Throughout history, abuse has known no social bounds. Anyone has been potentially susceptible.

There is far less child abuse today than was inflicted on children in the past.

However, occurrences of child abuse continue in epidemic proportions. Patriarchal societies have historically perpetuated a power imbalance and have systemically supported child abuse.

Perpetrators often look for positions and situations of power. The very people who should be trusted have often been the individuals who committed the abuses. Abusers have been parents, uncles, doctors, teachers, coaches, ministers, etc.

The need to feel a sense of belonging to family has perpetuated the silence and family secrets around child abuse. Historically the rights of family privacy have superceded the rights of the individual within the family.

There have been intergenerational chains of abuse. Historically, children were taught to be seen and not heard which perpetuated the pattern of abuse. This generation is breaking the chains of abuse by challenging authority and encouraging children to establish healthy boundaries.

It is shocking to most individuals when incidences of abuse are revealed.

"The further back in history one goes, the lower the level of child care, and the more likely children are to be killed, abandoned, beaten, terrorized, and sexually abused."   Lloyd deMause

N0THIN' NEW

Well, I told ‘em!
Couldn’t help myself
It just spilled out of me.
Was after the church meetin’,
All good women you understand,
Good neighbours too, most of ‘em any way.
But they’re talkin’ about all the bad things happenin’
Happenin’ to young kids
And what’s wrong these days.
How it must be the TV and all those wicked magazines,
And on and on
And I just couldn’t keep my mouth shut
Not one more minute.
“Ya think this is somethin’new?” I ask
“Well, it happened to me and long before there was any TV.
Maybe to some of you too
Or your sisters, maybe your mother
Maybe even your brothers too, I suppose.
I wouldn’t know about that.
Maybe it happened after school when you had to stay late
Or in the church basement after choir
Or behind the barn or maybe in that dark little room
Upstairs at the end of the hall
The one with the lace curtains
And flowered wallpaper.
Don’t try to tell me
About this wicked modern world
This ain’t nothin’ new!”

Barbara

METAMORPHOSIS

The history of silent threats exposes fear
fear from both the aggressor and the repressed
Power is both healthy and unhealthy
Silent threats breed Contempt, Blame, Hurt and more
The masses have historically had tunnel vision
Letting the fear rule their inaction
The healthy side of power is based in
Freedom and Self Love
To gain healthy power their needs to be growth
Growth starts with Self, Heart, Health,
Freedom and Safety
Growth means change
Change means Progressive Self-Discovery in
Living, Loving, Learning
That evolves into healthy, freeing independence
Freeing independence leads to community
Community includes possibilities for
Safety in numbers
Public togetherness
Knowledge with Power over the fear of History.

Nola

MOVING ON

Identities formed
by the grafted-on evils of others
who in turn have been formed
by the grafted-on evils of others
who in turn
....
....
....

B.

TO BE BELIEVED

Both my past
and my present
reflect each other
In some way even exist simultaneously.

I have often thought of Cassandra
The Prophetess of Troy
Doomed never to be believed
I never understood my deep identification with her
Until recently.
And now, Troy has been destroyed
Yes
And from this death, this ending
As with all deaths, all endings.
Comes birth, beginnings, hopes and rejuvenation.

Also fears and anxieties, it=s true
But the possibility of health, peace can be seen
An alternate Universe
Has been created
Where Cassandra will be believed, always.

Marque

Discussion - History of Child Abuse

Child abuse is still an issue which is not to be talked about. The public still has difficulty in accepting abuse today. It is shocking to most individuals when abuse is revealed. They believe that people are supposed to be good. Societal members do not feel safe. Abuse is rationalized, and believed to be the fantasies of children.

Survivors of abuse bear scars. They have lost the respect of individuals whom they are supposed to trust, such as the police, judges and psychologists. The cycle continues because the system does not, and is unable to deal with the issue. The justice system denies that child abuse occurs. People in power continue to abuse that power.

Patriarchal society
Historically, our patriarchal society has perpetuated an imbalance of power between the sexes. Children have been exploited and abuse has been condoned and perpetuated throughout the centuries. There is a difference in the way we have witnessed abuse throughout history.

Statistics report that an average of 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 4 boys are sexually abused. Abuse does not stop in childhood. For some the abuse continues into adolescence and beyond. Doctors, neighbours, society knows. There is a denial by society that child abuse occurs. It occurs in all societies. Why do we not confront the abuse? There are difficulties in revealing the abuse.

Abuse does not just happen. It can occur in all kinds of families, of all economic and cultural backgrounds. Denial of abuse and secrets are common. The very people we think we can trust are usually the individuals who commit the abuse, and that can be anyone: your doctors, teachers, clergy, coaches, grandparents, uncles, aunts, mothers, fathers. Perpetrators often look for positions and situations of power.

Themes

Abuse knows no social bounds.

The concept of family secrets:

• It is easier to expose the abuse today due to changes in the family structure. Families are not as insular today. It is easier to pierce the veil of privacy.
• The importance of keeping the family together is considered by many victims of child abuse, before reporting their abuse. This results in a refusal to admit secrets, often because of threats that the information must not be disclosed.

REFERENCES ON HISTORY OF CHILD ABUSE AND CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE :

deMause, Lloyd. “History of Child Assault”. Empathetic Parenting, 1992, vol. 15, no. 1-2, p. 24-42.

Greven, Philip J. Spare the Child: The Religious Roots of Punishment and the Psychological Impact of Physical Abuse. New York: Knopf, 1991.

Kieran, Sheila. The Family Matters: Two Centuries of Family Law and Life in Ontario. Toronto: Key Porter Books, 1986.

Krane, Julia and Linda Davies. “Mother-blame in Child Sexual Abuse: A Look At Dominant Culture, Writings, and Practices. Textual Studies In Canada, 1995 vol. no. 7, p. 21-35.

Masson, J. Moussaieff. A Dark Science: Women, Sexuality and Psychiatry in the 19th Century. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1986.

Miller, Alice. For Your Own Good - Hidden Cruelty in Child Rearing and the Roots of Violence. New York: Straus, Giroux, 1983.

----------. Thou Shalt Not Be Aware: Society’s Betrayal of the Child. New York: Meridian, 1986.

Pleck, Elizabeth. Domestic Tyranny: The Making of Social Policy Against Family Violence From Colonial Times to the Present. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987.

Rush, Florence. The Best Kept Secret. Blue Ridge Summit, PA: Tab Books 1992.