North American Man/Boy Love Association: Difference between revisions
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The '''North American Man/Boy Love Association (NAMBLA)''' is a [[New York City]] and [[San Francisco]]-based unincorporated organization in the [[United States]] that [[Pro-pedophile activism|advocates]] the legalization of sexual relations between adult males and [[Age of consent|under-aged]] boys. It has resolved to "end the oppression of men and boys who have freely chosen mutually consenting relationships" in spite of the fact that such relationships constitute [[child sexual abuse]] under U.S. law, as the [[minor (law)|minor]] is unable to give legal [[age of consent|consent]]. NAMBLA also calls for "the adoption of laws that both protect children from unwanted sexual experiences and at the same time leave them free to determine the content of their own sexual experiences."<ref>Radow, Roy (1994). '[http://www.qrd.org/qrd/orgs/NAMBLA/nambla.replies.to.ilga.secretariat NAMBLA Replies to ILGA Secretariat.]'</ref> NAMBLA's webpage claims that: "NAMBLA does not provide encouragement, referrals or assistance for people seeking sexual contacts" and that it does not <nowiki>"engage in any activities that violate the law [or] advocate that anyone else should [violate the law]."</nowiki><ref>[http://nambla.org/welcome.htm NAMBLA: Who We Are]</ref> |
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All members should be tortured and killed |
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NAMBLA holds an annual gathering in New York City and monthly meetings around the country.<ref name=soto>Soto, Onell R. (2005). '[http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20050217-2208-manboy-daily.html FBI targets pedophilia advocates: Little-known group promotes 'benevolent' sex]', San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 February.</ref> In the early 1980s, NAMBLA was reported to have had over 300 members, and was supported by such noted figures as [[Allen Ginsberg]].<ref>[http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-13160029_ITM Royal tales of infamous celebrities. | Europe Intelligence Wire (August, 2004)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Since then, the organization has kept membership data private, but an undercover [[FBI]] investigation in 1995 discovered that there were 1,100 people on the rolls.<ref name=soto/> It is the largest organization in the umbrella group [[Ipce]]<ref name="ipce">[http://www.ipce.info/newsletters/nl_e_1.html ipce newsletter, Number E 1, July 1997]</ref> (formerly "International Pedophile and Child Emancipation").<ref name=ipce/> |
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Since 1995, [[anti-pedophile activism|public criticism]] and law enforcement infiltration have heavily impaired the organization. Its national headquarters now consists of little more than a private mail box service in San Francisco, and they rarely respond to inquiries. Some reports state that the group no longer has regular national meetings and few local monthly meetings, and that as of the late 1990s to avoid local police infiltration, the organization discouraged the formation of local chapters.<ref name=boston/><ref name=soto/> |
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==Platform and positions== |
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NAMBLA describes itself as a "support group for intergenerational relationships," and uses the slogan "sexual freedom for all."{{ref label|who-we-are|3|b}} |
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One of the group's arguments is that [[age of consent]] laws unnecessarily criminalize sexual relationships between adults and minors (particularly boys).<ref>[http://www.warriorsfortruth.com/nambla.html NAMBLA's Official Position Papers, Oct. 12, 1996.]</ref> In 1980 a NAMBLA general meeting passed a resolution, which said: "(1) The North American Man/Boy Love Association calls for the abolition of age-of-consent and all other laws which prevent men and boys from freely enjoying their bodies. (2) We call for the release of all men and boys imprisoned by such laws."{{ref label|positions-1996|6|a}} This policy was still in NAMBLA's "official position papers" in 1996. |
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According to Roy Radow, a NAMBLA principal and one of the many NAMBLA members being sued in [[Curley v. NAMBLA]] by parents, for allegedly encouraging the rape and murder of their son,<ref name=cnn/> NAMBLA has opposed [[corporal punishment]], [[rape]], and [[kidnap]]ping, and has declared that sexual exploitation is grounds for expulsion from the group.<ref>Radow, Roy (1994). "[http://www.qrd.org/qrd/orgs/NAMBLA/nambla.replies.to.ilga.secretariat NAMBLA Replies to ILGA Secretariat.]"</ref> |
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==History== |
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NAMBLA emerged from the tumultuous political atmosphere of the 1970s, particularly from the wing of the [[Gay Liberation]] movement that followed the 1969 [[Stonewall riots]] in [[New York City]]. Although discussion of gay adult-minor sex did take place, gay rights groups immediately following the Stonewall riot were more concerned with issues of police harassment, nondiscrimination in employment, health care and other issues. |
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Not until a "sex ring" of underage boys brought intense media scrutiny in [[Boston]] in the closing weeks of 1977, and police raided the [[Toronto]]-area gay newspaper ''[[Body Politic (magazine)|The Body Politic]]'' for publishing an article by [[Gerald Hannon]] titled "[http://clga.ca/Material/Records/docs/hannon/ox/mbm.htm Men Loving Boys Loving Men]" did the subject of adult-minor sex garner enough attention to prompt the formation of a group like NAMBLA. |
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===The founding of NAMBLA=== |
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In December 1977, police raided a house in the Boston suburb of [[Revere]]. Twenty-four men were arrested and indicted on over 100 felony counts of the [[statutory rape]] of boys aged eight to fifteen. Suffolk County District Attorney Garrett Byrne found that the men used drugs and [[video game]]s to lure the boys into a house, where they photographed them as they engaged in sexual activity. The men were members of a "sex ring", and said that the arrest was only "the tip of the iceberg."<ref name="boston">[http://www.bostonmagazine.com/home/articles/boy_crazy/ Boston Magazing, Boy Crazy, By Benoit Denizet-Lewis, May 2001]</ref> The arrests sparked intense media coverage, and local newspapers published the photographs and personal information of the accused men. |
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Staff members of the homosexual newspaper ''Fag Rag'' believed the raid was politically motivated. They and others in Boston's gay community saw Byrne's round-up as an anti-gay [[witchhunt]]. On [[December 9]] they organized the Boston-Boise Committee, a name intended as a reference to a similar situation that unfolded in [[Boise]], [[Idaho]] in the 1950s. The group sponsored rallies, provided funds for the defendants, and tried to educate the public about the case by passing out fliers. It would also later spawn NAMBLA. |
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District Attorney Garrett Byrne was defeated in his re-election bid. The new DA said that no man should fear prison for having sex with a teenager unless coercion was involved. All charges were dropped. The few who had already pled or been found guilty received only probation.<ref>O'Carrol, Tom (1980). ''Pedophilia: The Radical Case'', [http://www.ipce.info/host/radicase/ch_13_notes.htm#9 chapter 13 notes and references].</ref> |
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On [[December 2]], [[1978]], Tom Reeves of the Boston-Boise Committee convened a meeting called "Man/Boy Love and the Age of Consent." Approximately 150 interested people attended. At the meeting's conclusion, about thirty men and youths decided to form an organization which they called the North American Man/Boy Love Association, or NAMBLA for short. |
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===Ostracism=== |
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Opposition to NAMBLA from the larger gay rights movement was evident months after NAMBLA was founded: in the conference that organized the first gay march on Washington in 1979. In addition to forming several working committees, the conference was responsible for drafting the basic organizing principles of the march ("the five demands" [http://www.rainbowhistory.org/mowprogram.pdf Flyer for March on Washington] <nowiki>[see p. 23]</nowiki>). Originally, the Gay Youth Caucus had won approval for its proposal demanding "Full Rights for Gay Youth, including revision of the age of consent laws." However at the first meeting of the National Coordinating Committee, a contingent of lesbians threatened not to participate in the march unless a substitute was adopted. The substitute, authored by an adult lesbian and approved in a mail poll by a majority of delegates, stated: "Protect Lesbian and Gay Youth from any laws which are used to discriminate against, oppress, and/or harass them in their homes, schools, job and social environments."<ref>Thorstad, David. "Man/Boy Love and the American Gay Movement," Journal of Homosexuality): 251-274.</ref> |
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In 1980 a group called the "Lesbian Caucus – Lesbian & Gay Pride March Committee" distributed a hand-out urging women to split from the annual New York City Gay Pride March because the organizing committee had supposedly been dominated by NAMBLA and its supporters.{{ref label|thors|13|a}} The next year, after some lesbians threatened to picket, the [[Cornell University]] gay group Gay PAC (Gay People at Cornell) rescinded its invitation to NAMBLA founder [[David Thorstad]] to be the keynote speaker at the annual May Gay Festival.{{ref label|thors|13|b}} In the following years, gay rights groups attempted to block NAMBLA’s participation in gay pride parades, prompting leading gay rights figure [[Harry Hay]] to wear a sign proclaiming "NAMBLA walks with me" as he participated in a 1986 gay pride march in Los Angeles. |
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Thus by the mid-1980s, NAMBLA was virtually alone in its positions and found itself politically isolated. Gay rights organizations, burdened by accusations of child recruitment and child abuse, had abandoned the radicalism of their early years and had "retreat[ed] from the idea of a more inclusive politics,"<ref>Johnson, Matthew D. (2004). ''[http://www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/nambla.html NAMBLA]'' on [[glbtq.com]].</ref> opting instead to appeal more to the mainstream. Support for "groups perceived as being on the fringe of the gay community," such as NAMBLA, vanished in the process.{{ref label|glbt-enc|14|a}} Today almost all gay rights groups disavow any ties to NAMBLA, voice disapproval of its objectives, and attempt to prevent NAMBLA from having a role in gay and lesbian rights events. |
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===The International Lesbian and Gay Association controversy=== |
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The case of [[International Lesbian and Gay Association]] (ILGA) illustrates this opposition. In 1993, ILGA, of which NAMBLA had been a member for a decade, achieved [[United Nations]] consultative status. NAMBLA's association with ILGA drew heavy criticism, and many gay organizations called for the ILGA to dissolve ties with NAMBLA. Republican Senator [[Jesse Helms]] proposed a bill to withhold $119 million in U.N. contributions until U.S. President [[Bill Clinton]] could certify that "no UN agency grants any official status, accreditation, or recognition to any organization which promotes, condones, or seeks the legalization of [[pedophilia]], that is, the sexual abuse of children". The bill was unanimously approved by Congress and signed into law by Clinton in April 1994. |
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ILGA had passed a resolution in 1985 which stated that "young people have the right to sexual and social self-determination and that age of consent laws often operate to oppress and not to protect." In spite of this apparent agreement with NAMBLA on the age of consent issue just nine years before, ILGA, by a vote of 214-30 expelled NAMBLA and two other groups ([[MARTIJN]] and [[Project Truth]]) in early 1994 because they were judged to be "groups whose predominant aim is to support or promote pedophilia." Although ILGA removed NAMBLA, the U.N. reversed its decision to grant ILGA special consultative status. Repeated attempts by ILGA to reacquire special status with the U.N. were finally successful in 2006 <ref>[http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2006/ecosoc6242.doc.htm ''Economic and Social Council Approves Consultative Status for Three Non-Governmental Organizations Focusing on Gay, Lesbian Rights'', Economic and Social Council ECOSOC/6242, December 11, 2006 UN.org]</ref>. The group exercises consultative status with the [[European Commission]].{{Fact|date=April 2008}} |
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Gregory King of the [[Human Rights Campaign]] later said that "NAMBLA is not a gay organization ... They are not part of our community and we thoroughly reject their efforts to insinuate that pedophilia is an issue related to gay and lesbian civil rights."<ref>[http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0891-2432%28199704%2911%3A2%3C178%3AMOEGMA%3E2.0.CO%3B2-S Gamson, Joshua (1997). ''Messages of Exclusion: Gender, Movements, and Symbolic Boundaries''. Gender and Society 11(2):178-199.]</ref> NAMBLA responded by claiming that "man/boy love is by definition homosexual," that "man/boy lovers are part of the gay movement and central to gay history and culture," and that "homosexuals denying that it is 'not gay' to be attracted to adolescent boys are just as ludicrous as heterosexuals saying it's 'not heterosexual' to be attracted to adolescent girls."{{ref label|gamson-1997|15|a}} |
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===1990s=== |
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In 1994 the [[Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation]] (GLAAD) adopted a "Position Statement Regarding NAMBLA" saying GLAAD "deplores the North American Man Boy Love Association's (NAMBLA) goals, which include advocacy for sex between adult men and boys and the removal of legal protections for children. These goals constitute a form of child abuse and are repugnant to GLAAD." Also in 1994 the Board of Directors of the [[National Gay and Lesbian Task Force]] (NGLTF) adopted a resolution on NAMBLA that said: "NGLTF condemns all abuse of minors, both sexual and any other kind, perpetrated by adults. Accordingly, NGLTF condemns the organizational goals of NAMBLA and any other such organization." |
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In 1996 co-founder David Thorstad complained that, "The Bulletin is turning into a semi-pornographic jerk-off mag for pedophiles." Other members insisted that the group only had a minority who were pedophiles, with the majority being [[Pederasty|pederasts]].<ref name=boston/> |
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Documents relating to the court case ''[[Curley v. NAMBLA]] and others'' provide further information on NAMBLA's structure and activities. In March 2003 Judge George O'Toole of the Massachusetts federal court found that in the 1990s (the period being considered by the court), NAMBLA was controlled by a national Steering Committee, "a group which purposefully directed NAMBLA's outreach activities generally." |
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The court documents also shed light on some of NAMBLA's activities, including that: |
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{{cquote2|NAMBLA was established as an unincorporated association in 1978 to encourage public acceptance of consensual sexual relationships between men and boys. Its principal place of business is New York, and its primary mechanisms of public outreach include its ''Bulletin'', a quarterly publication sent to dues-paying members... ''Gayme Magazine'', a NAMBLA publication mailed periodically to dues-paying members and sold at some bookstores; a NAMBLA website... TOPICS, a series of booklets providing more focused consideration of issues related to "man-boy love"; a prison newsletter; Ariel's Pages, a NAMBLA project through which literature concerning "man-boy love" was sold; and membership conferences. |
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The Steering Committee, through several of its members, also formed "Zymurgy, Inc.," a Delaware corporation, which was operated as a profit-making arm of NAMBLA. Although the defendants describe the ''Bulletin'', ''Gayme Magazine'', Ariel's Pages, and Zymurgy, Inc. as separate and distinct from NAMBLA, it appears from the materials submitted, including minutes of Steering Committee meetings, that the Steering Committee controlled all of these entities, providing monies to initiate and support various projects and freely transferring funds among them. |
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In addition to managing NAMBLA's financial matters, the Steering Committee also directed the association's policy, political, legal, and public relations efforts. Steering Committee members held frequent meetings and retreats during which they discussed NAMBLA's public image, formulated the association's outreach efforts, and nominated spokespersons. Members of the Steering Committee in close coordination with each other, created and maintained NAMBLA's website, and wrote, marketed, sold, and otherwise disseminated a variety of publications. Working in Massachusetts, William Andriette served as the editor of the ''Bulletin'' and ''Gayme Magazine''. He did not act alone but rather under the supervision of the Steering Committee in producing these publications and in holding himself out as a NAMBLA spokesman. |
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In addition to the financial support and supervision provided by the full Steering Committee, the content of the ''Bulletin'' was guided by the "Bulletin Collective," an editorial board comprising NAMBLA members from across the country who contributed and edited articles, screened photos and pictures, and participated in coordinating the production and distribution of the publication.}} |
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Judge O'Toole found that David Thorstad, Dennis Bejin, Joe Power, David Miller (also known as David Menasco), Peter Melzer (also known as Peter Herman), Arnold Schoen (also known as Floyd Conaway), Dennis Mintun, Chris Farrell, Tim Bloomquist, Tecumseh Brown, Gary Hann, Peter Reed, Robert Schwartz, Walter Bieder and Leyland Stevenson were or had been members of the NAMBLA Steering Committee or had held other leading positions in the organization. |
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===Today=== |
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[[Image:Nambla-logo.png|thumb|A NAMBLA logo.<ref>[http://www.nambla.org/readings.htm http://www.nambla.org/readings.htm]</ref> The capital ''M'' and lowercase ''b'' symbolize a man and a boy]] |
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More recently, media reports have suggested that for practical purposes the group no longer exists and that it consists only of a web site maintained by a few enthusiasts.{{Fact|date=June 2007}} NAMBLA maintains a web site that shows addresses in [[New York]] and [[San Francisco]] and a phone contact in New York, and offers publications for sale, including the NAMBLA Bulletin. |
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==Criticism and response== |
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Some anti-child abuse groups, [[Christian]] groups, Jewish groups, anti-pedophilia organizations, anti-sexual abuse organizations, law enforcement agencies and other critics see NAMBLA as a front for the criminal sexual exploitation of children. They say NAMBLA functions as a meeting place for male [[pedophilia|pedophiles]] and [[pederasty|pederasts]] and their sympathizers. Opponents also argue that pre-[[puberty|pubescent]] children in particular are not capable of giving consent and that the power imbalance between adults and children makes any sexual relationship exploitative.{{Fact|date=April 2008}}. |
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Onell R. Soto, a ''San Diego Union-Tribune'' writer, wrote in February 2005: "Law enforcement officials and mental health professionals say that while NAMBLA's membership numbers are small, the group has a dangerous ripple effect through the Internet by sanctioning the behavior of those who would abuse children."{{ref label|soto|4|b}} |
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NAMBLA responds to the criticism that it is a "front for criminal and sexual exploitation of children" and that it advocates sex between men and boys by stating that "NAMBLA does not engage in any activities that violate the law, nor do we advocate that anyone else should do so".{{ref label|who-we-are|3|b}} |
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NAMBLA rejects the widely held view that sex between adults and minors is always harmful, arguing that "the outcomes of personal experiences between adults and younger people primarily depend upon whether their relationships were consensual."<ref>"[http://nambla.org/benefit.htm NAMBLA: What Does Science Have to Say?]</ref> In support of this position NAMBLA cites research such as ''[[Rind et al. (1998)|A Meta-Analytic Examination of Assumed Properties of Child Sexual Abuse Using College Samples]]'', which was published in the [[Psychological Bulletin]] in 1998. NAMBLA devoted a web page to a brief overview of the study under the heading "The Good News About Man/Boy Love," and claimed the study showed, "On average, nearly 70% of males in the studies reported that as children or adolescents their sexual experiences with adults had been positive or neutral."<ref>"[http://www.ipce.info/ipceweb/Documentation/Documents/99-112_nambla_statement.htm NAMBLA: The Good News About Man/Boy Love]." 2003.</ref> Some researchers dispute the findings of this [[meta-analysis]].<ref>[http://www.ipce.info/ipceweb/Library/rbt_files.htm Ipce: The RBT Files].</ref> |
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Gay rights groups{{who}} opposed to NAMBLA contend that their reason for disavowing NAMBLA has always been their sharing of the general public's disdain for pedophilia and [[Sexual abuse#Child sexual abuse|child sexual abuse]] (as expressed in issues statements). These gay rights groups{{who}} reject NAMBLA's claims of an analogy between the campaign for gay and lesbian equality and the abolition of age-of-consent laws, and view NAMBLA's rhetoric about "the sexual rights of youth" as a cover for its members' "real agenda". |
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Some, like [[Pat Califia]]<ref>Califa, Pat (1994). "The Aftermath of the Great Kiddy-Porn Panic of '77," ''The Culture of Radical Sex.''</ref> argue that politics played an important role in the gay community's rejection of NAMBLA. Califia says that although the gay rights mainstream never committed itself to NAMBLA or its platform, neither did it actively ostracise NAMBLA until opponents of gay rights used the group to link gay rights with child abuse and "recruitment." As evidence, subscribers to this theory point to statements made by prominent gay activists which contain political assessments of NAMBLA's impact on gay rights. One such statement was made by gay rights lobbyist Steve Endean. Endean, who opposed NAMBLA, said: "What NAMBLA is doing is tearing apart the movement. If you attach it [the man/boy love issue] to gay rights, gay rights will never happen." Gay author and activist Edmund White made a similar statement in his book ''States of Desire'': "That's the politics of self-indulgence. Our movement cannot survive the man-boy issue. It's not a question of who's right, it's a matter of political naivete." Califia has since completely repudiated support for NAMBLA. <ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2000/10/27/WB78665.DTL&type=printable ''Radical Transformation'', Writer Patrick Califia-Rice has long explored the fringes. Now the former lesbian S/M activist is exploring life as a man, San Francisco Chronicle, Rona Marech, October 27, 2000]</ref> [[Mike Echols]], the author of ''I Know My First Name is Steven'', the true story of the kidnap and [[child sexual abuse|sexual abuse]] of [[Steven Stayner]], infiltrated NAMBLA and his observations are recorded in his book. At one point he published the names, addresses and phone numbers of 80 suspected NAMBLA members on his website.<ref name=boston/> |
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On [[September 28]] [[2006]], [[Oprah Winfrey]] did an entire episode dedicated to NAMBLA and [[Dateline]] [[NBC]]'s undercover investigative reports on [[Sexual predator|child predators]]. |
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==Related legal proceedings== |
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===Criminal cases=== |
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Although NAMBLA itself has never been prosecuted, there have been a number of prosecutions of alleged NAMBLA members for sexual offences involving children or adolescents. |
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*One case involved a number of men arrested by the FBI in [[Los Angeles]] and [[San Diego]] in February 2005. Seven men were charged with planning to travel to [[Mexico]] to have sex with boys, the FBI said. An eighth man was charged with distributing [[child pornography]].{{ref label|soto|4|c}} According to a media report,{{ref label|soto|4|d}} the FBI believes that at least one of the arrested men is a member of NAMBLA's national leadership, a second organized the group's national convention last year and a third said he had been a member since the 1980s. |
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*Roy Radow, a self-described pedophile and member of the NAMBLA Steering Committee sometimes described as its chairman or spokesman, was arrested in 1996 for masturbating in front of a 12-year old boy. The trial ended in a [[hung jury]].<ref name="cnn">[http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0101/07/impc.00.html ''Rights and Wrongs; Uncommon Ground'', Aired January 7, 2001, CNN&Time Transcripts]</ref> |
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*John David Smith, a San Francisco man, unwittingly spoke of his crimes to an undercover investigator who had infiltrated NAMBLA. Upon obtaining a warrant, the investigator also found [[child pornography]] in Smith's apartment. He was arrested in 1996 and was subsequently convicted of sexually assaulting an 11-year-old boy he was babysitting. Smith's membership in NAMBLA was raised at trial to prove his lascivious intent.<ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/1996/09/05/MN43587.DTL ''S.F. Man Held In Sex Assault on Virginia Boy'', San Francisco Chronicle, Glen Martin, September 5, 1996]</ref> |
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*[[Paul Shanley]], a [[Catholic]] priest convicted of abusing children as young as six years old over a period of three decades, allegedly participated in NAMBLA workshops and advocacy, according to contemporaneous accounts of the events obtained by the [[Boston Globe]].<ref>[http://www.boston.com/globe/spotlight/abuse/documents/shanley_0279.htm ''Shanley quoted in GaysWeek Magazine, February 1979'', Boston Globe/Spotlight/Abuse in the Catholic Church]</ref><ref>[http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2004-05-06-shanley_x.htm ''Shanley, priest at center of clergy abuse scandal, defrocked'', usatoday.com, May 6, 2004]</ref> |
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*Johnathan Tampico was convicted of child molestation in 1989 and paroled in 1992 on condition that he not possess child pornography. After moving without informing authorities of his new address, he was found after a broadcast of [[America's Most Wanted]]. He was arrested and convicted on child pornography charges. In his sentencing, the court stated that Tampico was a member of NAMBLA, and that he and others frequently traveled to [[Thailand]] to have easy access to young boys. The court cited a number of [[Polaroid]] pictures provided by Thai officials depicting Tampico with young Thai boys sitting on his lap as evidence of the latter claim.<ref>[http://www.usdoj.gov/osg/briefs/2001/0responses/2001-0571.resp.html United States Response to Jonathan Tampico's Petition for Writ of Certiorari to Supreme Court of United States, usdoj.gov]</ref><ref>[http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/printer_friendly.pl?page=5th/0020178cr0.html ''United States v. Johnathan Tampico'' Fifth Circuit of Appeals caselaw.lp.findlaw.com]</ref> |
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*James C. Parker, a New York man who, according to court records, told the police that he was a member of NAMBLA, was arrested in 2000 and convicted in 2001 of committing sodomy with a young boy.<ref>[http://www.courts.state.ny.us/reporter/slips/16023.htm New York v. James C. Parker, Order Affirming Judgment of County Court of Broome County, courts.state.ny.us]</ref> |
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*Alan J. Horowitz, an Orthodox Rabbi and adolescent psychiatrist, pleaded guilty in 1992 of sodomizing three boys ages seven to nine, and molesting one girl, aged 14. He had previously been convicted of molesting two boys in 1983. While in prison he wrote for the NAMBLA call newsletter.<ref>[http://theawarenesscenter.org/Horowitz_Alan.html ''Call to Action: "Defrock" Rabbi Alan J. Horowitz, M.D. - Convicted Sex Offender'', The Awareness Center]</ref> |
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===''Curley v. NAMBLA''=== |
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{{main|Curley v. NAMBLA}} |
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In 2000, a Boston couple, Robert and Barbara Curley, sued NAMBLA. According to the Curley's suit, Charles Jaynes and Salvatore Sicari (who were convicted of murdering the Curleys' son, Jeffrey) "stalked Jeffrey Curley... and tortured, murdered and mutilated [his] body on or about October 1, 1997. Upon information and belief immediately prior to said acts Charles Jaynes accessed NAMBLA's website at the Boston Public Library." According to police, Jaynes had eight issues of a NAMBLA publication in his home at the time of his arrest. The lawsuit further alleges that "NAMBLA serves as a conduit for an underground network of pedophiles in the United States who use their NAMBLA association and contacts therein and the Internet to obtain child pornography and promote pedophile activity."<ref>[http://www.thecpac.com/Curleys-v-NAMBLA.html Curley v. NAMBLA]</ref> |
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{{rquote|right|This was a turning point in discovery of myself.... NAMBLA's Bulletin helped me to become aware of my own sexuality and acceptance of it...|Charles Jaynes|Jaynes' diary<ref>[http://edition.cnn.com/2001/LAW/01/08/nambla.suit.crim/ CNN.com - Parents of murdered child sue child-sex advocates - January 8, 2001<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>}} |
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Citing cases in which NAMBLA members have been charged with and convicted of sexual offenses against children, Larry Frisoli, the attorney representing the Curleys, argued that it is a "training ground" for adults who wish to seduce children, in which men exchange strategies on how to find and [[child grooming|groom]] child sex partners.<ref>Murdock, Deroy (2004). "[http://www.nationalreview.com/murdock/murdock200402270920.asp No Boy Scouts: The ACLU defends NAMBLA.]"</ref> He also claims that NAMBLA has sold at its website what he calls "The Rape and Escape Manual" that details how to avoid being caught and prosecuted. |
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The [[American Civil Liberties Union]] stepped in to defend NAMBLA as a free speech matter and won a dismissal based on the fact that NAMBLA is organized as an unincorporated association, not a corporation. John Reinstein, the director of the ACLU Massachusetts, said that although NAMBLA "may extol conduct which is currently illegal", there was nothing on its website that "advocated or incited the commission of any illegal acts, including murder or rape".<ref>Reinstein, John. "ACLU Agrees to Represent NAMBLA in Freedom of Speech Case." ACLU of Massachusetts Press Release, 9 June 2003.</ref> The Curleys continued the suit as a wrongful death action against individual NAMBLA members, some of whom were active in the group's leadership.{{ref label|curley-v-nambla|21|a}} |
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The targets of the wrongful death suits were Roy Radow, Joe Power, David Miller, Peter Herman, Max Hunter, Arnold Schoen and David Thorstad, a co-founder of NAMBLA and well-known writer. The Curleys alleged that Charles Jaynes and Salvatore Sicari, who were convicted of the rape and murder of their ten-year-old son Jeffrey, were NAMBLA members. |
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In [[April 2005]], the wrongful death cases was still being considered by a Massachusetts federal court, with the American Civil Liberties Union assisting the defendants on the grounds that the suit violated their [[First Amendment]] rights to free speech.{{ref label|murdock|2|a}} The American Civil Liberties Union makes it clear, however, that it does not endorse NAMBLA's objectives. "We've never taken a position that sexual-consent laws are beyond the state's power to legislate," John Reinstein, attorney for the Massachusetts branch of the American Civil Liberties Union, said in 1997. "I've never been able to fathom their position." (''Boston Globe'', October 9, 1997). The plaintiffs dropped their lawsuit in [[April 2008]], after a judge ruled that a key witness was not competent to testify.<ref>Saltzman, Jonathan. ''[http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2008/04/curley_family_d.html Curley family drops case against NAMBLA]'', The Boston Globe, April 23, 2008</ref> |
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===Other civil cases=== |
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In addition to ''Curley v. NAMBLA'', several other cases have been cited as evidence that NAMBLA serves as a meeting place or front for men who commit sexual crimes against children and adolescents. |
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*Peter Melzer served as a NAMBLA treasurer, Steering Committee Member, fundraiser, spokesman, and ''Bulletin'' editor. In his private life he was a tenured physics teacher at the elite [[Bronx High School of Science]], where he had taught for over three decades. The school district knew of his membership in NAMBLA in 1985 but did not act as mere membership was not an adequate cause for discipline. In 1993 a local TV news expose revealed that he was a NAMBLA member. As a result the [[New York City Department of Education]] commissioned a report. The report states that Melzer had personally expressed a sexual interest in boys up to age 16, and that he had written about having acted on those desires. The report also asserts that, while he was editor, the NAMBLA ''Bulletin'' printed instructions for seducing young boys and avoiding law enforcement along with sensual accounts of sexual encounters between adults and minors. Further, the investigators claim not to find any significant attempts by NAMBLA to advocate for changing the age of consent laws, and claim that the self-definition of advocacy group is a misleading attempt by NAMBLA to cover itself with a political purpose. Melzer was removed as a school teacher, but no criminal charges were filed in connection with the matter. The case went as far as the federal appeals court, which affirmed the dismissal of Melzer in 2003.<ref>NYCSI, 1993 "[http://www.nycsci.org/reports/09-93%20NAMBLA-Melzer%20RPT.pdf An Investigation Into Misconduct Relating to Pedophilia by Peter Melzer, a Teacher at The Bronx High School of Science]", an objective investigation of NAMBLA and one of its officers. (PDF)</ref><ref>[http://home2.nyc.gov/html/law/downloads/pdf/pr071803.pdf New York City Law Department press release ''Federal Courts Rule in Favor The Department of Education Melzer "Nambla" Case'' July 18, 2003]</ref> |
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*In [[2005]], a NAMBLA member and self-professed pedophile, Kevin Brown, called<ref>[http://760kfmb.com/asx/2005/02/nambla.asx 760kfmb.com]</ref> into Rick Roberts' radio show on KFMB in response to a [[USD|$]]1000 "bounty" Roberts had placed on the heads of NAMBLA members. Brown said that he felt calling into the show to "[take a] stand on behalf of the physical safety of NAMBLA members" was a moral imperative,<ref>[http://unkind.atspace.com/seizure.html Update on my Son's Seizure by the State<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref><ref>[http://www.inquisition21.com/article~view~69~page_num~10.html ''His art became his life, A man commits an act of utter rashness'' Inquisition 21st Century]</ref> and stated that he would use the $1000 to finance a play he was writing which sympathetically depicted romance between adults and children. After hearing a child in the background, Roberts convinced Brown to clarify that he was a father. A little over one week and five days later, [[child protective services]] seized his 2-year-old son, citing an expired conviction for possession of child pornography and his alleged "support [of] the sexual exploitation of minor children." Brown also lost his job and was divorced by his wife. He did not receive the $1000, and is currently seeking to have his child returned to him using legal remedies. |
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==In the popular media== |
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*The pedophile in Ron Handberg's 1992 novel ''[[Savage Justice]]'' who abuses over 30 young boys, is found to have boxes of [[child pornography]] from "a man-boy love association whose slogan is 'Sex After Eight is Too Late'" (this was the slogan of the [[René Guyon Society]]). See also [[List of books portraying paedophilia or sexual abuse of minors]]. |
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*NAMBLA is identified as a lobby group in [[Jon Stewart]]'s ''[[America (The Book)|America: The Book A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction]]'' (2004), and is also alluded to on ''[[The Daily Show|The Daily Show with Jon Stewart]]'', often tagged on to an existing lobby group's acronym for the parody (''e.g.'', "The International Atomic Energy Agency, or NAMBLA [for short]"). ''[[The Daily Show|The Daily Show with Jon Stewart]]'' acknowledged this in a clip retrospective on the July 27, 2006 episode, then turned the joke on its head by saying "However, for the record, the Daily Show has absolutely no affiliation with the North American Man/Boy Love Association or, as it's called, [[UNICEF]]", and again on October 2, 2006, in response to the [[Mark Foley scandal]], "The Foley saga quickly set leaders of the North American Man/Boy Love Association, or, [[United States Congress|Congress]], into action." |
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*NAMBLA is referenced in an episode of ''[[Mr. Show]]''. In the episode (Season 2, episode 3) In the sketch, NAMBLA is up for an advertising award for "Most Improved Image." The commercial played before the winner is announced features various men with black bars over their eyes enjoying a picnic, ending with the slogan "Nambla: We're not killers." |
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*Detectives on ''[[Law And Order: SVU]]'' often ask suspects if they are NAMBLA members when they claim they had a consensual relationship with a minor. |
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*Skacore band [[Leftöver Crack]] feature a song called "Muppet N.A.M.B.L.A" on their [[2004 in music|2004]] "Rock The 40oz" EP. [[Grindcore]] band [[Anal Cunt]] included a song called "I Gave NAMBLA Pictures of Your Kid" on their [[1999 in music|1999]] album ''[[It Just Gets Worse]]''. The Norwegian band [[Turbonegro]] also has a song named "The Midnight NAMBLA" on their [[1995 in music|1995]] album ''[[Ass Cobra]]''. |
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*NAMBLA was briefly mentioned in the ''[[Brasseye]]'' "Paedophile special" episode. |
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*NAMBLA was featured in [[Cartman Joins NAMBLA|episode 406]] of ''[[South Park]]'' where [[Cartman]] is ostracised from his friends, and decides to try to make new, older, "mature" friends on the internet. He unwittingly attends a NAMBLA meeting later and becomes their poster child, where they take photos of him in nothing but a [[Speedo (suit style)|Speedo]]. A few NAMBLA members meet [[Stan Marsh|Stan]] and [[Kyle Broflovski|Kyle]] and they are invited to a banquet along with Cartman. It is here that they learn the true nature of NAMBLA, but the NAMBLA members are soon arrested by the police. It also introduces a second NAMBLA, the "North American [[Marlon Brando]] Look Alikes," who are in constant battle with NAMBLA for the domain name nambla.com. |
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*NAMBLA was also briefly mentioned in a 2006 episode of the MTV show ''[[Celebrity Deathmatch]]''. Nick Diamond comments, "We've got more [[fan mail]] than [[Bow Wow|Lil Bow Wow]] at a NAMBLA convention!", to which Johnny Gomez replies "And that's a lot of mail, Nick". |
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*NAMBLA was referenced in ''[[Another Gay Movie]]''. One of the characters was sitting in a gay bar when two people with NAMBLA T-shirts turn around and ask the character his age. When he replied with 17 they responded "Sorry, kid. Waaay past your prime." |
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*On the [[May 12]], [[2007]] episode of ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'', a NAMBLA member was portrayed by comedian [[Will Forte]] in a sketch about fringe Presidential candidates. He ended the sketch with this quote: "I believe children are the future of this country. So tonight I leave them with this message: At my house, I have [[Xbox]]." |
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==See also== |
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*[[Age disparity in sexual relationships]] |
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*[[Anti-pedophile activism]] |
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*[[Child sexuality]] |
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*[[Pro-pedophile activism]] |
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*[[Rind et al. controversy]] |
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*[[Sexual Morality and the Law]] |
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==References== |
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<div class="references-small" style="-moz-column-count:2; column-count: 2;"><references/></div> |
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==Additional reading== |
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*Art Cohen, "The Boston-Boise Affair,", ''Gay and Lesbian Review Worldwide'', Vol. 10, No. 2. March-April, 2003. |
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*[http://www.bostonmagazine.com/home/articles/boy_crazy/ Denizet-Lewis, "Boy Crazy: NAMBLA: The Story of a Lost Cause," ''Boston Magazine''] |
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*John Mitzel, ''The Boston Sex Scandal'', Boston, Glad Day Books, 1981. |
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*Stuart Timmons, ''The Trouble With Harry Hay: Founder of the Modern Gay Movement'', Alyson Pubns, 1990. |
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==External links== |
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*[http://www.cnn.com/2001/LAW/01/08/nambla.suit.crim CNN: Parents of murdered child sue child-sex advocates] January 8, 2001 |
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*[http://www.lib.neu.edu/archives/voices/gl_sexual2.htm Gay Community Responds to Revere] |
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*[http://www.nambla.org NAMBLA] |
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*[http://www.qrd.org/qrd/orgs/NAMBLA NAMBLA-related Documents on the Queer Resources Directory] |
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Revision as of 13:33, 24 September 2008
NAMBLAarePedophiles
All members should be tortured and killed