Keeping a low profile

[Fragment]

So the idea that a lot of anti-c people avoid pro-c viewpoints (both expressing them and engaging with them) out of worry came up recently and I found the following reddit topic that kind of reinforces the notion.

This thread is from /r/SexOffenderSupport and a fairly strong theme running through the comments is “I just want to keep my head down”. I’ve heard the same from people involved with NARSOL- even while fighting to change the registry they just don’t want to touch the elephant in the room that is minor-attraction. It’s easier to say “I made a mistake, I’m not going to do it again” than point out injustices in the current system.

But what a big elephant it is! According to this

In the study by Steel, Newman, O'Rourke, Quayle (2022a), the sample estimated that 78.56 % of individuals committing CSAM offences had a pedophile preference.
[…]
Most studies have identified <50 % of offenders as having a pedophilic preference (Babchishin et al., 2015; Lam et al., 2010; Paquette et al., 2022; Seto, 2021), however at least one study of individuals imprisoned for CSAM offences identified rates as high as 65%for pedophilic disorder (Seiser et al., 2023).

Hundreds and thousands of MAPs are registered. Not by a list that explicitly targets us, no, but one that implicitly does. Laws against anal sex usually didn’t explicitly target gay men, either. But we all know who they were meant for.

Yet it’s easier to put your head down, behave, and pretend you just had a lapse of judgment. Maybe many offenders don’t even realize their preferential attraction pattern. The very linear nature of age (as opposed to the more binary nature of gender attraction) can make it harder to recognize.

Lark mentioned the same thing about lolisho communities. There is a massive lack of self-awareness. And it’s just so much easier to hide. And even if you do break the law, to just hope you don’t get caught.

[Phossu]

It's always easier to keep your head down. It is hard enough to live with the stigma, misconceptions, and hatred without standing up to fight for yourself. People are even less likely to listen to those on the registry and those who have been convicted of a crime, so it makes sense that this community in particular would tend to avoid confrontation.

I think there are so many more MAPs who don't realize or otherwise run from their attractions. I didn't consider myself a pedophile until recently, but I've always been one. As the stigma slowly erodes, I suspect many more will join us.