Sunday, April 8, 2012

Rape or not?

A ten year old child in Columbia gave birth to a five pound baby girl. No report on the father. My first thought when I saw this was rape or incest, but there is a chance, a slim one, that it was consensual. But some will argue that a ten year old cannot consent. What if the father is also a child? Whom do we blame? When I was a teen, I can remember several instances of girls eleven or twelve having sex, and it was not forced either. I have met women who chose to become sexually active as young as nine which is what this girl would have been.
While its possible for a girl that young to safely have sex, its not safe for them to have children, and since children are a consequence of sex, let us say it aint safe for girls that young to be having sex. What causes this? Do we blame a break down in the family for this? The girls I know who were active at a young age are a mixed bag. Some came from broken homes, but not all of them. Its a sad fact that girls who come from broken homes are more likely to engage in risky activity, but thats not a guarantee.
Can a boy be harmed by early sex? I don't see how, but a girl could suffer irreparable damage. There is a diffrence between a child that is coerced, and one whose hormones are running wild. Sex should be anything but casual. The consequences can have a lasting impact, and some times be fatal. I don't believe in casual sex, bed hopping, or any of that type of behavior. Given the variety of VD out there, its a dangerous game, and one a child of ten doesn't understand. Still, they play it. Its the job of parents to keep the kids safe, and in todays society where often kids are raised in single parent homes, there is no one to ensure they are being safe because that parent is at work.
Sure, this happened in a tribe in Columbia, but it could just as easily happen in main street USA.

No comments: