FOREWORD<br > Florence Rush<br > I never told anyone: Why is it that children who have been mo-<br > lested， sexually abused， or even raped rarely or never tell? They<br > never tell for the same reason that anyone who has been help-<br > lessly shamed and humiliated， and who is without protection or<br > validation of personal integrity， prefers silence. Like the woman<br > who has been raped， the violated child may not be believed (she<br > fantasized or made up the story)， her injury may be minimized<br > (there s no harm done， so let s forget the whole thing)， and she<br > may even be held accountable for the crime (the kid really asked<br > for it).<br > A growing child gains self-esteem and confidence from the<br > value placed upon her by adults whom she trusts and upon whom<br > she must depend. The sexually exploited child， however， rarely<br > elicits a reaction necessary to promote a positive identity. Unsup-<br > ported in her right to be protected， to be angry， or to express<br > justified indignation， she feels she deserves no more than to be<br > sexually used. To expose an incident is to expose her own insig-<br > nificance. To tell anyone is to be disgraced in her own eyes and<br > the eyes of others. The child victim has no recourse but to bury，<br > hide， and try to forget the experience. But the humiliation will<br > not go away. It festers， poisons and undermines her being. When<br > the offense remains hidden， unanswered and unchallenged， the<br > sexuality， the very biology of the offended child， becomes her<br > shame.<br > This destructive syndrome did not arise in a vacuum. It stems<br > from age-old traditions and customs that are written in history，<br > religion， law， and in today s powerful and influential media. In the<br > beginning of our Western civilization the female， along with a<br > house， ox， and ass， was a man s property. Specifically， she was a<br > 13<br >