Seriously John Laws?

John Laws, the dinosaur.

So John Laws, the man who has been on air since Moses parted the red sea, has once again had an appalling interview on air with a victim of child sexual abuse. You can listen here.

I don’t understand why this guy is allowed to get away with it. If it had been Kyle Sandilands, there would have been mass outrage. People would be boycotting the station. Advertisers would be pulling their ads. Which was ridiculous, because Kyle wasn’t at fault in that interview at all. I lay full blame on the mother in that instance. He blurted out one sentence, realized what he said, and they pulled the interview. He was mortified afterwards, and he was burned at the stake.

Somehow though, when John Laws has 10 minute long interviews, berating a victim, asking why he didn’t come forward sooner, or why he didn’t call out, or any number of other insensitive statements, he’s allowed to get away with it. Concluding that the caller had simply wasted his time. He suggested the caller go to the pub and have a lemonade, before asking for a Thank You.

Are you fucking kidding me?

Well, he did do a guest spot on Hey Dad..!

Update: Matt Young’s article on news.com.au has a clip with just the interview, so you don’t have to listen to the whole show.

http://www.news.com.au/video/id-VvcXkydDovDF7jYKlthZjwE2uOG4mcKD/Is-this-John-Laws’-worst-interview-ever?

March 5, 2015

Knox Grammar

Royal Commission and Knox Grammar

The Royal Commission into Child Abuse has been uncovering a lot of horrific stories of abuse in Australia. I think while it’s devastating that so many people have been abused, and some of their stories are heart wrenching, some of the reactions to the abuse have been much worse.

Hearing people discuss the abuse at Knox Grammar has kind of shocked me. There are plenty of people online who seem to imply that these kids deserved it because their parents sent them to a fancy pants grammar school.

I’ve been to both public school, and private school. When I attended Meriden, Knox Grammar was in our circle of friends. We all huddled together on the train station. We attended the same functions. Just because we were private school kids, didn’t make us any less human. It didn’t make us any more deserving of abuse. To suggest that the parents of these kids are to blame because they were more interested in sending their kids to a grammar school than a state school is appalling. I don’t care if you have a beef with private schools getting money from the government. I don’t care if you once hated a kid who went to a private school. I don’t care if you’re secretly jealous that you didn’t get to attend a private school.

Nobody, and I mean nobody, deserves to be abused. Whether you’re a millionaire’s daughter attending Ascham, a janitors kid on a free scholarship at Knox, or a middle class kid attending the local state high school. No matter your status, or income bracket, all children deserve to grow up, free of abuse.

February 6, 2015

Team Former Child Star!

How awesome is Maureen McCormick?

Anyone who has read my blog, tweets, or FB page knows I’m a sucker for reality TV. Especially Celebreality TV. Too many actors are these inaccessible people, who maintain a complete facade. It’s all about a “brand” and doing whatever one needs to do to maintain that brand, whether that’s really them or not. Celebreality TV destroys that. It breaks someone down to who they really are, bad editing or not. Sure, you can edit someone to look like an arsehole, by cutting clips together of things they’ve said, but if they hadn’t said them in the first place, then they couldn’t do that…

I love getting to see the real person. If you’re a good person, you’ve got nothing to worry about. If you’re an arsehole, then maybe celebreality isn’t for you. Or maybe it is. Some people LOVE to be the arsehole.

I know a lot of people say that shows like “I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here” are for C grade has beens, or like a lot of twitter people like to say, Who are these people? I don’t know any of them.” Seriously, if you don’t know who any of the cast are, then you need to get out more. I haven’t lived in Australia for 12 years, and even I know most of them. I’ll admit, I didn’t know Joel or Tyson, but I certainly know Chrissie Swan, Daddo, Merv, Leisel and of course, Maureen. If you don’t know who Maureen is, then I’m sorry, but, you’re an idiot. When you tweet you don’t know who these people are, it says a lot more about you than any of these people. Also, to those who say, “More like C list Celebrities.” A C list celebrity is still a celebrity. The show isn’t called “I’m an A lister, get me out of here.” Did people really expect that A listers would be on this show? Firstly, an A lister would never do a reality show. They limit themselves to very small talk show segments, where people don’t have enough time to see anything but their manufactured image. Also, A listers are busy. Or, they already have enough money they don’t need to go to the jungle for weeks. I’d much rather see a normal celebrity who is willing to have a go and make fun of themselves. People who are willing to let the public see the real them.

People think celebrities go on these shows simply for money, or to revive a career. Sure, that’s part of it. But if you were offered a chance to spend several weeks in Africa, wouldn’t you jump at it? I would. Most people pay thousands of dollars to go camping in Africa. These guys are getting paid to do it. Ok, so maybe they’re not on a fun safari, but they’re still in Africa. I’m sure they get a week there afterwards to enjoy it.

The big thing though, is it’s a challenge. I commend all those taking part in getting out of their comfort zones. For trying something new. For taking a chance on doing something out of the ordinary. To face their phobias. It’s easy for a celebrity to say no. To just stay in their designer outfits, and go hang out on a red carpet. To eat in fabulous restaurants. It takes some balls to say “fuck it, I’m going to go slum it for a few weeks and eat slimy bugs and ostrich anus”. As hard as it will be for them now, it will all be worth it when it’s over. Too many celebrities are surrounded by yes men. They become lazy and complacent. They don’t have to push themselves. Sometimes they forget how strong they are. These challenges will push them, remind them that they’re strong. Remind them of how great their life is back home. Small things like a flat white will be a big deal. Hot showers, amazing. Going home to a warm bed, brilliant.

This show is designed to push people to their absolute breaking point. That’s the point. To make pampered celebrities squeal that they can’t take it, and want to go home to their comfy lives. I love watching it though and seeing these people remember how fabulous they have it. It reminds people not to take everything for granted. Sure, some of the challenges seem easy, and from the comfort of your couch you can scream at Laura to suck it up princess. But, if she genuinely has a phobia of fish, maybe it was too much for her. We couldn’t smell it from home. I’m sure it was putrid. Let’s not forget these people are sleep deprived, food deprived and are being watched 24/7. After getting covered in filth, they have to try to get clean in a cold shower, with no privacy. How do you clean the fish guts out of your privates without taking your bikini off? Ugh. No thank you. Of course, I’m way bitchier than the rest of those people, so when I found out that she was in charge of our meals for the next three days, I wouldn’t be coddling her and telling her that if she can’t do it, it’s ok, we’ve got rice and beans, and then talking about her while she’s gone. I’d go all drill sergeant on her and let her know that everyone is depending on her, and she just needs to put her big girl panties on and do it. Everyone is hungry, and she needs to man up. (Yep, I’d be the arsehole of the show)

It also teaches the audience not to judge a celebrity before the first couple of days. Everyone thought that Maureen was crazy, and she’d be the first to tap out. Then she showed she probably has the biggest set of brass balls in there. Never underestimate a child star. They have an amazing work ethic, will be the best team players, and will do what needs to be done. They’re mentally tough. They’ve probably been through way more than anyone can imagine. She was thrown into a group of people, and didn’t know anyone. It had to be hardest for her. Or maybe easier, because she didn’t have any preconceived notions.

I say good luck to everyone on there. May your efforts be worth it. May you learn a bunch about yourself. May you find your inner strength. Good on all of you for giving it a go! I think you’re all fabulous. Especially you Maureen.

September 30, 2014

Satanic Cults in Australia

Ritualized abuse

For a long time, there has been quiet talk about Satanic Ritual Abuse in Australia. There have been a few people who have spoken up, and most were very quickly shut down. People don’t want to know about any type of abuse, let alone satanic ritual abuse.

Lately though, the rumbling are getting louder. More and more people are starting to talk about having survived high level pedophiles. They’re talking about being passed around. They’re talking about untouchable people doing unspeakable things.

Seeing how many people have been silenced over childhood assaults by regular civilians, it’s not hard to imagine just how intimidated those who have been tortured by high level politicians, celebrities, sports people and even lawmakers would feel.

On the day I was on Studio 10, talking about how there are still pedophiles in the entertainment industry, another girl was speaking out. Fiona Barnett spoke of how she had been subjected to abuse as a child. She has already spoken before the Royal Commission, and explained how she was abused by a large ring of people, including members of parliament, a police commissioner, and the father of a well known celebrity in Australia.

I haven’t met Fiona, but I have no reason to doubt her story. Just because we don’t want to believe something is true, because it just sounds too awful to imagine, doesn’t mean we should dismiss a story as a wild fabrication. Surfing the web, anytime someone brings up satanic pedophile cults, it’s instantly dismissed as the ramblings of a crazed conspiracy theorist. When I first spoke out, I was lauded as a crazed has been former child star seeking my extra 15 minutes. Ten Convictions later, and we know I wasn’t crazy. I think one day we’ll also find out that those speaking about satanic abuse aren’t crazy either.

I hope Fiona is listened to. I hope she finds her justice. I hope more people listen to her story, and we can stop more children being abused.

If you have experienced something similar to Fiona, please speak up. The more that speak, the louder we are, the better the chances are of saving the next kids.

September 17, 2014

More Celebreality!

Aussie version of I’m a Celebrity

So it was announced a couple months ago that Channel Ten and ITV have gotten together, and are making an Aussie version of I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here.

I’m sure they made the announcement so that all the potential talent would know it was coming up, and that this would happen:

Quite a brilliant move actually. Instead of hunting down potentials, only to be turned down, why not just have everyone who thinks they want to eat worms and be covered in spiders come to you? I can understand why everyone is lining up too. The UK version is a massive hit, and really does wonders with people’s careers over there. A “celebrity” gets to push their own personal boundaries, they get to help out a charity of their choosing, and they might make some new friends. (Or if you’re Peter Andre, an ex wife) With not a lot of work in Australia, it’s seems especially appealing to even the B listers. Of course you’re not going to get A listers on there. They’re already working. Plus, honestly, they’d be boring. It’s always much more fun to watch someone who doesn’t have “a brand to protect”, or who thinks they’re way too special for this, and gets taken down a peg or two. I do hope though, they don’t follow the US route and purposely pick a cast that they know will be a train wreck, like they did by putting Heidi and Spencer Pratt on there. It’s much more interesting watching the polite British who are so cordial to each other slowly unfold, than go straight in with the punches. I think there’s enough drama watching grown men cry while getting spiders on their face without having Heidi cry because someone took her dry shampoo…. I’m sure there will be a token foreigner on there. It seems like there’s always a foreigner on every Aussie celebreality show. – Please don’t put Speidi on there. Please.

I think it will be interesting having it in Africa. As long as nobody gets Ebola. I know there are people who think it should be filmed in Australia, since they already have a set there, but the whole point is to take people out of their comfort zone. Sticking a bunch of Aussie’s in the “outback” of NSW probably isn’t going to phase anyone. At least in Africa you’ve got some new wildlife. Plus, who wouldn’t want a free trip to South Africa?

celeb10 So, good luck to everyone trying to get on there. Better watch some of the foreign versions of YouTube so you know what you’re getting in to! Ya’ll know I’m a sucker for celebreality, so I’ll be watching.

Just remember, chew, chew, swallow. 😉

If you’re a sucker for celebreality like I am, you can keep up with the new Aussie version of I’m a Celeb on Twitter, or go to their FB page.

August 18, 2014

Very angry

Wanna know how to get me upset?

Wanna know how to piss of a victim of abuse? Wait until another person goes public about their abuse, and then suggest that they’re just doing it for money for fame.

I don’t think people grasp the concept that not everyone wants to be famous. Not everyone is looking for that 15 minutes. Some people just want to be heard. They want justice. They want to right a few wrongs.

Everytime I see a new person who is being investigated, for just a minute, I’m so happy that others are following in my footsteps, and are taking on the high profile untouchables. But that joy doesn’t last very long, because it only takes a few minutes for the doubters to come out. All the people who think the only reason a person would ever speak up is because they want to be the next Kim Kardashian, or they want to pad their bank accounts.

Except for me, I can’t recall the last public figure who actually named another public figure, and then went to court. Corey Feldman spoke up about the industry, but didn’t name specific people. There’s a few others in the US who have spoken up, but unfortunately, the US has a statue of limitations. If a person doesn’t press charges pretty quick, then it just becomes slander if they name someone. Over here, people will speak up to let others know it’s happened, or is still happening. I have spoken to several other former kid actors over here in the US who have been through abuse. Some spoke up, some didn’t. They all know how terribly hard it is to live with, being judged. Every little thing you say will be over analyzed, picked apart, recorded, and then, if you’re lucky enough to make it to court, it can and will be used against you. Ever drunk tweeted Simon Cowell? Well, you can bet your arse that will come up in court. Ever said you thought a certain party would be fun to attend? Oh, you must be making up a story of abuse so that you can hob nob with the other actors then.

Most public figures simply don’t say anything. They don’t want to get involved. It’s messy. Contrary to popular belief, it doesn’t help your career. Not all publicity is good publicity. Corey has been steadily working for years. Not box office gold, but he’s still working. Think his going public about him and Haim being abused helped his career? Pfth. He copped so much shit after that, I’d be surprised if he ever talked about it again. Imagine trying to speak up and have Barbara tell you “You’re ruining an entire industry.” Think I helped my career by standing up? I was slowly finding my place in life. I was just getting my shit together. Then I went public. I couldn’t make a comeback to TV if I wanted to these days. No one would hire me. I was asked to do Celebrity Apprentice the first year, but my “minders” told me not to do it, because it would look bad if we went to court. Now it’s over, I won’t get anything either. There’s not a lot of work for people who speak up against their own. Right now, it’s “too soon” after court. Next year, I’ll be long forgotten.

As a public figure, you’re not supposed to talk about how hard the journey is, in case others who are thinking of speaking up hear you, and decide not to. There’s so much pressure to constantly say the right thing. Everyone is watching, waiting. So many people put demands on you. They’ll all use your name publicly, as if they’re right there with you, when in most cases, they haven’t checked in on you for months. When it’s over though, they all give you a pat on the back, publicly of course, then move on to the next cause. You’re left standing there, life in tatters, not knowing where to go, who your friends are, or what to do next. Can you do what you want now without people watching and speculating? If you decide to go back to TV, will it be used against you in an appeal? Will people come out and think, well, she must have been planning this all along? Or do you just go crawl back under the rock you were dragged out from? Give up on everything? Some days that seems much easier.

So if it’s that hard for people who are used to the public scrutiny, I can’t imagine what it would be like for a non public person. Funny though, with all these people pointing foul, and claiming anyone speaking up must be doing it for fame or money, I couldn’t name a single person off the top of my head who has spoken up against Robert, Rolf, Jimmy, Max or now Cliff. Can you? Do you know who any of these people are? There are literally hundreds of people who went to police about Jimmy Saville. Hundreds. Can you name any of them? What about Rolf? What about Robert? Do you even know how many people were involved in the Robert investigation? Think it was just the five that went to court? Nope. That’s just the ones who had enough evidence the police could lay charges. There was more. Many more of us. But apart from his niece, who didn’t get charges laid, do you know who any of them are? Do you think we somehow all came out of this four year ordeal better off? Are we now all rich and famous? Are we driving around in Bentleys, on our way to the Yacht Club? Are we drinking with the hipsters in Ibiza? Am I back in Oz, working on a TV show? Better still, did I manage to convert my infamy in Oz to a career in Hollywood? Yeah, cause that’s just what a producer here is looking for…. A has been child star from a foreign country who pressed charges against her on screen dad, while implicating her producer and network. Gosh, I have no idea why I don’t have people from Hollywood offering me stacks of cash for a reality show. – Yes, that was sarcasm. (Which you’ll learn you need to point out for when your blog posts come up in court)

What about any of the other cases? Are any of those people better off? Have they made a wad of cash? Are they on Oprah? Or DWTS? Or anything?

No. Nobody presses charges against a celebrity for sexual abuse to better themselves. At least not financially. It certainly doesn’t help with your street cred either. It just makes people uncomfortable. Nobody knows what to say in front of you. People at work will be paranoid that you’re now the sexual harassment lawsuit girl. People will think you magically got a bunch of money. Not sure where from. I didn’t get any victims of crime money. The govt slashed it while the police were investigating. Robert’s lawyer made a big deal about spreading the rumor that his client was bankrupt. (Of course, he’s still got enough for an appeal though) Not that I could sue anyway. While there’s no statute for criminal charges, one for a civil suit passed well before we went public. We can have the dates waived with a court order, but after being through court once, I doubt most people have the energy left to fight again. I know I don’t. I do hope all the girls in the Rolf Harris case can band together for strength and follow through on their case for compensation. They probably won’t get much after lawyers fees, etc, but hopefully it’s enough they can pay for counseling, or at least a time out to de-stress from the court proceedings.

I know I’m rambling on at this point. I guess all I really want to say is, before you open your mouth and declare that someone must be getting unfairly targeted for being a singer, actor, sportsperson or whatever, stop and think. Do you even know who the victim is? Do you know anything about them at all? Do you have any idea of what they’ve been through, or what it must be like for them to now be speaking up? Do you really think there’s anything to be gained by them pressing charges? Most importantly, when you open your mouth with your doubts, who else are you hurting? Are you questioning your own loved ones? Would they have told you something that was happening to them, but now won’t, because they think that you’ll think they’re just making it up? Are you passing judgement on a friend who may have been through abuse, but hasn’t shared that with you?

When you declare someone must be doing it for fame or fortune, it says a lot more about you than about the victim. It says that it’s something that you’d consider doing. That whole thing about robbers being worried about being robbed, or hitmen being killed, cheaters being cheated on, etc…

Most of us just want to stop the pain. We want to make it right. We want an apology. We didn’t make a consensual sex tape that “accidentally got leaked”. We were abused, against our will. We’ve already been stripped bare and had our emotions played with. We don’t need it again while already going through a shitty experience. Don’t be that person who pokes someone who’s already on a ledge.

July 16, 2014

A Secret Safe to Tell

Encouraging your kids to disclose abuse

I received a wonderful kids book from author Naomi Hunter.

Naomi wrote a children’s book, about the journey of a small child being abused, and how they found their voice and told somebody.

Most kids being abused are told by their abuser that it’s their secret. That they can’t tell anyone. That even if they did, that nobody would believe them, or they will get into trouble. Naomi shows all the emotions that kids go through, in a surprisingly simple way, and how when the little girl does speak, somebody believes her. It’s a little girl in the book, but it would work just as well with boy children.

I hope the government grabs this book, and puts it into every school library and every kids classroom in Australia. It’s such a simple book, yet so incredibly powerful. One child has already disclosed to her parents after reading the book.

You can get a signed copy of the book by going to Naomi’s FaceBook page or you can get it through the publisher here. You can also go to your local bookshop and have them order it in if it’s not already on the shelf.

Best of luck to you Naomi. So proud of you for such a great book.

July 10, 2014

The Judge said What?

Judge Garry Neilson said What?

A Sydney judge has compared incest and paedophilia to homosexuality, saying the community may no longer see sexual contact between siblings and between adults and children as “unnatural” or “taboo”.

District Court Judge Garry Neilson said just as gay sex was socially unacceptable and criminal in the 1950s and 1960s but is now widely accepted, “a jury might find nothing untoward in the advance of a brother towards his sister once she had sexually matured, had sexual relationships with other men and was now ‘available’, not having [a] sexual partner”.

He also said the “only reason” that incest is still a crime is because of the high risk of genetic abnormalities in children born from consanguineous relationships “but even that falls away to an extent [because] there is such ease of contraception and readily access to abortion”.

Ok, so it’s awesome that people no longer view gay sex as taboo. I’m glad he recognizes that. However, everything that comes out of his mouth after that just scares the shit outta me.

Does he really think that two consenting adult males who engage in sexual activity is the same as an adult male having sexual relations with a male child? Is he OK with an adult male having sex with a 10 year old boy, because gay sex is no longer taboo? Does he not understand that gay sex has nothing to do with pedophilia? One can be gay, and have no interest in little boys. One can be interested in little boys, and have no interest in consenting adult gay sex. One has absolutely nothing to do with the other.

Then there’s his comments on women. So he thinks it’s OK to fuck your sister, as long as she’s been with a couple guys before you? So many jokes about Tasmania come to mind, and suddenly, none of them are funny. I can’t believe this guy thinks it’s all good to look at your sister, think, yep, she’s obviously up for it, cause she’s been with a couple guys, had a kid, so if I want me some, I can just go get it. If I get her knocked up, I’ll just take her to get an abortion.

What planet does this guy live on? Even if a woman has had a relationship with a man and is no longer a virgin, that doesn’t mean that she is therefor open to any man to have sex with her. Does this Judge have a sister? I’m terrified for her if he does. What if he gets horny one night and thinks he can just have her?

This man needs a serious background check. Someone needs to dig in and see if he’s a member of NAMBLA. Anyone who thinks that a woman is just there to service a man, relative or not, doesn’t need to be sitting on the bench. If you can’t understand the difference between consensual sex, incest, and “oh hey, you’re not a virgin, so quit your whining”, needs some serious evaluation.

I hope this guy is disbarred. He needs to be forced off the bench. They need to go back and look at all his past cases, and see if he’s been unduly lenient to sex offenders and those charged with incest.

So grateful we’ve got the Royal Commission going on, and people are finally understanding the full effect of sexual assault on kids.

Let’s get ready for National Child Protection Week, 7th – 13th September 2014 by getting rid of this guy.

Read the Sydney Morning Herald article here. http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/judge-compares-incest-and-paedophilia-to-past-attitudes-towards-homosexuality-claiming-they-might-not-be-taboo-anymore-20140709-zt0v2.html

Thanks to Louise Hall for the article and bringing this guy to our attention.

July 8, 2014July 8, 2014

Accurate geography in reporting

When reporters can’t use a map

I know I shouldn’t let it bother me so much, but since news.com.au just loves to make a huge point of everytime an American report screws up geography about Australia, I feel it’s probably time someone pointed out when they drop the geographic ball.

Now, I know that some people in Australia think that in the US there’s LA on one side, NY on the other side, and not a whole lot in between, except for Texas. But that doesn’t mean that everything that doesn’t happen in LA or NY is therefor in Texas.

This case first came to my attention a couple months ago, because Calhoun County in Texas is in my area of operations at work. I read the article out to everyone, because we couldn’t believe we hadn’t heard about it, but it was on an Australian news site. Then when this popped up again today, well, lets just say I’m not impressed.

Now, I’m going to give the writers a bit of a break, and acknowledge that there is a Calhoun County in Texas. But this article states they are Calhoun High School students. So it’s the town, not the county. The article then states in happened in Gilmer County. Yes, there is also one of those in Texas. But the dead give away should have been the fact that they linked to an article; Gilmer Sheriff Stacey Nicholson told The Atlanta-Journal Constitution.

Atlanta is most definitely NOT in Texas. It’s in Georgia. Where, if anyone had even Googled this event, they’d immediately see that this is where this event occurred. So please, before you make another article on your site about how bad the US reporters are at geography, make sure you also know how to use a map….

California on the left, New York way up on the right, the big yellow one in the middle is Texas, and then there’s 47 other states in there where things happen too.

July 2, 2014July 2, 2014

Name and Shame

The debate over naming sex offenders

As many of you are aware, I am 100% behind the Derryn Hinch campaign to get a sex offender register in Australia. Living in Texas, where we have an online sex offender registry, which feeds into apps so I can see offenders around me at any time, I know that it can work. There’s no mass hysteria. There’s no public lynchings or floggings. No random acts of violence around offenders. There’s simply an awareness that there are predators out there, and a tool that lets you see where they are. It lets you plan your kids route to school, or know which houses to avoid while selling Girl Scout cookies. We’re not quite as radical as the Sheriff in Florida who puts up signs out the front of offenders houses, but we know these people exist. There’s something we should be learning from the high profile sex offenders that have been convicted over the last couple of years. The Daily Mail had an excellent article today about why Sex Offenders MUST be named. When I named Robert, it turned out other girls had been to police before, but he just kept managing to get it covered up. I went super public, and not only did other girls who had been to the police before get to re-open their cases, but many more girls went to the police. It wasn’t just the ones who managed to get charges against him. There were others. Many others. It’s just that some of us had enough proof to get charges laid. It doesn’t diminish what he did to the other girls, it’s just there wasn’t enough to secure a conviction. By going public though, not only did his victims come forward, but so did witnesses. People sent in photos, people gave first hand accounts of the things they had witnessed. Instead of the police having to track down potential witnesses, they had been calling them, setting up appointments. They were inundated, but it meant we got a guilty verdict.

Rolf Harris was under investigation back in 2012. It was hinted in the media who it was, but he had gotten a suppression order preventing the media from publicly naming him. Only a couple of girls at that point had come forward. When he was finally publicly named, many more women and witnesses came forward. It made the case stronger. There was another bunch of women in his case that had also been molested by him, but who didn’t get a day in court. But because he was publicly named, he will go to jail for all of them.

These celebrities hold a great deal of power. People are afraid to speak up against them. Especially when it’s just one person against a giant. It’s almost like a David and the Goliath battle. When only one person speaks up, people pounce on the victim, claiming they must be trying to tarnish a good man’s reputation, or they must be after fame or money. However, when a whole bunch of people start going to police, and it’s known that there are several complainants, even if nobody knows who they are, people have to start believing where there’s smoke, there’s fire. I can understand nobody coming out about Savile when he was alive. He was a very protected species. All of these people are. But once a couple people spoke, many more did, and now it looks like he may have been the worst sex offender ever seen in Britain. I’d like to see more of these offenders brought to justice, not just hear about them after they die. The Operation Yewtree investigation stemming from it though is amazing.

There’s a second point here. We have now seen several very high profile people charged as sex offenders. Robert Hughes, Rolf Harris, Max Clifford, Jerry Sandusky, Malcolm Fox, etc. If we can publicly name these high profile people as sex offenders, and have everyone know what they did, why can’t we name and shame everyday citizens who are harming people? People keep citing that by naming the offender, we’ll be letting people know who the victims are. Which just isn’t true. For six weeks, there was cameras out the front of the Downing Center court everyday. There was five victims, and many other witnesses. Except for me, nobody knows who any of the other victims are. If with all that public exposure the victims are still protected, I don’t buy that naming an offender will name the victim. The other thing we’ve learned is that these people don’t have just one victim. There are usually many, many victims. You can’t tell who their victims are when you name them. It could be anyone.

People in Australia seem to not want to understand that sex offenders are everyone. It’s not just one or two people. Right now, pedophiles are so protected, that people just don’t get they are everywhere. One in five kids in Australia will be molested before the age of 18. That’s a HUGE number of victims. Who do people think are committing all these offenses? A sex offender registry will let people see just how many offenders are out there. It might scare people at first to know just how many there are. After a minute, they’ll get over it. Instead of burying your head in the sand about it, it’s better to have an awareness, and then you don’t have to be fearful of it. You can pop on there and check out to see if your neighbour offering to mind your kids has a questionable past. You can see if the house you’re thinking of buying is in a neighbourhood with a bunch of offenders. You can check out your kids karate coach. Going on a date? See if the person is a rapist…

Knowledge is power. Pretending that sex offenders don’t exist doesn’t help anyone. It certainly doesn’t protect anyone. Next time you see a sex offender mentioned on the news, pay attention. Listen to see just how many times that person has been caught before, but simply moved to a new area and started offending again. If there was a register, people would know not to let that person near their kids.

Sign the petition. Get involved with organizations like Bravehearts. Educate yourselves, and your kids. Let’s make Australia a safer place to raise children.

Watch Derryn Hinch’s episode on Sunday Night on Seven to see more about the petition.