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« September 2009 | Main | November 2009 »
To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe. Anatole France
Your vision will become clear only when you look into your heart. Who looks outside, dreams. Who looks inside, awakens. Carl Jung
The inability to open up to hope is what blocks trust, and blocked trust is the reason for blighted dreams. Elizabeth Gilbert
For too long now the discussion has focused on the victims alone, ironically this has allowed the demand side (the johns themselves) to slip into the background thus allowing the problem to skyrocket. Now with famous men such as Jason Priestley (above) and Jacques Villeneuve amongst others, men are coming out to speak to other men and say once and for all that the sexual abuse, exploitation, and trafficking of children and women is wrong (besides illegal and depraved).
As the Beyond Borders press release states: Man to Man is the first campaign of its kind with respect to sexual exploitation, “Most public awareness campaigns about child sexual abuse have focused on the victim,” explains Beyond Borders President, Rosalind Prober. “That’s obviously important but we’ve ignored trying to tackle the demand side of the issue. This campaign changes that.”
The importance of this campaign words cannot express. For men to stand up and say sex with children is immoral is not only a beautiful act of solidarity but it also moves this destructive act from simply being a child/woman problem versus man issue and places it where it should be as an act against humanity. Sex with children is a violation of human rights and it is a detriment to what it means to be not only a man but a human being. It takes the discussion outside of women driven organizations into bars and locker rooms. Beyond Borders says it best: “We hope to mobilize the vast majority of men who have no tolerance with the small percentage of their gender responsible for more than 90% of sexual crimes against children both in Canada and abroad. Those perpetrators make up what we call the DEMAND. Without those willing to use children for their sexual pleasure and profit, this abuse would not exist. Demand drives all forms of sexual exploitation including child sex tourism, child Internet luring, child pornography and trafficking, impacting the lives of countless children in Canada and around the globe. Stop the DEMAND and the SUPPLY (the victims) will be allowed their right to grow up emotionally and physically healthy. It is as simple as that.”
I think I fall in love every time a wonderful honest man comes forth to defend the vulnerable even if it means breaking the “man code.” The man code is a lot like that tacky phrase “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.” Men often feel that it is not their place to scold other men about their private lives but sex with children and trafficked women is not about men's right to live whichever life they choose, this is about the most vulnerable members of our world’s rights being ripped away from them and crushed.
So I would like to say to Jason Priestley (shout out 90210 90’s style) and Jacques Villeneuve and Manoj Sood (Little Mosque on the Prairie actor) and writer Victor Malarek (who I have blogged about previously) and all the others that will join this fight and help change the lives of millions that I am so proud of men like you and thank you.
Check out Beyond Borders website for more information: www.beyondborders.org
