Biology, Not Deviancy

Culturally, we have mislabeled biology and criminalized it.  And labeled “criminals” those who are responding to biology the way nature designed. 

I refer to the LACK of distinction we make in sexual “offenses.”

By our laws, a 22 year old who has non-coerced sexual relations with someone below the supposed age of “consent” (let’s say 16 for discussion) is guilty of a “sex crime” and is labeled a “sex offender.”  To serve time, and yet never be able to pay a debt to society and be done as others can, but rather be put on a list for life, to be shunned and marginalized, to be hated and feared forever because of that label.

Given the same label as an adult who has sexual relations with an 8 year old.  No distinction.

The one is natural biology.  The other is unnatural—a criminal sickness, a heinous crime.

We send mixed signals in our society of sexual attractiveness at a pubescent age on the one hand, while on the other extending childhood and lack of responsibility far beyond the years that cultures of the past did.  It is bad enough in our disconnected and constantly afraid society to have unjust condemnation by anonymous accusers and a spectacle-obsessed media.  To use words like “rape” with careless ubiquitous-ness not only contributes to more irrational fear and distortion in this disconnected society, but also demeans those who have truly experienced rape.

The 22 year old in our example is not guilty of deviancy, but has merely manifested biology.  Deviancy is sickness, perverted sickness.  Pre-pubescent sexual relations is a form of deviancy/sickness, and SHOULD be a criminal one, but post-pubescent sexual relations should not be classified with it.  The one is a crime.  The other MAY OR MAY NOT be a SOCIAL INFRACTION, depending on the social culture of the time.  It should not be a crime.

In sensible societies, puberty has been the defining measure between biology and criminal sexual predation.   At puberty, the presumption was that if no physical coercion was involved, no crime occurred.  Of course, the sexual relations may or may not have been considered socially or psychologically or emotionally appropriate, and the family may have had another opinion even if it was.  But it was not considered “deviancy.”  See Cokie Roberts’ book Founding Mothers, about 14 year old “mothers” of this country, if you want something a little more recent about 14 year olds than the Joseph and Mary story.

We have a choice: We can go on in our unselective and mindless rage.  We can create criminals out of those who are biologically normal.  We can ruin lives.  We can be emotional and irrational.

Or we can have distinction. Although it’s biological, if we still feel it’s somehow “wrong” concerning pubescent relations, then just set some guidelines.  Something like: “Although it may not be a law, here’s society’s guideline.  If you choose not to follow it, it is on your conscience, which is, after all, the true arbiter and punisher, both in this life and perhaps the next.  Know that if you go against this guideline, these are the things that often or usually happen, and most are bad: [and then go on to list those things]. 

That’s far better than what we’re doing presently, with scarce legal and governmental resources being chewed up, and jails full of non-criminal people made criminals like casual smokers of marijuana have been made criminals. 

And for those of you who think I’m pontificating from lofty and woolly ivory towers, utterly disconnected from it all, hardly.  I have a 13 year old daughter, and woe to anyone who ever tries to coerce her into anything.  I hope she stays smart enough and learning enough from teachings, and the examples she has been shown, to navigate her way successfully through this chaotic society long into the future before sex ever comes into the picture.  But if non-coerced ever does, criminality should have no part.