Tag Archives: Boko Haram

The Road to 65, Mile 138: The Best Defense

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Posted by on in Personal goals, Social

April 15, 2015, Chino Valley-  Whilst covering a classroom full of third graders today, I was told by two of the girls, independently of one another, that they had to run from a man who had tried to snatch them into his car.  Both said that their parents had kept them safe, once they got away, and that the police had been told.

I showed each of them, vicariously, how to get free of a person who had them in an armhold, from behind.  The heel of a shoe is a good, solid defensive weapon, when thrust backward at a would-be captor’s shin.  It is important to note that, in neither case, was a weapon being brandished by the assailant.  That, of course, is a game-changer, though not one that can withstand a little person’s ear-splitting shriek!

Today marks a year, since the abduction of over 200 school girls by Boko Haram.  The Nigerian Army has been unshackled by the country’s new President, and along with forces from neighbouring countries, may well have more success in crushing the brutes of the Islamic far right.  We can only pray, in the meantime, for the safe return of ALL children and teens who have been kidnapped or conscripted by the forces of darkness.

This brings me to the concept of defense against physical and sexual abuse of children, anywhere.  The first line is always the individual’s realization that no one, at any time, has the right to abscond with his/her body, or mind.  These are given each of us, by the Creative Force, and we relinquish them to others at our long-term peril.  Secondly, family must defend the child’s well-being, with no regard for monetary gain, promises of support from the transgressors or, in the worst case, giving in to one’s psychological or emotional weaknesses.  Thirdly, the community must support the child, hopefully with the family’s blessing, but unilaterally if the family is found to be the source of abuse, or in league with the abuser(s).  There was a movement, in the 1980’s, to shift the focus of sexual abuse prevention away from the victim, towards “giving the abuser a chance at healing and redemption”.  This was a terribly misguided effort, and set back the healing of thousands of abused children.  I was glad to be part of an education effort, in the 1990’s, which reset the focus back on awareness and prevention, with treatment of offenders conducted separately, away from the programs that were concerned with the victims.

When I was accosted by a pedophile,at the age of fourteen, I was able to stand up to him and not be cowed by his loud threats.  Nothing further came of his false bravado, and my life has gone on, with normal relationships with girls and women, in the years since.  The best defense remains a solid first response of N-O!

The Road to 65, Mile 45: Baga

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Posted by on in Social

January 12, 2015, Prescott- I have not been to Africa.  Many who have, are more interested in wildlife than in the teeming multitudes.  I do find myself thinking a great deal about those suffering millions, of late, especially in the continuing mystery of over 300 young women, just taken from their families- and supposedly having been “assigned” new ones.

As much of the world is focused on the victims of last week’s massacre in Paris, and rightly so, a brief notice appeared in our newspaper, with somewhat more commentary on BBC, regarding the small city of Baga, in northeast Nigeria.  There, 2,000 Muslims-men, women and children, were mowed down by operatives of Boko Haram.

Nigeria is starting to look like Cambodia, Rwanda and Syria.  It’s a big country, which prides itself on advancement.  So, maybe this is why the government has not raised a cry for help.  The people, though, sorely need the world to care.  Nigeria, as an entity, has needed for people to care, for a long time.  The oil-soaked Niger Delta makes the northwestern Gulf of Mexico look like the sweetest of paradises.

Baga is just the latest in a series of massacres, with the crazed head of Boko Haram making it clear he has no intention of treating anyone but the most loyal of his sycophants with even a smidgen of decency and respect.  Complicating matters is the collective behaviour of the Nigerian Army.  It is very hard for the average villager, or resident of a small city, especially in the north, to discern who, in a position of strength, can be trusted.  in the tradition of the worst elements of the British Colonials, This is the classic notion of “only by beating down everyone in sight, can we defend the realm.”

We are moving beyond that, as a species, and Nigerians deserve a place at the table of solace.  The narrow confines of tribalism, nationalism and the misinterpretation of Scripture to suit the fancies of unbalanced individuals are each going to fall away- either by those involved coming to their senses, or by forces which we can only vaguely imagine right now.  There can, in essence, no longer be a hierarchy of Those Who Matter, and Those Who Don’t.  I see a better day coming, and soon.