[mercatornet.com – 9/12/19] Credible accusations have fallen to an average of one new case per year in the US Sexual abuse perpetrated by Roman Catholic priests has been headline news for years. But even with so much press attention, there are many commonly accepted myths about this issue. Remarkably, evidence-based research doesn’t always receive attention, while sensationalized stories that create a particular—but sometimes false—narrative do. This ultimately misinforms and harms the public—not to mention efforts to keep kids safe in and outside of the Church. On the year anniversary of…
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Singapore: Unofficial sex-offender registry raises risk of vigilantism
[straitstimes.com – 7/26/18] The unofficial registry of convicted sex offenders is nothing more than harassment and more punishment for former offenders who have already served their time (Unofficial registry of sex offenders draws mixed views; July 15). It needs to be removed so that people who have this stigma attached to their name can have a hope of living a normal, law-abiding life, just like other released offenders. Unless they are recalcitrant and violent offenders, why should they be forced to wear the scarlet letter even after they have served…
Read MoreThe Sex Trafficking Panic Is Based On Myths
[buzzfeed.com 4/18/18] As they crack down on sex workers and pass outrageous new laws, our politicians and moral crusaders make some bold claims: Hundreds of thousands of children are at risk of sex trafficking is one oft-cited figure. Kids are entering sex work at an average age of 13, says another. But is any of this true? Good data is hard to come by in an industry kept largely in the shadows. That’s why, from 2012 to 2014, we spent nine months walking a stretch of road in Las Vegas…
Read MoreHow to prevent child sexual abuse: Know the myths and realities
[salon.com] How would you describe a sex offender? In all likelihood, you would describe a monster — someone who lurks behind bushes and rapes unsuspecting women or abuses children. And that is how sex offenders are portrayed in the media. For most of us, much of what we know about sex offenders comes from movies, TV shows and news stories. However, those stories are often sensationalized portrayals — or cases that are the exception to the rule — rather than the norm. While cases like these do exist, they remain…
Read MoreRI: Letter: Leo Carroll: Base sex offender laws on facts rather than myths [opinion]
[providencejournal.com] Two decades of research regarding the effects of sex offender laws have produced no evidence that such laws achieve their stated purposes. A recent review of research on community notification and residency restriction laws in the Oxford Handbook of Sex Offences and Sex Offenders concludes that such legislation is “misinformed and simply incorrect.” These laws are knee-jerk reactions to hysteria fueled by media narratives of sensational but exceptional tragedies; they are based on myths rather than facts. The first myth is that sex offenders are strangers, when in fact…
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