February 15, 2006

Little aid for male sex-assault victims, inquiry told

CANADA
Globe and Mail

TARA BRAUTIGAM
Canadian Press

CORNWALL, ONT. -- Men who were sexually abused as children have virtually nowhere to turn to help them overcome years of emotional scarring and ensuing psychological fallout, an expert testified yesterday at the public inquiry into allegations of rampant child sexual abuse in this Eastern Ontario city.

"More public awareness for men -- in other words, how to access proper services and of course, to provide those proper services -- is very needed," said psychologist David Wolfe, a psychiatry and psychology professor at the University of Toronto.

"Even if you did decide to seek help or are under pressure of your family . . . it's not easy to find the right service."

When told that only one organization in the province provides help for male victims of sexual assault, Dr. Wolfe said, "It wouldn't surprise me."

Pedophiles might be more able to prey upon children and get away with it in smaller communities such as Cornwall, a blue-collar city of 46,000 bordering Quebec and New York, especially if they are highly regarded, Dr. Wolfe testified.

Posted by kshaw at February 15, 2006 07:23 AM