The Herald
The Ellis Case
Letters to the Editor
by John Read (Devonport).
Lynley Hood and her supporters like to portray the increase in concern about
child sexual abuse as mass hysteria. Those signing the Brash petition are,
understandably, concerned about wrongful convictions. Aren't we all? But how many hundreds more must sign up
before the campaign itself becomes mass hysteria?
Some of these self-proclaimed experts in child abuse and the law are, in fact,
agriculturalists, food experts, athletes and talkback radio hosts. They are
joined by professors of aesthetics, dentistry, neurosurgery, neuroscience,
history, philosophy, feminist studies and marketing.
Under less hysterical circumstances they might remember the valuable traditions
of staying within one's area of knowledge and not using one's university title
to add false grandeur to personal opinions in other fields.
As an abuse survivor I would be more sympathetic to this obviously well-intentioned
campaign if it showed equal interest in children. Where is the call for royal
commissions into why the vast majority of abuse cases never even get reported,
let alone make it to court, and into why our child abuse intervention and
prevention services are so under-resourced? Add that to the petition and I
might join in the hysteria and sign it, too.