A Confederate Yankee
By Bill Mayers
(Sullivan) How do we begin to address the problem when it’s so prevalent, yet so readily and frequently denied, downplayed and marginalized? We hear its name and we presume it happens elsewhere – anywhere but here. But it does happen here. And when questioned about it, citizens respond as if to a foul smell, a repugnant sight. Don’t want to talk about it. Busy now. Got more important things to do.
When a report of abuse appears…
When those involved are local…
When the stain begins to darken our doorsteps…
…we hasten to deny, to cover up, even to respond with hostility when the stain is pointed out. It’s a stain that should have been prevented. But somebody failed our community. No, many somebodies failed the community.
Abuse of persons is unacceptable, whether it’s blatantly done in broad daylight or surreptitiously, from concealment. It’s the job of parents, of neighbors, of schoolteachers, scout leaders, pastors. That job is to teach young people to respect others, to control base instincts, to consider the consequences of abusive behavior.
I was born at night, but not last night: I know damn well we can’t prevent all cases of sexual abuse any more than we can prevent all robberies, all murders or all instances of spousal abuse. But that is no excuse. We need to address the issue head-on. We need to address it as a community. It affects us all, whether it’s our sons or our daughters involved.
At the instant that law enforcement gets involved, we’ve already failed to address this evil. And pointing the finger of blame, which is the proper response, is not sufficient. A pastor of mine, many years ago, reminded the congregation that when you point the finger of blame, the thumb is pointing back at you. It points back at the entire community.
Much as we’d rather not get tied up in such nastiness, we are tied up in it. We need to take responsibility – we all need to take responsibility. We need to do it together, as a community, as well as individual families and individual parents.
Cuz it’ll get worse if we don’t.
Has your pastor addressed the issue from the pulpit? If not, he or she has failed in his or her duty.
Has your son’s scout leader addressed the issue with the boys? If not, that individual has failed.
And that individual in your mirror … perhaps he or she has failed, too. A well-respected member of the community said something to the effect that “boys will be boys,” as if it weren’t all that big a deal. No great gouts of blood and no guts in the trees, so it must not be all that bad, eh?
Young people have committed suicide over being subjected to such abuse, and that’s not a big deal? Gimme a break!
Nobody likes nookie better than I do, but abusive behavior toward the opposite sex ain’t the way to go about it, and we all know it. Our task is to see that this sort of thing happens as seldom as is humanly possible.
Let’s man up and git ‘er done!
William D. “Bill” Mayers RT, RN, of Sullivan is a retired senior U.S. Army Corpsman. A certified healthcare professional since 1964, he holds two professional licenses, including that of Registered Professional Nurse licensed in New York, Alaska, Virginia and Louisiana. He has four children, two stepchildren, two grandchildren and is an avid analyst of current events.
I lived in Chitt for several years and therefore it’s no surprise to me at all that the story of those boys and their hidden cam was swept under the rug quickly. Remember high school cliques? Well, the parents are a big part of the clique system in Chitt.
I remember way back, there were two pizza places right across the street from each other. The Right people went to the RIGHT pizza place while others, like myself, went to the one that made good pizza. I still do, New York Pizzeria you rock! The RIGHT kids were employed by the RIGHT pizza place and then, the supposedly RIGHT kids got caught selling pot or something out of there. YES, to the supposedly RIGHT kids, no less! That story never went anywhere either.