. While there are several parental software and programs out there to prevent pornographic sites from appearing in the desktop, many of them are still not a hundred percent effective when it comes to totally preventing children and teens from viewing porn.

While adult pornography can well be accepted morality wise, exposing and using children for the same purpose is absolutely wicked. The people who prey at the innocence of kids for pornographic purposes should be punished. Those who fancy children as sexual objects should also have the same and equal punishment. No matter how much they justify their sexual fetish towards children, it is simply not right. It does not only violate every right of a child, it is also a gross violation of the laws of God and morality.

Even though the United States is a strong and aggressive proponent of anti child trafficking campaigns, it is still not immune from the increasing number of victims trafficked and abused annually. In fact, this country is a major destination for trafficked children and minors.

It is true that American children are less likely to be victims of trafficking compared to the children in Africa and Asia. But this alone doesn’t tell us that America is not guilty of tolerating the crime. Based on the most recent estimate, there are almost 20,000 people trafficked every year in the United States. Majority of these people are women and children. However, a great portion of this number also involves women and children who are not American. Some come as far away as Asia and Africa but majority are from the neighboring Latin countries.

What are these trafficking victims doing in this country? Simple – they are used by criminals for furtherance of their own interests such as prostitution and forced labor. Even though it is clear enough that the problem is prevalent even in this very developed country, it seems like there hasn’t been any serious attention and measures to address the problem. Or perhaps child traffickers are simply way ahead of law enforcement and the government.

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 is a prominent example of a law that was made by the government to combat trafficking. However, its provisions are primarily aimed at providing benefits, services, and healing for victims. There is really no clear-cut solution as to ending the problem by pulling out the roots of it.

Nonetheless, the State Department has been closely watching child trafficking since the early 90s. During the first few years of monitoring, the focus was mainly on women and children who are trafficked for prostitution or any other related sexual crimes. However, the trade itself has significantly evolved through the years. Today, inter-agency and cross-border efforts have been strictly monitoring reports of child trafficking for a wide variety of purposes which includes forced labor in sweatshops and factories, domestic service, and commercial sex and prostitution.

Nowadays, trafficking in general knows no boundaries. Of all the victims, children are the most devastated. Most of the victims are not able to live the kind of lives they deserve. Although healing is very possible, others aren’t simply meant to survive the ordeal. Not only does trafficking put child victims away from their homes, they are also deprived of their right to choose what they want for their future. Additionally, it’s kind of sad that child trafficking obviously exists in America. It is frustrating to know that for many victims who are trafficked to this country, America is not the land of promise anymore.

Who would have thought that child trafficking is a domestic issue here in the United States? For majority of Americans, talking about child trafficking involves children in other countries who are traded and forced to work for sex. Perhaps one in only then Americans realizes that the problem is actually prevalent in this part of the world.

Child trafficking in America, just like other countries, is considered big business. However, there is a great deal of difference when it comes to the nature of abuse children face. In most third world nations, victims are usually placed in hard labor camps and factories or become child prostitutes in brothels and prostitution houses. In the United States on the other hand, majority of the victims are trafficked by way of prostitution. Most of them are not even forced to do it. Rather, they are manipulated and deceived.

There are a great number of teens and some are even children who roam the streets at night to look for a living. They do it by offering themselves as sex partners. For many of us, we call it prostitution. But for most of them, it’s the only way to survive. One big problem we have in this country is the fact that most of us seem to consider seeing these young lives carry out their trade. But what we don’t know is that these young teens and children are actually abused. Although it seems like they like what they’re doing, they are actually given no choice.

A lot of the stories about these ruined lives spring from the cycle of abuse. The question is why are they in the streets? The root of it all comes from the family that raised them. Most teenage and child prostitutes in the United States are from violent family backgrounds. A child that grew in the sights of a violent father or mother may likely run away from home and seek refuge somewhere else. Children who are caught in between divorce and domestic abuse are left with no choice but to stay away and live on their own. Teens that are constantly abused by a member of the family frequently resort to drug and alcohol abuse to find temporary refuge. These are the unfortunate things that result to making these very same young people to become much more vulnerable to future abuse and exploitation.

Being away from home will add to the vulnerability of an already weak child or teen. This is also the time where offenders, criminals, and manipulative individuals like pimps come in. They use the child’s weakness to their advantage. By doing so, they are able to project an image of a superhero – the one who will save the victim from further misfortunes and abuse. However, this is really not the case. What happens next is the victim of domestic abuse becomes a victim all over again, this time from the harsh reality of prostitution and substance abuse in the streets.

Prostitution is a kind of child trafficking. Thousands of children are trafficked and transferred from different states each year. They are groomed by pimps to provide clients with sex services. In return, they are either given a share of the pay or just given drugs to satisfy their addiction.

If we ask the question, are these young people doing it with their own will? The answer is no. Most of them are doing it because they are left with no choice. Others meanwhile are forced and deceived for the promise of money and drugs, or in other words, a chance of survival.

Now we should therefore understand that sex trafficking is not only found in poor and impoverished countries. If you see young girls donning shiny clothes, high heels, and heavy make up at night while you’re on your way home, then trafficking is part of your neighborhood.

The question of admissiblity is never in doubt – it’s more of a fact. The criminal justice system in the United States is perhaps the most credible and fair in the entire world. After all, this country is the epitome of democracy and the upholding of constitutional rights. But when it comes to cases of child sexual abuse, the entire system becomes biased and unfair.

Most of the states allow the testimony of an expert witness, say a child psychiatrist, to determine the guilt of a person accused of child sexual abuse or molestation. In many instances, the testimony is comprised of a sworn statement in writing that the alleged victim is actually suffering from CSAAS or Child Sexual Abuse Accommodation Syndrome. This syndrome is a sum of all the observable traits of an abuse child. As soon as the “expert” witness proves in court that the alleged child victim possesses the traits, then she was definitely abused, leading to the conviction of the accused.

The admissibility of CSAAS in court can be admissible in court. However, it should not be regarded as the only weighing or determining factor in convicting the accused. Here are some reasons why:

1. Although CSAAS can be medically substantiated, the absence of the same will never tell who the perpetrator is. This means that if there is no semen, DNA, fingerprint, or any physical evidence linking the accused to the alleged victim, then there’s no use for CSAAS. Though the child may have been abused, the suspect can be anyone.

2. CSAAS is a flawed theory. It theorizes that if a child shows behavioral patterns as determined, then she is definitely abused. But the question is what those behavioral patterns are? For instance, when a child often cries, she must have been abused. If the child becomes withdrawn and isolated, she’s been abused. If she can’t sleep, she’s also abused. Now if we look closely, these signs are very vague – which means that any kid who encounter these issues cannot be generalized as having been sexually abused. The cause may be different. For instance, children who cry a lot may have emotional problems while those who become suddenly withdrawn may be experience bullying at school.

What we are trying to show here is the fact that CSAAS is not based on pure scientific proof. It is merely a summation of all traits and signs that most child victims of sexual abuse manifest. Because of this reality, CSAAS alone should not be regarded as a very influential factor in determining the guilt of a person falsely accused of child molestation or sexual abuse.

Unfortunately, majority of the states today still consider it as strong evidence in convicting people accused of child sexual abuse. While crimes committed against children must be given a severe punishment, it should not also serve as a determining factor of bias. We all should remember that any person accused of a crime, no matter how grave or heinous the crime is, should still be considered innocent (thus, must be given due process) unless proven otherwise in the court of law.

What are the instances of children and teens falsely accusing a person of sexual abuse or molestation?

There are a lot of circumstances when children and even teens make up stories to accuse a person of sexually abusing or molesting them. While we cannot deny the fact that thousands of minors are sexually abused each year, there is a certain number of the accusations filed in court that are either unsubstantiated or just a false allegation. By discussing the events that result to wrong accusations, we are not telling the people that the problem of child sexual abuse does not really exist. It actually does. However, not all of the accusations are true. And sad to say, not all of those convicted are guilty.

Instances That Lead to False Accusations:

1. Child sex abuse allegations in divorce are very common occurrence in the United States. Couples who end their marriages in a bitter way struggle to agree on the custody of their children. As a result, wives use their own children as leverage to gain custody. They force their children to accuse their father of sexual abuse. As a result, right of custody is given to the mother.

2. False allegations of sexual abuse and molestation also happen when children hear about it from fellows kids, be it their friends, classmates, or relatives. Kids at a young age love to emulate. As soon as they get to hear about their friend who was sexually abused, they can also falsely accuse someone and tell others that they too have been abused.

3. Children need attention, and when they don’t get it, they are capable of doing some crazy things like falsely accusing their mom or dad of molestation. Being neglected or ignored is a strong motivational factor for them to start fabricating stories and making up false accusations.

4. For teenagers, false allegation becomes their way out of a strict child-father relationship. Teens may wrongly accuse their father or mother of sexually abusing them just to get out of a very strict and sometime unfair type of upbringing. What usually happens in this scenario is that by the time the teen gets out of the house and the parent already convicted, the former then confesses about the false accusation.

5. Lastly, false accusations of child molestation can also be a result of media stereotyping. The kind of content kids see on TV and the internet makes them overly acquainted with sexual issues, acts, and topics. As a result, they get the tendency to overreact when someone touches them.

While so many experts contend that the state of being a pedophile is impossible to heal, there is actually a glimmer of hope for recovery. The common belief is that child molesters, predators, and pedophiles do not have room to change. This means that by the time they start to sexually abuse children, the process becomes never ending. But is it really the true scenario?

Sex is the main trigger. But for pedophiles, it’s not just an ordinary type of sex drive since the ones they fantasize are innocent children and minors. The sexual addiction is driven by the belief that when they abuse a victim, they are actually showing and manifesting love, care, affection, and mutual relationship. Of course, we all know that’s not true. The reality is the moment a person becomes a pedophile, there is no turning back. Now, is this true?

There are several cases of different people who fantasize and regard children as sexual objects. While some of them are able to fight the urge and control by seeking psychological and behavioral treatment, others simply cannot help it. When someone has upgraded his imagination and carried out his desire of sexually molesting or abusing children, he is now called a sexual predator.

The behavior of harming children is beyond normal. It is not accepted by the norms of society and the people who do it are condemned by every nation. Nonetheless, child sexual predators think otherwise. They believe that such type of sexual behavior and mentality is normal and they can abuse children whenever they want to.

For them, it is more about expressing control and power. Many offenders were victims themselves as children. This can indeed help to form the twisted mindset that adults and children can have sexual relations.

Typical sexual predators believe that through molestation and abuse, they are actually expressing love to the victim. This distorted belief is primarily caused by their lack of reason. The way they think has been compromised by their need for sexual outlet. The most dangerous part of their behavior is when their potential victims don’t cooperate in the fantasy. They would think that by being with children and abusing them, it’s like they are creating a mutual and loving relationship. But of course, everything is just pure fear and intimidation. As soon as the victim fights back and opposes, harm in the form of sexual and physical abuse will certainly take place.

Now most of the time, sexual predators don’t admit that something’s wrong with them. They strongly believe that they’re normal. These people need understanding but at the same time, they must also be reminded that sexually abusing children is absolutely one of the worst crimes a man can commit.

The psychology and mental state of child molesters and sex offenders are popular points of debate nowadays. Many people including scientists, psychologists, doctors, and parents wonder and argue whether or not convicted child molesters and offenders actually change and allow themselves to get help.

There are various factors to consider before one can tell that these people are either curable or incurable. For instance, several sex offenders have shown good progress in responding to counseling and treatment. While there seems to be significant development on how they view children, there is still not enough proof on how they respond and behave when actually placed in a community where they get access to children.

As for child molesters, seeking cure is quite thorny or even impossible. Nonetheless, it does not mean as well that there’s no hope. These types of criminals are by instinct manipulative and the desire and need to harm children will always be there as long as opportunity presents itself. This means that in order to help these people overcome their desires, parents and other concerned groups should make sure that they are not given access to children where they can think of abusing and molesting again.

Anyway, here are some of the common treatment approaches directed towards child molesters, predators, and sex offenders:

Psycho – educational approach – this treatment is centered on teaching molesters to be aware of the consequences if ever they abuse a child again. It also helps the offender build concern towards the victim.

Pharmacological – medicine and qualified drugs are used to decrease the level of sexual arousal of the molester.

Cognitive approach – it is a complex work done by counselors, doctors, and therapists aimed at completely changing the behavior and perception of the molester so as to eliminate the sexual arousal from molesting children.

While these three approaches seem to look very effective, there hasn’t been that much success. Treating child molesters is very tough to a point that perhaps only one in ten are able to completely turn their lives around. But looking at the brighter side, the presence of these treatments may eventually carry out more transformations in the future.

In our opinion, sexual molesters are under a spiritual bondage. It is impossible to think your way out of a spiritual bondage. True freedom can only be given by grace through Jesus Christ. Many molesters, even though who molested within the church, have never asked the Lord to heal them of their sexual addiction simply because they do not see it as sin. A person must be willing to call sin what it is and to openly confess it. They must be willing to face the Lord and trust His plan for their life to change, even when that plan includes jail time.

Life is full of chances and opportunities. We take different and distinct endeavors in order to succeed. While most of us follow the right path, others fall off the wagon and take the dark road. Mistakes are always a part of every man’s life. But as we have said, the world gives several chances at correcting them and redeeming ourselves. But the problem is how about those who are not willing to take those chances given to them?

When a person commits a crime, he goes to jail and receives the punishment. Depending on the kind and gravity of the offense, many convicted criminals have taken a second chance at having a normal life after prison. But in the case of child molesters and sex offenders, is giving a second chance worth it? Can they be actually reformed or cured?

When someone commits murder or robbery, it’s considered a crime. But when a person molests or sexually abuses a child, that’s more than a crime – it’s more likely an addiction as well. There is no scientific evidence proving that child molesters do not have the ability to change. But as you will see from the millions of cases, sex offenders are likely to abuse again right after serving time in jail. For a parent’s point of view, keeping their children away from registered sex offenders is not an issue of discrimination – it’s just that these people are more likely to harm children simply because they have done it in the past.

The hunger and need to molest or abuse a child is almost impossible to fight for these people. It is not merely about the sexual need or desire, but more on the behavioral or mental disorder of the abuser or molester. It is actually a battle between logic and addiction. While a part of the molester says that it is wrong to harm a child, a bigger part is telling him to do it for the sake of satisfaction and contentment. Addiction is just too hard, even impossible to fight. So the only way molesters and abusers can live on with their lives is to continue giving in to their addiction.

Finally, it’s actually quite unfair to totally close our doors to people who have previously molested or abused a child. However, by being cautious and vigilant, parents and other concerned individuals cannot as well be blamed if they choose not to let them enter their lives. It’s an unfortunate fact that while most of them may have regretted committing past mistakes, there is still no guarantee that they will not do the same thing all over again.

Child molesters and sex offenders are all over the place. Whether it’s your church community, school, neighborhood, or even within your own home, there is the ubiquitous presence of anyone who seeks to abuse or molest a child. While much has been said about experiences and encounters with these people, no one has really come up with a perfect prevention plan to stop the crime for good. And just like any type of crime, profiling a child molester tells us the true persona of the individual and gives us insight on how to avoid and prevent them from harming our own children. So here are the facts separated from the myths...

According to the International Labor Organization, there are more than 200 million child laborers around the world. Most of them are aged between 5 and 14. Half of this number is children who are working more than eight hours a day to provide food and financial support for their families. In the United States, it's easy to be disconnected from this suffering, but what we must see is that because we view people as having different levels of monetary value, with some being more valuable than others, then the poor people of other countries, and even within our own, will continue to be victimized.

If you think these numbers are just too great to be true, then you’re wrong. Most people who live in the United States or in other developed countries don’t realize the true extent of the problem simply because it isn’t their children who are subjected to forced labor. But when you go to impoverished and underdeveloped countries in Africa and some parts of Asia, you will learn how true the numbers are.

The whole concept of child labor isn’t limited only to those kids and minors who are forced to work by means of coercion and threats. Any kind of heavy work that utilizes a minor will always be considered forced labor, even if it the victim is willfully carrying it out. We should remember that children are not born to work and suffer from the harsh conditions of the workplace. Their body and physical abilities are still premature for withstanding the kind of work where most adults don’t even dare to try.

The practice of using children as laborers is part of history. However, there is a very big difference in the nature and means of exploitation. For instance, traditional societies use bonded labor as a way of paying a debt or obligation. Parents who are forced to lend money, gold, or any kind of valuable can pay their debt using their children, who in turn will be forced to work in factories, fields, and plantations.

On the other hand, child labor these days isn’t about payment anymore; it has become a lucrative and profitable business for human traffickers. These people kidnap and displace children and then sell them to different companies that will utilize these kids for the production of different kinds of products and services. In the modern age, children who are forced to work in harsh factory and shop environments are regarded not as humans, but commodities. And the main reason why many companies opt to employ and use minors is because there is lesser financial investment in them. They don’t have to be paid based on what the government requires for minimum wage earners.

The saddest thing about child labor is that many of the children choose this path. It does not mean that they love it. It’s just that they have nowhere else to go. Some even force themselves to leave their families in order to survive the inhumane conditions in their own community or country.

When it comes to child neglect, figures and certain cases speak for themselves. Abandoning and neglecting a child is considered by many psychologists and medical experts as worst than physical abuse. Such claim may actually be true considering the kind of ordeal and suffering children face when they are left alone by themselves, without anyone taking care of them.

In general terms, neglect is the absence of action. It is a means not doing anything or the omission of a certain act. But unlike physical abuse and exploitation, there are no visible signs or marks. But this doesn’t mean that it’s not that grave and serious. In fact, it can be more demoralizing and destructive compared to actual physical abuse.

While physical abuse target children and teenagers, neglect on the other hand is often carried out against very young kids and even infants. This group is composed of those who are not capable of taking care of their own selves.

It can be broken down into two major types – parental and emotional neglect. Parental neglect is usually characterized by the complete abandonment of a child by the parent. Complete means not taking care of the child’s physical and basic needs such as providing food, shelter, and medicine. It also involves minor inactions but can still leave the child vulnerable and at harm. This may include ignoring the child when he/she needs help in taking a bath or going to the restroom, not attending any activities in school that require the parent’s attention, letting the child go outside the house without supervision, and many more.

Emotional neglect on the other hand inflicts long term trauma to the child. It is composed of actions that manifest how the parent hates or regrets having the child in the first place. There are several cases where the mother or the father or both of them intentionally detach themselves from their children. They don’t talk to them. When their children need comfort and someone to sit beside and tell a bedtime story, they willfully avoid providing those to them.

Although cases of child neglect aren’t that prevalent compared to sexual abuse, it should still be given attention and consideration. The good thing about this country is that there are government institutions and private advocacy groups that help and assist children who are neglected by their parents. How about those in other countries? Every year, millions of children are neglected, and if we will continue to sit back and just watch this problem grow, it might be too late to save many of them.

A nation’s economic and political development greatly determines the kind of life its citizens have. It is a universal symbol that underdeveloped states are also the ones who shelter the poorest group of people. When the government is weak and poor, it does not have the ability to cater the needs and secure the protection of the citizens.

What we are referring to is poverty. As soon as poverty strikes, children become the most unfortunate victims. UNICEF figures reveal that there are almost 30,000 children dying every single day due to the effects of poverty. The cause of death is obviously the lack of basic needs such as food, shelter, health care, and water.

Unlike adults, children are not capable of long term survival. Their young age makes them very weak and vulnerable to sickness and disease. And the most unfortunate thing is governments of a number of nations aren’t doing something in order to address the problem. Nonetheless, we can only partially blame them since nations like them are likely to face other major problems like civil war, domestic violence  and political/economic chaos.

When we try to examine the condition of children around the world, those that reside in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia are the most affected by poverty. There is a total of 1 billion that lack access to clean water. Of this number, more than half are minors. Just imagine what kind of agony and suffering those innocent kids are into every time we blink or breathe.

Furthermore, water is not the only problem for poverty-stricken children. UNICEF adds that almost 2 million children die because of diarrhea. This is specifically caused by the absence of proper shelter, health care and services, food, and medicine. While most kids living in Western and developed nations are immunized right after they are born, those from poor countries do not have this privilege. What happens then is they become constantly subjected to several types of diseases present in a very unpleasant environment and living condition. And these diseases can kill them.

If we come to think of this, it’s perhaps better to ponder that these children may be better off if they were not born at all. It’s too aching to see that they just came into this world to suffer and feel the pain they don’t deserve in the first place.