It seems like lately all I am hearing are stories of child sexual abuse. Most of us are well aware of the Penn State scandal involving Jerry Sandusky, a former football coach. There are 10 alleged child victims.
Then just this morning I hear on my local news station about the director of communications for the evangelical Lutheran organization, WELS, being arrested for charges of child pornography. Football coaches, religious leaders, teachers…the very ones we entrust our children to, taking advantage of their vulnerability and abusing their powers.
Who can you trust anymore? Sadly, we live in a world where trust is difficult to come by. It used to be that your biggest concern was whether or not sleeping over at someone else’s house was safe. But now abuse is filtering into our classrooms, locker rooms and churches…the very places our children should feel safe in.
I guess when it comes right down to it, we can’t 100% trust anyone who has authority or leadership over our children. So we have to teach them that while yes, they must respect authority, there is a line that must never be crossed. No longer do we just have to worry about stranger danger, but we have to be concerned that those we are supposed to trust won’t take advantage of them.
A few years ago I worked part-time as a lunchroom/playground supervisor in a middle school. The following year after I had left that job, I learned that one of the female teachers had been arrested for having sexual relations with one of the students (a student I knew). I was shocked.
But I guess I shouldn’t have been. Teacher arrests (especially amongst female ones) have become a big newsmaker. What has happened to our society? I find it sad that as a parent, I would have to warn my children about potential dangers of those they are supposed to trust.
Have you talked to your child about these types of issues?
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