UK boy, 14, must register as sex offender after
child sex abuse images found
By Ellis Whitehouse
A 14-YEAR-OLD boy has to register as a sex offender after making more than a hundred indecent images of a child.
The boy, from the Southend borough, admitted six counts of making or distributing indecent photographs at Basildon Youth Court yesterday.
Among the images captured by the teen were dozens in the highest category of vile, obscene and sexualised photographs.
The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, appeared with his mother in front of District Judge John Woollard. He spoke only to confirm his name, age and address, and to admit his crimes.
The teen admitted making 24 category A images - the most obscene - between September and November last year. He admitted making 34 category B images during the same period and 76 category C images during a three month period.
The boy also admitted distributing seven category A images on November 6. The same day he distributed eight category B images. And over the course of November 6 and November 7 he distributed 19 images of children.
The teenager was arrested in November last year.
Addressing the teenager, Judge Woollard told him he must now register as a sex offender before being sentenced in May.
He said: “I’m going to release you on bail, but under several conditions.
“You cannot use any device that can access the internet that does not have the ability to access the internet history.
“You must not delete any internet history, and you must have all devices available for an inspection by a police officer.
“These offences also mean you must register as a sex offender, which you will need to attend a police station to do.”
The boy was also told that as a pre-sentence condition he must not be left unsupervised with a child for any period of time.
The court was told that the boy was “of good character” and had no previous recorded offences.
He has been released into the care of his family and is due to be sentenced at Southend Magistrates’ Court next month.
The boy could be sentenced to time in a youth detention facility but could also be put on a programme to try and change his behaviour in the future.
The length of time he will be kept on the sex offenders’ register and any restrictions on him in the future will be confirmed during sentencing.
The Thai Children putting a brave face on the horror of sexual abuse
The Observer
Young survivors confront the world in their own hand-drawn masks for photographer Marieke van der Velden
Kate Kellaway
The Guardian
Children from two shelters in Thailand, all of them victims of commercial sexual exploitation, hold up the masks they have drawn to depict how they would like to be seen, as part of an awareness project to convey their plight.
Clockwise from top left: Beem, 13; Tas, 14; Kite, 13; Ta, 12; Som, 16; Heng, 12.
Photograph: Marieke van der Velden
When photographer Marieke van der Velden was asked by the Dutch charity Down to Zero to do an awareness-raising project on Thai children who had been victims of commercial sexual exploitation, she was uncertain how to proceed. For obvious reasons, her subjects’ faces could not be shown.
At home in Amsterdam, she wondered: might the children draw masks? She had a go at drawing her own face (“completely impossible”) and took a snap of her husband, posed behind her mask. This made her smile. She decided the young people could choose to draw themselves or someone else – a person they would like to be. They were enthusiastic, she says: it must have been a surprise – a break from their harrowing stories – to be invited to pick up coloured pencils, to hide behind squares of paper. “It was fun,’’ Marieke says (who thinks her earlier career as a primary school teacher may have sparked the idea). This was a slow, benign, unusual idea. As a photographer, she has done reportage for NGOs and had often felt her work had been “too fast”, especially for children, whenever painful stories were being told.
Down to Zero is an alliance of five organisations working in 11 countries, supported by the ministry of foreign affairs in the Netherlands, and its website describes commercial sex abuse of children as a “complex problem with multiple drivers”. Two million children worldwide are said to have been victims of commercial child abuse. Exploitation thrives along with the growth in western tourism and the explosion of the internet (smartphone usage and poverty are a particularly unholy alliance). The charity’s aim is to enable children to defend their own rights, to make communities safer and to enable governments to improve and implement policies that prevent commercial sexual abuse. The charity also works in the private sector and with the tourist industry.
In Thailand, Van der Velden was photographing in two shelters – one a drop-in day centre. Some of her subjects were still at risk because, she explains, it is not a simple swap to move from street to shelter: “Some of them may feel they have a better time on the streets.”
Throughout the project, she was conscious of her privileged distance. She was glad not to be asking any of the children directly (she communicated via interpreters) about what they had suffered. “I felt we are from another part of the world,” she says. “Who am I to ask what happened? Too much for an afternoon.”
Most children drew other people: a Korean pop star Van der Velden had never heard of, Manga characters… They could not believe she did not know their heroes: what planet was she from?
She laughs and, as we talk, singles out her favourite portraits. Tas, 14, was “a shy guy” who had been trafficked with his cousin to a British man, via an agent who had found them on the beach. They were given $13 to perform sexual acts; this went on for a fortnight. Tas was 11 at the time and is slowly recovering from the trauma. He spent two hours working on his mask, elaborating it with shadows. He was “so proud of it that he seemed to be growing during the drawing”. He wanted to help Van der Velden with the composition, suggesting the addition of plastic flowers.
Beem, 13, with whom she had a special rapport, was a girl with an edge. Her mother was a hard drug user, and Beem “had to put on sexual performances for Asian and western tourists”. As early as 10, she had been roaring through the streets of Bangkok on a motorcycle. She made van der Velden impossibly sweet milkshakes and urged her to drink them. “She was a real street girl, yet also very kind and funny. If Beem is fighting, she will be fighting hard.”
She talks fondly about little Bon, 12. “He was a small boy and this is my favourite photograph.” Bon was insecure about his mask. He kept saying: “I am not sure if this is at all nice.” As an afterthought, he added teeth to his mask so he could bite when necessary.
This young survivor, who is pregnant with her third child, drew a house instead of a face
Phed, 13, who had been assaulted by a foreigner in a temple and suffered from behavioural issues, was not taking any chances, insisting on being Godzilla – the ultimate bodyguard.
Fon, 20, asked to be able to draw a house instead of a face. It makes poignant sense: she already had two children and was pregnant with a third. The shelter was helping her raise her children and send them to school. She told Van der Velden she wanted to draw a dream house for her husband – once he is released from prison.
Som, 16 – last and by no means quietest – behaved as if she was high on drugs (she had always been homeless and, at one time, a dealer). She drew her portrait at speed and would only stay three minutes while her photograph was taken – and then she was gone.
Van der Velden is, in all her work, driven by a fierce sense of the need for equality. She would love to believe that this project would make men think twice about what they are doing, but realistically considers the photographs she has taken as not “harsh” enough. Yet what matters in the photographs, as in their lives, is that the children are respected.
Van der Velden flinches at the knowledge that, for many of these children, sexual abuse was so normalised right from the beginning that it was only later in their lives that they realised what had happened to them, and only then began to understand that they had all been the victims of “such a big lie”.
Culture of Same-sex Child Abuse in Pakistan
Haider Rifaat
Same-sex child abuse is an act of coerce violence committed by older men on underage boys. It is an overlooked, abysmal part of Pakistan’s crime culture. We often cite females in the media as prime victims of child abuse however, the shelved stories of young males are seldom brought to light. The trend is gradually changing with social media debunking the ugly side of a long overdue problem. Since 2017, the incidents of same-sex child abuse have mounted. According to a DAWN report published in February this year, male coal miners residing in Shahrag, Baluchistan have hired young boys for self-pleasure. Heavily populated by Pashtuns, minors fall prey to sexual advances every day.
Business Recorder stated that 1,738 juvenile males that make nearly half of the total 3,832 were victims of sexual violence last year.
BBC Urdu found 7,242 boys sexually abused from 2013 until early 2019 in Pakistan.
The non-governmental organization Sahil reported that 10 children per day were subject to sexual abuse in 2018.
A man molested and murdered a seven-year old in Marchabad while
an 11-year old boy was gang raped by three adult men in Taxila.
Similarly, in Rawalpindi’s Razzaq Town, four men repeatedly abused an innocent teenager.
Another man alleged of raping and filming a 17-year old in Mandi Bahauddin made headlines last month.
It is also important to reconsider our trust in the law enforcement because a case involved the Lahore police for torturing an 8-year old minor while in custody.
There is no end to the issue of child sexual abuse because we have chosen not to do anything about it. There is a difference between reporting a problem and solving it for the betterment of our children and their future. Although child protection laws exist in Pakistan including the Criminal Laws Amendment Bill, the National Commission on the Rights of Children Bill and the Charter on the Child Rights Bill, their effects are minimal.
As evidenced above, perpetrators across Pakistan have not receded from violating the freedom of children, specifically innocent young boys. We immediately associate brutality with girls without forethought that abuse can go beyond the female gender. It is high time we realize that underage males are no longer safe as we consider them to be.
It is the responsibility of parents to run background checks of who they hire as domestic help. There are alternatives to keeping children safe; for instance, developing the habit of engaging in household activities such as reading instead of playing cricket or football is the safest of all options because it enables creative learning. It further prevents children from traps set up by male predators in the neighborhood that can lead to abuse and consequently affect their personality and future.
The imprints left on children post violence pose a greater threat to their social development. We would be better off discussing same-sex child abuse than choosing to ignore it simply because it is a shameful topic. It is a question of our coming generations. The only group of people we should feel disgust for are the culprits of sexual violence, who walk freely, while our children suffer for life.
Christian youth leader/lawyer sentenced to prison
for historic child sex abuse in UK
The brave victims of a ‘sexual predator who preyed on children’ in the 1970s and 1980s confronted their abuser in court today (Thursday 18 April) as he was jailed for more than 8 years.
Former Christian youth group leader Michael Pulsford, 68, admitted sixteen counts of indecently assaulting three boys and three girls aged between 12 and 15 at previous court hearings.
The charges followed a lengthy and challenging investigation carried out by Hampshire Constabulary’s Operation Marmion team, who specialise in investigating non-recent child sex abuse allegations.
Southampton Crown Court heard today that Pulsford, of Station Road in Corsham, Wiltshire, had been a leader at the Christian organisation ‘Crusaders’ where he met the majority of his victims.
The abuse, which spanned a 15 year period between 1974 and 1989, took place at football camps organised by Crusaders on the Isle of Wight, as well as at Pulsford’s home and in his office where he worked as a solicitor in Wiltshire, and in his car.
Prosecutor Simon Wilshire told the court that each victim encountered Pulsford by reason of them attending themselves, or knowing people who attended, the Crusaders.
The prosecutor said that one victim, a girl who was aged 15 at the time of the abuse, had met Pulsford through the Crusaders before conducting work experience at his solicitor’s firm. Mr Wilshire said: “The work experience went without incident and she was invited to return for a summer job. When she returned she started to get uncomfortable feelings.”
The court then heard how Pulsford proceeded to assault the teenager on three separate occasions, beginning with a forceful kiss on his office sofa before progressing to more serious sexual touching. He also told the girl that he had fantasised about having sex with her, before telling her ‘but we can’t, because you’re only 15.’
One victim, a boy aged 15, was taken into a dormitory and indecently assaulted by Pulsford during a sports camp on the Isle of Wight in 1974. Another was abused in Pulsford’s office in 1976, where Pulsford told him that he loved him, the court heard. “[The victim] thought he meant love in a mentoring and caring way, until it turned sexual,” Mr Wilshire said.
A third boy was abused at the age of 12 when spending the night at Pulsford’s Wiltshire cottage in 1978, where he was invited into bed with his abuser after the two stayed up watching a scary film. “[The victim] froze”, Mr Wilshere said, “he freaked out and jumped out of Pulsford’s bed and ran back to his room. Pulsford was aggressive and told him not to repeat what had happened”.
The court heard that another girl had been forcibly kissed by Pulsford in his home, who she had met as a result of her boyfriend attending the Crusaders, while a third girl had been groomed by Pulsford before he abused her ‘every Friday in the winter months’ of 1984 while she was a member of Crusaders.
‘I have cried enough tears to fill the River Thames’
Having lived with the horrors of the abuse for as long as 40 years, three of Pulsford’s victims defiantly confronted him in court today and read powerful victim impact statements to the judge. Other statements were read to the court by Mr Wilshire.
One victim said: “That week changed my life forever. I was a child in his care. Children need lines beyond which adults do not go. He manipulated me into making a choice that was not a choice. He bullied me for his own selfish gratification.
“I trusted him as a person of authority, a professed Christian. It never occurred to me that sexual activity was on the agenda.” He added: “I have cried enough tears to fill the River Thames.”
Pulsford remained stone-faced in the dock as victims talked about the shame and guilt they carried as a result of the abuse. In a statement, one victim told how he had very few memories of his childhood as he had ‘blocked them out’, and continues to struggle with chronic insomnia.
Another victim told the courtroom that he was haunted by media coverage of child abuse cases, and was ‘appalled’ to find out on Google that Pulsford had defended a number of child sex offence cases in his role as a solicitor.
Jailing Pulsford, His Honour Judge Peter Henry said: “What those who speak so highly of you did not know is that between 1974 and 1989 when you were aged 23 to 38 years-old, you were a sexual predator who preyed on six children, three boys and three girls, who at the time were aged between 12 and 15 years-of-age.
“Throughout that period, you were a leader of your local [Crusaders] group, and thereafter in a position of considerable influence over impressionable children.
“Very far from those Christian values that you were pretending to demonstrate, you took advantage of that relationship to abuse children sexually for your own gratification and with no regard for the damage that you were potentially doing, and as it turns out have done.”
Pulsford was handed a sentence of 8 years and 8 months in jail, and his name was added to a barred list preventing him from working with children for life.
Detective Inspector Toby Elcock, Senior Investigating Officer, said: “Michael Pulsford was trusted as a youth group leader to protect the children in his charge, but instead abused this trust over and over again by indecently assaulting them.
“This was a complex investigation carried out by the Operation Marmion team, and we are pleased that the victims have now finally found justice having suffered the effects of this terrible abuse for decades. The bravery and courage they have shown during the course of this investigation is remarkable.
“I want to appeal to anyone who has been affected by this type of abuse to come forward and talk to us, and be reassured that you don’t have to suffer in silence.”
We would encourage anyone who has been a victim of child abuse, or has any information about this type of abuse, to contact police on 101. Alternatively, contact Child Line on 0800 11 11, or if you are an adult who has been affected, you can call the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000.
Wiltshire, UK
Good neighbour sentenced for 'deviant' sex crimes against children over 25 years in Canada
AEDAN HELMER
Karl Thor Njolstad will spend a little more than seven years in prison for his “deviant” sex assaults against children — with numerous victims, some still unidentified — in horrific crimes dating back 25 years.
Justice Jonathan Brunet handed Njolstad a 10-year sentence this past week, granting credit for 30 months for time served since Njolstad’s arrest in August 2017.
Njolstad, 57, turned himself in two days after police were notified of the friendly man who would lure neighbourhood children into his home to “make movies,” promising rewards of pop, candy, toys and DVD movies as the kids dressed up in costumes and pretended to fly or swim in front of a green screen in his basement.
“That was the scheme used by Mr. Njolstad,” the judge said, as Njolstad preyed upon his victims, sexually assaulting blindfolded girls as young as seven and documenting the acts on cameras concealed around mirrors and mounted on drones.
“To call the facts disgusting would be an understatement,” Justice Brunet said in sentencing Njolstad. “Not to mention the significant abuse of trust of very young innocent children by way of a ruse for his own sexual deviancies.”
Njolstad, a former public servant, at first faced dozens of historical and current charges and eventually pleaded guilty to 12 counts of making and possessing child pornography, sexual touching, sexual assault and sexual interference of a minor, and one count of forcible confinement.
Karl Njolstad in a photo from Facebook showing him during a trip to Thailand. FACEBOOK
Police were called after a young girl discovered two cameras rolling, one at eye level and another at a lower angle, as she changed in Njolstad’s bathroom on Aug. 2, 2017, the same day Njolstad carried out a disturbing sexual assault on another young victim.
Investigators uncovered a cache of 6,330 images of child pornography, all created by Njolstad, with each of his disturbing crimes detailed in charges dating to April 1993.
Police said they feared there were more victims, and court heard of the devastating impact of Njolstad’s crimes on one of those victims, who came forward to police after reading Njolstad’s name and recognizing the crimes described in the newspaper.
All of Njolstad’s victims were under 14, and many of the historical victims remain unidentified.
“He nearly destroyed my life,” the now-adult victim said in a statement read into the court record by lead investigator Det. Tara Anderson.
“I’m not who I used to be and I’ll never know who I could have been. The last two years of my life have made me question my entire being. The trauma I endured for years as a child I internalized, pretended it wasn’t real, and out of fear and shame I never spoke a word.
“I used to believe that one day I would wake up and forget what happened to me, that the flashbacks would disappear and that no one would ever find out because I was the only one.
“I was wrong. My world came crashing down the day I saw (Njolstad’s) name in the paper… It was then that I realized this wasn’t just my secret any more.”
Crown attorney Marie Dufort presented receipts for the psychotherapy and other treatments that the victim, whose identity is under strict publication ban, received for panic attacks and “constant emotional distress” in the years since she was abused.
“I never want another child to go through what I went through, what I’m going through,” she wrote. “My life has been stolen from me, and I want it back. He has already taken so much from me. I refuse to let him take any more.
“Hope is greater than fear, and my hope is that all victims involved get the justice they deserve.”
Njolstad appeared dishevelled, sunken and slightly confused in the prisoner’s box — and entirely different from smiling social media photos from visits to exotic locales like Thailand — and seemed to respond in court to the victim impact statement, briefly standing and asking the judge whether he could make a submission before he was quickly silenced by his defence lawyer.
He earlier told court he had received a traumatic brain injury in a fall while in custody at the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre and complained of cognitive difficulties, requiring a headset to follow court proceedings.
The Crown had argued for a longer prison sentence, noting that, while Njolstad was technically a first-time offender, “there are a number of victims and this pattern of offending against children is quite lengthy,” Dufort said. “This is someone who has been offending against children for a very long time.”
Dufort also expressed concerns highlighted in a sexual behaviours assessment where Njolstad “seems to minimize his behaviour,” leading to concerns for his rehabilitation and risk to reoffend.
Njolstad told the psychiatrist who prepared the report that he was “reluctant to elaborate” on some details of his crimes, saying, “I’m worried if I tell you I’m going to jail for more years.”
The Crown also noted there were 202 file folders on Njolstad’s personal computer that investigators could not access. That potential evidence was not included in the 82 total charges Njolstad faced.
“There’s been too many victims and too much impact,” Dufort said.
The Crown said the seized hard drives, thousands of images and 27 videos entered into evidence and placed under court seal would be held until the appeal period expired, then it would be ordered destroyed.
Even the ones they couldn't access? That should not happen. Those files must be opened and more charges applied if appropriate. This man should never be loosed upon society again.
Brunet described the horrifying assaults in his sentencing decision, saying Njolstad’s actions were “planned and quite deliberate, and repeated many times over many years and on many young girls.
“Mr. Njolstad was creating situations where he would have access to children by buying a green screen and offering to babysit children in the area where he lived.”
The backdrop would create “enticing” videos for the children to participate in as Njolstad directed the children to bring a change of clothes: either a swimsuit or a costume.
“Work before fun,” he told them, leading the girls into a second-floor room outfitted with cameras. He tried to “cover up his tracks,” the judge said, when one girl noticed the cameras rolling as she changed.
Other girls would perform “tests,” unwittingly for his sexual purposes, and he would reward them with candy or toys for playing along. One was called the “X-test” where the victim would bend at the waist naked as Njolstad remained out of the room, secretly filming as he instructed them to hold the pose for 20 seconds.
“If he was in a good mood,” one young victim told detectives, she would only have to count to 10.
Njolstad sat dispassionately in court as the judge read through a nightmarish description of another assault he called the “taste test.”
Njlostad would sit young, blindfolded victims on a chair and force them unwittingly into oral sex as he made them “taste funny things” by placing various food products on his genitals.
His reward for a correct guess was a fidget spinner.
Brunet said Njolstad’s guilty plea spared the need for trial that “would have been very lengthy and very difficult for all parties involved.”
He also noted Njolstad was himself the victim of childhood sexual abuse. “Unfortunately we do see this pattern in court, but of course it is not an excuse,” Brunet said, calling the facts of the case “very troubling.”
“He knows he has a problem,” said Njolstad’s lawyer, Karin Stein. “He is ashamed of what he’s done. He knows he has hurt people and he is sorry for that… He wants to get treatment, he wants to get help.”
Uber driver accused of two Toronto sex assaults
Brad Hunter, Toronto Sun
Uber driver, Taneem Aziz, 36, of Mississauga, has been charged with two counts of sexual assault following separate incidents.
A 24-year-old woman was waiting for an Uber she had ordered and entered a black SUV that she believed the man to be her Uber driver, police say.
But instead of letting her leave, the man behind the wheel allegedly drove to a secluded location and sexually assaulted her.
When the woman was allowed to exit the SUV she called police.
More recently, on April 8, officers began an investigation into an alleged sexual assault that occurred around 1 p.m near Royal York Rd. and Evans Ave.
According to cops, a 21-year-old woman entered a black SUV driven by a man who wouldn’t allow her to leave the vehicle.
The woman tried to get help from a bystander at a fast food restaurant parking lot in Mississauga, but then the man allegedly drove her to a side street and sexually assaulted her.
After she was dropped off, she called police.
Investigators have identified Uber driver Taneem Aziz, 36, as a suspect in both cases.
The Mississauga man has been arrested and charged with two counts of sexual assault and one count each of forcible confinement and extortion.
He is scheduled to appear at Toronto West Court on May 23.
Investigators are concerned about the possibility of other victims.
Anyone with information is asked to call police at 416-808-7474 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
Children aged four and under among victims
of sexual exploitation in Surrey, UK
Abusers using hotels and taxis to carry out their attacks often give their child victims money, alcohol, drugs and presents
By Jenny SeymourSurrey Live
Child sexual exploitation is the sexual abuse of a child by an adult who involves them in sexual activities either with themselves or someone else (Image: Brian Lawless/PA Wire)
Surrey Police began recording crimes and victims of child sexual exploitation (CSE) in April 2014, the year after the shocking news of the Rotherham child sex abuse scandal broke.
Between 2014 and 2017 — the latest year for which statistics have been provided — there were 673 crimes reported in Surrey flagged as involving child sexual exploitation, and 454 victims aged from 0 to 19. Of those, 14 were aged four or younger, 26 were aged between five and nine, 235 were aged between 10 and 14 and 179 were 15- to 19-year-olds.
In the eastern division alone, which covers Tandridge, Mole Valley, Reigate and Banstead and Epsom and Ewell, there were 232 offences reported in less than four years.
CSE is the sexual abuse of a child by an adult who involves them in sexual activities either with themselves or someone else. The children are often given money, alcohol, drugs, food, accommodation or presents in return, and many are already vulnerable in another way.
A spokesman for Surrey Police said: “Tackling child exploitation (of all kinds) in Surrey is a priority, we aim to pursue offenders and protect and support victims. This type of crime is happening in Surrey and it’s vital for us to do all we can to safeguard vulnerable children at risk of exploitation.”
The force launched Operation Makesafe two years ago — targeted at raising awareness among businesses that may be used by abusers, such as hotels, taxi firms, pubs and bars.
On March 18 it was followed up with the launch of Operation Sportsafe, an initiative urging everyone involved in sport to report any concerns they may have to the force.
The extent of the problem was revealed in a Freedom of Information request that also showed there were 379 arrests in relation to crimes flagged as involving CSE, and 198 charges, between 2014 and 2017.
“There are a number of processes in place to enable us to most effectively tackle child exploitation in Surrey,” the force spokesman said.
“This includes regular training for officers and staff, working with our partners to ensure a joined-up approach and working to increase intelligence submissions.”
In attempting to tackle the problem, Surrey Police has dedicated child exploitation teams and has funded a WiSE (what is sexual exploitation) worker in each of its three divisions.
It has urged people to “act on their instincts” and call 101 if they suspect someone is a victim, or perpetrator, of exploitation.
Surrey, UK
Canada's NDP Leader Lauded For Bravery After Opening Up About Child Sexual Abuse In New Book
The NDP - New Democratic Party - used to be Canada's far-left political party. Recently, it has been outflanked on the left by the Liberals who have become far more extreme than the NDP ever thought of.
By Sima ShakeriRyan Maloney
Huff Post
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is being lauded for his bravery after writing in his new memoir that he was sexually abused as a child.
The Toronto Star has published an excerpt of Singh's book, "Love & Courage," which will be released next week. In the chapter, Singh opens up about the racism he faced as a boy in Windsor, Ont. because of the colour of his skin and his head covering.
NDP leader Jagmeet Singh speaks at the Broadbent Summit in Ottawa on March 29, 2019.
Singh says in the book that a taekwondo instructor who taught him self-defence as a way to fend off bullies — a now-deceased man identified as "Mr. N" — took advantage of him.
"Mr. N abused me. He tied his perversion to my performance, which was my primary motivation," he wrote. "It didn't take long for the abuse to seem normal. That's the thing about abuse — it can make the victim feel an overwhelming sense of shame, a shame so disabling that one suffers in silence."
In the excerpt, the NDP leader also wrote about how shame and stigma led him to deny the truth of the experience before coming to grips with the fact that he was a victim.
"I would have to accept that the abuse really did happen, that it had taken a devastating toll on me, and that I was not to blame."
Read the full chapter at The Toronto Star
The NDP applauded its leader for talking about his experience in a statement to HuffPost Canada.
"Jagmeet's willingness to open up about his experience with racism and sexual abuse will help others going through the same experience.
"His courage to tell his story and brave honesty will help people with shared experiences know they're not alone."
Singh attended grade school in Windsor, Ont.
Singh described his childhood in Windsor as "rough" in an interview with HuffPost in 2017.
"There was a lot of racism as a brown kid, with long hair and funny-sounding first name.... I got in a lot of fights all the time," he said.
"Kids would say: 'You're dirty, your skin is dirty, why don't you take a shower' ... or 'You're not a boy, you're a girl because you have long hair,' and then they would just come up and pull my hair, or just punch me."
In the same interview, he shared that his father had been the one to sign him up for taekwondo so that he could defend himself.
Singh in an undated childhood photo.
Singh said the bullying forced him to be confident.
"That makes you less of a target when you are very sure of yourself," he said. "I tried to carry myself very confidently and I had to try to develop this mentality that people are going to stare at me, they are going to look at me, so I better give them something to look at."
He later transferred to a high school across the border in Detroit, after his father became concerned about daily fights at his Windsor school.
Singh poses with his parents, who immigrated from Punjab to Canada.
"When I was growing up as a kid, I could've never imagined someone like me ever running to be prime minister. Guess what? We just told a lot of kids out there: 'Yes, you can,'" he said at the time.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took to Twitter Saturday to say Singh's "courage to speak up will fight against stigma, and help so many people know they are not alone."
With Singh's openness about his abuse, many on Twitter pointed out that he's continuing to change what it means to be a federal leader.
Others simply praised Singh for the impact his vulnerability would have on other survivors.
Singh's memoir will be released Tuesday.
No comments:
Post a Comment