We do not condone sex crimes or sex offenses. They are criminal actions deserving of punishment. Sex crimes are exceptionally harmful and traumatic. Victims often suffer greatly and deal with a lot of emotional turmoil. There’s no minimizing that, we know how traumatic it is. There’s no excuse for harming another human being in any way. Nothing, and I mean nothing, excuses the actions that lead to becoming a sex offender. None of the words you’ll read here are excuses. It is not a victims fault that someone chose to break the law or to harm another person.
So, why, “Forced to Register?”
Because it’s the only crime a person can commit and never be allowed to move on from. There is no registry for murder, manslaughter, domestic violence, DUI, torture, terrorism, child abuse, arson, drug trafficking, or any other crime. Only sex crimes result in being added to a public registry.
Most people don’t realize what being on the registry is actually like. Most people don’t realize that less than 3% of sex offenders ever commit another sex crime, that the recidivism (likelihood of committing the same crime again) rate is lower than that of any other criminal action. Most people don’t realize all of the things you can end up on a sex offender registry for doing or how easily most people could have ended up on it at some point in our lives. Most people don’t realize how easily their children could end up on the Sex Offender Registry or what to teach them so that they don’t.
It’s often assumed that the people listed on the Sex Offender Registry are dangerous, that they’re all pedophiles or rapists, that there’s no cure and they’ll just keep doing it as long as they’re free. They’re usually considered the lowest of the low. Read any comment thread on a social media news post about a sex offender and you’ll see things like, “hang them all!” “they should all be castrated!” “they all deserve to die!” and similar statements.
I’ve been the person who believed that way. I think most anyone who has experienced sexual abuse or rape or has gone through it with a friend or family member has had those feelings. And, frankly, I’m sure that every single one of us knows someone who has experienced sexual violence or abuse.
I’m glad I took the time to learn more, to see the reality of what being on a Sex Offender Registry entails, and to understand just how broken this system is and the false sense of security we get from it.
Please take the time to learn the reality, to see how easily so many people could end up on this list, and to delve deeper in to what the real dangers are.
