This is one of the most thoughtful pieces on the experience of sexual exploitation by adults of youngsters that I have read.
I shared this piece on Facebook because so much of the writing on this difficult subject of sexual attack and exploitation is focused on blame at this point - and in some cases conflates “assault” with what appears to be simply coarse behavior that was acceptable to many Americans and so passed as “fooling around” until now - that I'm afraid the sturm und drang will absorb all the energy and little will actually change in our culture. We will perhaps pass a few harsh laws, but people's self-understanding won't change.
Mac Gander, in not “having all the answers,” says something I find valuable because he is starting a conversation.
Yes, violence has been done to the naive and unprotected, and we need to talk about that, shedding light on the human sexual drive and placing responsibility on the “adult” - what a word to use in this context! But at the same time we need ways to grow resilience in children, both male and female.
The Voices section is a consistently heartening example of local media adding to open conversation in their community.