Sexual Violence is Real….

This blog post has been rolling around in my mind for a little while now. A couple weeks ago I started seeing a lot of posts on Facebook about Penn State and Joe Paterno. Here in Bolivia, I am almost always out of the loop regarding news. Mostly because I use our limited Internet time to write and read personal emails. Curious, I did a Google search and eventually stumbled on the original story regarding PSU. What a tragic story- not simply due to the abuse that occurred, but because people knew about it (or at least suspected it) and did NOTHING. The abuse could have been prevented or stopped, but it wasn’t because people were SILENT. 

For me, the story held a strong connection to my work here in Bolivia. Three weeks ago I started working at CUBE- Centro Una Brisa de Esperanza (English translation is A Breeze of Hope Center). This is one of MAP Bolivia’s projects and is a center that focuses on providing services to children (boys and girls) and adolescents that have been sexually abused. CUBE provides legal services as well as social and psychological services. 

My job at CUBE thus far is checking the database, making sure that all of the cases from 2004 (when CUBE began) until now are in the system. This requires going through each individual case, typing the name into the computer. To be honest, the job can be a little mind numbing. But, something occurred to me as I typed name after name after name- each of these children has been sexually abused in some way, shape, or form. Hundreds upon hundreds of cases have passed through CUBE in the past 7 years. As I typed the names I started praying for each of these children.

Something has struck me as I have begun working at CUBE… Oftentimes, our culture treats sexual violence as a taboo topic. It makes us uncomfortable so we just don’t talk about it. This surely is the wrong approach. 

This difficult, but important topic hit even closer to home recently. I found out that a friend of mine was brutally assaulted and raped in her home in the U.S. by a complete stranger. The news left me feeling all sorts of emotions- anger, fear, confusion. Why did this happen? Why did this happen to her?

 

I don’t have the answers and granted what happened to my friend is not the same as a child being sexually abused by a family member, BUT it is related.  Sexual violence is sexual violence. These things are real and are happening in this messed up, broken world. And although I am still figuring out how to respond something I am sure of is turning a blind eye is NOT the right response. CUBE has a saying- “¡¡¡No Calles, Rompe El Silencio!!!”- Don’t Be Quiet, Break the Silence!!! Although remaining silent is the easiest thing to do we must speak out. We must break the silence. 

As I continue working at CUBE I will write more about their work and about what you can to “break the silence”. For now, please join with me in praying for my friend, for all the children and adolescents of CUBE, and the thousands of others in the world who have been victims of sexual violence.  

May the Lord bring physical, mental, and emotional healing to them all. Amen.