I don’t believe this is true, but a couple of years ago I got into a huge fight with another United Way board member (I’ve since resigned) over this issue. This was during the Boy Scouts controversy. He and I threw cites at one another, with him maintaining that there was a compelling reason to keep homosexuals away from children since they were more likely to molest them. I found this idiocy stunning, but frankly my cites were pretty weak, despite a lot of googling on my part.
It occurred to me that there are probably some Dopers who are well educated on this issue. What are the hard facts concerning homosexuality and pedophilia?
I haven’t looked over Astro’s links, but I think there is plenty of evidence that there are not just gay and non-gay people in the world when it comes to sexual behavior towards children (well, toward many things). Many male molesters of boys are boyfriends of the mother of the child, or have their own children and interests in heterosexual sexuality. I think it’s safe to say that evidence in the mainstream press, much research and even among some in the gay rights movement that somebody is “gay” is often just evidence of non-heterosexual behavior. It could be that if somebody is disturbed enough to be a pedophile that their sexuality is unusual or complex in other ways that makes it unlikely that you can decide the gay/notgay character of them. Certainly, many people truly think they aren’t gay who have (or desire) homosexual relations with adults, so self-reporting would be a mess in many of these situations.
In short, I’m just saying that the public view on this issue represents public confusion on what gay (and straight) mean.
Pedophiles ( those who like children- as opposed to those who like minors who are just legally underaged) are neither Hetero or Homosexual. They like kids, pre-pubescent kids. A normal Gay man, or Straight man (or- rarely- woman) is not sexually attracted to children. Thus- neither are more likely to molest CHILDREN.
Now, which are more likely to seduce a minor who has entered puberty, but is not yet of a legal age of consent? That’s another question entirely.
However, I do feel that no adult should be allowed alone with underaged minors of the sex he/she is interested in. Yes, no Straight men OR Lesbians with Girl Scouts, no Gay men or Hetero women with Boy Scouts.
I am sorry, we were talking about Scouts & such, which include overnite trips and what-not. By “allowed alone” I meant on those sorts of outings, not in a supervised public setting. Don’t be silly. :rolleyes:
OK, so it’s slightly more understandable if you’re talking about when somebody’s acting in loco parentis - and yes, I should think many organisations (and laws) would expect a single-gender approach. But to do it on sexuality - are only openly-gay men not allowed to supervise boys? Or does it apply to men who you suspect might be gay? Or if a man had a drunken homosexual encounter twenty years ago back in college, is he excluded from supervising boys for life?
I’m sorry, but teachers frequently go on trips with children, including overnight trips, one week long stay somewhere (school-organized visits of museums situated in a remote town, “mountain schoool”, school trips in foreign countries, national parks visits, etc…). So, staying with kids outside of supervised public setting is part of the job.
Besides, a number of teachers have been sentenced for sexual assault that occcured on the school grounds. So, a kid with a pedophile teacher is still at risk in these supervised public settings.
And as pointed out by a previous poster, how do you define “gay” and “lesbian”. Should the scout leaders, or teachers, be forced to disclose their sexuality? Take an oath? “I hereby swear I’m homosexual and never had a sexual intercourse with a woman nor looked at one with lust?” What about people who have some attraction towards the same sex, but never had an actual experience? What about someone who had one when he was a teenager? What about bisexual people? Who can they supervise? Nobody? It’s not like sexuality is black and white, with 100% homosexuals on one side, and 100% heterosexuals on the other.
Besides, it contradicts your own statement. If nor heterosexuals nor homosesuals are partcularily likely to molest children, why should they be barred from supervising kids of a specific sex.
And by the way, since in modern society, kids are rarely segregated on the basis of sex, what do you do when the group include both girls and boys, which is a very common situation, in summer camps, for instance? Only eunuchs can supervise them?
To sum up, why exactly do you want people attracted to adult women not to supervise little girls? How exactly do you determine who is attracted to one sex or the other? To whom this rule should apply (besides scout leaders and teachers, a lot of people might have to supervise kids, like social workers, for instance, on a regular or occasionnal basis)?
Ultimately, I think the rule is simple: in this day and age of awareness, concern and litigation, regardless of gender or orientation (which as somebody pointed out can be hiddern or even subconsious), any adult chaperone should be paired with another and pairs rotated.
As for the OP’s request. I don’t have science research, but I think you can try the websites of Human Rights Campaign (HRC), Gay Lesbian Straight Teachers Network (GLiSTeN, I think I got the whole name right), and National Gay Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF). The second group in that list, if still functioning, would be perhaps the best for these things. The last group also has (or had) a policy research center that might have some papers on this. Oh, and P/FLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) probably has some basic primers for why people shouldn’t be freaked out by gay people, etc. Sorry I don’t have all the links right here, but if you don’t find stuff at those websites (one will probably have links to the others) let me know.
I’m posting this for the purpose of clarification:
One of Astro’s four citations, to an article about the false link between homosexuality and pedophilia, was authored by Joe Kort, a gay psychotherapist in the Los Angeles area.
Despite assertions to the contrary, Ex-Gay Watch affirms the right of gays and exgays to be free of discrimination, prejudice, and harassment – and harshly criticizes certain exgay political activists for promoting deceit, unhealthy behavior, intolerance, repression and sometimes violence.
Becuase Scouts include young men & women, who may perhaps be minors but can certainly be sexually mature. I wasn’t talking about Cubs & Brownies which are all children- of the type pedophiles might be interested. Any red-blooded male could find himself attracted to a fully developed 17yo GirlScout. Only a mentally ill person finds themselves attracted to a pre-pubescent child.
However, the ‘whys & wherefores’ of keeping sexualy mature but underaged minors away from unsupervised solo overnite outings with adults who would be sexually attracted to them is another issue entirely. The OP asked a question about Pedophiles and homosexuals. Being sexualluy attracted to a 16 or 17 yo is not pedophilia.
And like I said- really, neither Hetero or Homosexuals are more likely to be pedophiles- as Pedophilia is a sexual }orientation" of it’s own.
Agreed. But I think there is a reverse question in there that is worth asking: whether pedophiles are more likely to be oriented towards the same-sex child or different-sexed child.
That is, it’s not a case of homosexuals being more likely to be pedophiles. However, is it the case that pedophiles are more likely to be “homosexual” (that is, same-sex oriented)?
Several of the more notorious ones commited their crimes on both, AFAIK. There also seems to be almost 0 female pedophiles- that abberration does not seem to be come with a XX set, only an XY.
(Note that a female can be attracted to a sexually mature but legally minor person, certainly, but as far as women being actual pedophiles, I can’t remember a single case).