As a woman who must daily manage the brutal consequences imprinted by the crippling trauma of sexual abuse I need to emphasize how the proper use of terminology is vitally important to recovery, though it is mostly ignored. Please, when you are speaking about victims or to a victim of sexual abuse, please, please refrain from using personal pronouns. Always refer to the abuser/rapist as THE rapist, THE abuser. Using YOUR rapist, YOUR abuser incorrectly infers a relationship, a responsibility, etc..
Language is the first line of defense in becoming whole. As a society we can help victims recover by allowing/encouraging them to verbally distance themselves from any personal relationship to the violator. That small shift in terminology is a step toward freedom. This is a subtle, but very meaningful shift that we as a culture can make. No one would ever say to a victim, YOUR pedophile.
Thank you,
Kathleen
Language is the first line of defense in becoming whole. As a society we can help victims recover by allowing/encouraging them to verbally distance themselves from any personal relationship to the violator. That small shift in terminology is a step toward freedom. This is a subtle, but very meaningful shift that we as a culture can make. No one would ever say to a victim, YOUR pedophile.
Thank you,
Kathleen
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