My blog post today was prompted by a question asked by a friend on Facebook. The question was if a family member molested your child and you got angry every time you saw them, what would you do, keep the family secret, approach them and let them know you know about it or get them arrested.
My first thought was that was a simple answer, if someone molested my child I would immediately have that person arrested family member or not, but then it dawned on me that it is not that simple for everyone. Families often keep secrets so that the family honor is upheld. A case of a child who is molested or raped by a family member may go unreported so as not to bring shame on the family. While the family member is protected who looks out for the child? The child is the victim in this situation. The child is the one who will have to live with the physical and emotional trauma and often will remain emotionally scarred for life.
When these things happen and you keep silent you are giving the perpetrator power and is inadvertently aiding and abetting him or her. How do you think the child will feel knowing that you knew what was happening but did nothing about it because it was more important to keep the family secret. The child’s welfare must be the number one priority in situations like this and anyone one who molest a child must be held accountable.
It is the responsibility of adults to protect children and often times it is these people who they trust that molest them. We are living in a cruel world and often times it is the children who suffer the most because they are defenseless and are not able to do anything about what is happening to them. In order to protect children parents who are aware that their children are molested and do nothing about it must be held accountable along with the perpetrator. Let us protect our children. They have the right to enjoy their childhood years free from molestation.
Author Marva Seaton 