It was last summer and I was down in Florida with my two sons. The news was awash with the Ariel Castro kidnappings. I was out for dinner with a friend that was kind enough to host me for my vacation and we were watching the news when he said something very odd.

I don’t remember the exact words that he stated but the implication was that it was the girls fault that they were kidnapped. “They should have known better.”

I was speechless. I wanted to go all out crazy on him because it is NEVER the fault of a child if they are kidnapped.

Neither is it their wish to be molested and you think they were asking for that slap across their face? Why don’t I slap the shit out of you and see if you like it?

Abuse is never the fault of the victim, so if you have been a victim of rape, kidnapping, physical or verbal abuse realize this.

IT IS NOT YOUR FAULT.

Whether you are a child or an adult it is not your fault. The one who commits the crime is the one with the problem. You are merely the victim.

I encourage anyone who is reading this post to escape the situation if you are being abused. That includes verbal abuse also, the most insidious of abuses.

If someone tells you that it is your fault I would encourage you to set them straight. This idea that abuse is the fault of the victim is an idea that needs to change and it will not change unless the victims start speaking out.