The manipulation - thought control
You may be thinking it’s a harder job to manipulate adults than it is to manipulate kids. Not so. Flip back to the section about the disguise. Read it again. Now read the part about camouflage. Soak it in. Allow truth to bubble to the surface. By being embedded in a culture that glorifies certain appearances, material trappings and achievements the members of that culture are more willing to overlook the failings of one who has reached the most rarified and glorified of positions. In participating in a culture, society or other normative system (corporate culture functions the same when we talk about sexual harassment at work) we, by default, subscribe to the collective agreement that achievement in one aspect on a predefined list can purchase exoneration of failings in another aspect. Let me provide an example, one not related to sexual offenses, but to adult bullying in the workplace. Several years ago, during my service in a senior management position at an esteemed non- profit there existed a colleague who ran the fundraising efforts for the greater organization. They were well known for being brash, obnoxious and generally insensitive, but it was their talent for inspiring multiple resignations from emotionally and psychologically traumatized staff that built their reputation as a bully. The problem was this: they were an outstanding fundraiser, meeting targets year after year. Despite the many formal and informal complaints brought against them by wounded colleagues, myself included, the leadership of the organization colluded through inaction and deliberate choice to tolerate their bullying behaviour because they reliably delivered the fundraising goods.
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Perpetrators now having twisted their environments to conceal themselves, masquerading as saints and heroes, can turn their attentions to work on bending and sometimes breaking the will of their victims. I am about to get really clear on an ugly, uncomfortable piece of truth. If you are squeamish look away now. Here it is! For the most part childhood sexual abuse, the incestuous, insidious kind usually perpetrated by relatives, long-standing family friends and trusted caregivers is often not violent or even painful. It is not Jodie Foster on a pinball machine (The Accused, 1988). Getting molested and raped as a child is as effortless as eating coco-pops and watching My Little Pony while your parents are still asleep. There may be some tears, but not many. There may be some protest, but hardly ever screaming. Kids are such easy targets because they are wired to trust adults, particularly those who feed, clothe, soothe, nurture and otherwise care for their physical and emotional needs. They have loyalty to these people. They will protect them as an act of their own survival and when de facto trusted adult status is conferred on someone who once was a stranger, the trust, protection, and loyalty of that child is extended and transferred to the new adult. Now think school bus driver, extra lessons teacher, mom's new boyfriend, and you get an idea of who these people could be. Kids are easy to manipulate because they are wired to trust. The deck is already stacked in favour of perpetrators who are also extended caregivers whom primary caregivers have okayed.
"Kids are easy to manipulate because they are wired to trust".
38 | Collective Action Magazine
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