User:Biaothanatoi

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I am an Australian postgraduate student undertaking doctoral research into organised forms of child sexual abuse. My background is in social policy and research, particularly in the mobilisation of non-government organisations to achieve public health outcomes.

For the last few years, I've been concerned about the content of articles on Wikipedia pertaining to child abuse and, specifically, to organised abuse. The issue of organised abuse is an extremely complex one, compounded by the counterintuitive dynamics of abuse that involve multiple perpetrators and multiple victims, as well as by the capacity (or lack thereof) within the media, policy-makers and the broader community to respond appropriately to this form of abuse.

Unfortunately, articles on Wikipedia pertaining to complex abuse have been authored by individuals who have been strongly influenced by the literature and rhetoric of the False Memory Syndrome movement. These articles fail to reflect on the ambiguity of cases of organised sexual abuse, preferring instead to dismiss survivors as suggestible fantasists, whilst characterising supportive professionals as poorly trained, overzealous and, at times, malicious and corrupt.

At the moment, I'm advocating for the reform of the Satanic Ritual Abuse article on Wikipedia. Whilst the role of ritualistic activity in organised child sexual abuse is not clear, we know that it does occur, and that it is related to the most severe forms of child maltreatment and sexual exploitation. For years, the SRA article has instead suggested that most people with a history of SRA are fantasists, and the professionals who support them are malicious and corrupt. In my experience as a researcher, nothing could be further from the truth.

If you would like to discuss this issue further with me, please do so on the discussion page here. If you are interested in learning more about organised and ritualistic abuse, I regularly update a clearinghouse of news items relating to the subject at Ritual Abuse Watch.

Biao Dec 2 2007