Even though GOP state legislatures continue to pass laws against transgender bathrooms, existing data show that a child is far more likely to be molested at a church.
In 2014, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops published a report on sexual abuse in the Roman Catholic Church, which stated as many as 17,259 accusations had been made against at least 6,427 priests between 1950 and 2013. These figures did not even account for the gross underreporting or include the unbelievably large number of people who came forward in 2003 in the wake of the Boston Globe’s groundbreaking report on sexual abuse within the Roman Catholic Church by their Spotlight team. After all, a law on transgender bathrooms would not have helped a single one of these survivors, many of whom had to live in silence with their shame and trauma for decades.
In the meantime, for all the debate surrounding same-sex marriage and public bathrooms for transgender individuals, evangelical protestant churches have plenty of questions to answer first. In May this year, an expose of Josh Duggar’s sexual misadventures revealed how America’s most loved Christian family is not as lovable as they seem while in February, Washingtonian published a story exposing decades of sexual abuse suffered by children at Sovereign Grace Ministries.
According to Victims of Crime, every one in five girls and one in 20 boys find themselves suffering sexual abuse. Similarly, Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network states the majority of perpetrators are individuals known to the child or the family. Apparently, as many as 93 percent of all survivors below the age of 18 have known their abusers in some capacity.
All of this information goes a long way in explaining why a child, teenager or adolescent is more likely to be molested at a church than inside a transgender bathroom.
As a matter of fact, evangelical leaders have become so concerned about sexual abuse in churches that Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment was founded to educate, train and help faith communities to prevent such incidents. However, the facts revealed via a Powerpoint presentation truly show the arduous journey that lies ahead of them.
- Accusations related to child abuse against American protestant churches average 70 per week. The number may be much higher due to underreporting.
- One percent churches surveyed report abuse accusations each year.
- Of all victims, 42 percent are volunteers, 25 percent employed staff members and another 25 percent children.
- A child molester typically preys on 50 to 150 children before finally being caught.
What is particularly frightening is that sexual abuse and child molestation are likely to take place within churches due to a toxic combination of a high level of trust placed in church leaders and an authoritarian upbringing that children in their charge are usually subjected to. Understandably, it is difficult to defend one’s self from abuse when he or she may have been taught to obey adults without questioning them at all. GRACE refers to this phenomenon that contributes to sexual abuse in churches as Five Exploitations.
- Exploitation of religious cover: Child molesters typically gain cover for their inappropriate behavior by embracing different religious practices and doctrine while still having access to children.
- Exploitation of faith: The victim maintains silence and continues to feel confused because of his or her own analysis of religious doctrine.
- Exploitation of power: Children are conditioned to submit to authority from their earliest years.
- Exploitation of needs: People are always willing to volunteer for the church and do not necessarily seek remuneration in exchange of their good deeds. To top that, churchgoers often feel the need for spiritual solace and support.
- Exploitation of trust: Churches promise a trusting environment, especially to families with children while churchgoers are taught to trust blindly in God and those that represent him.
All of this data cannot possibly be compared to the data on child molestation in transgender bathrooms, as the figure for that is nonexistent. According to Mic, there are such few reports on children being molested in public restrooms by transgender individuals that no one has ever felt the need to gather statistics.
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