Recently our news reported the story of three kidnap victims who were youngsters at abduction but are now young women. Their rescue after being held in captivity by a madman for ten years was nothing short of a miracle. It seemed like a resurrection, as many thought these girls were long dead after a decade of no leads, suspects or arrests. The media reported that while being held captive for over a decade, these girls were repeatedly raped, chained up, denied medical care, dental visits and were not properly nourished. The worst for one of the girls was she had to give birth to the child of her tormentor. Everyday, when she looks upon the face of her innocent child she will be forever reminded of the mentally demented individual that impregnated her against her will.
The trauma these girls experienced from their terrifying ordeal, provokes me to ask the question of why the media doesn’t host extended reports their recovery? Why is there no fanfare for counselors, ministers, or organizations designed to help victims of trauma regain their lives? It seems that only the horrific is worthy news. The media machine is finished with these women because their story has accomplished their objective which is to boost TV ratings and sell newspapers. Why does it seem our society ok with that?
Trauma victims need so much support, and while I don’t claim to know if these girls are receiving some or not I’m perplexed that there isn’t more of an outcry from the public to find out. Horrors such as these women suffered will leave an indelible impression on them, and will take years of therapy to even chip the iceberg of emotional healing. We should be fuming that the only positive story the media could find in relation to these women is that of how the man who assisted in the girls rescue has been awarded “burgers for life” in his hometown. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? How sad and tragic! These girls have been to hell and back for the media to discuss free burgers…. It sparks fury in me that the media didn’t publicly offer to establish a fund for these now young women to aid them in moving forward in their lives. They need resources from every sector and yet, once again these women have been forgotten. No mainstream media source has sought an interview with any politician to hear their agenda regarding stiffer pedophile laws. Not one national minister or ministry has even come forward to offer spiritual guidance (at least not publicly). Very few stories were waged about the aftermath of rape, captivity or physical abuse. The effects of this kind of ordeal is so paralyzing that many try to kill themselves to alleviate their pain.
The monster we’ve feared that was under our bed is real and the media sensationalized his deeds. Our society which is so desensitized to such crimes has pushed the story of these courageous women out of our minds. Maybe these issues are hard to address because they tap into our own deep seated fears. Maybe we’re afraid of being compelled to action because it would mean we’ve taken on the responsibility to seek change. Or maybe we need to accept the fact that we just don’t care because a heinous crime like this hasn’t yet happened to someone we love. Whatever our reasons are, we should be petitioning our local government, meeting with our clergy and holding assemblies in our schools. We should be brainstorming for new ways to meet the needs of people who’ve been subjected to deep traumatic experiences. Truth is whether the upset lasted one second or many years, victims need help, love and support as they journey back from a literal hell. We need to wake up to the reality that there are *400,000 pedophiles in the U.S. that are registered and its believed 100,000 of them or more have not been caught. Staggering numbers such as these reflect only a segment that is known; there are likely millions in the shadows. Who are these people anyway? They could be the coach for the swim team, the youth minister, the daycare assistant or even our next door neighbor. They are hiding in plain sight everyday.
I don’t have an answer, but solicit you to join me in praying for these brave women. They are the face of many, many, many victims that didn’t make the news. They are representing the victims that died at the hands of their captors and have been forever separated from their families. Let us donate to causes, educate our children and point our loved ones to Christ. Only He can heal the emotional wounds and take away the deep seated emotional trauma. We need more than prayer vigils to change our world. We need to feel compelled to take a proactive stand to send the message that our children are sacred and we’ll do what needs to be done to protect them.
We need to give victims of such atrocities a voice so that they can recover their peace in a nurturing atmosphere. We need to do SOMETHING!
Be encouraged…
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*http://yellodyno.com/Statistics/statistics_child_molester.html
