Professor’s redefinition of pedophilia could help offenders demand rights

On Nov. 8, Old Dominion sociology and criminology professor Allyn Walker gave an interview in which he asserted the need to destigmatize pedophiles by redefining them as “minor-attracted persons” (MAPs). Walker stated, “We have a tendency to want to categorize people with these attractions as evil or morally corrupt,” and that when people “hear the term ‘pedophile,’ they automatically assume that it means a sex offender, and that isn’t true.”

Shortly after this interview, students at Old Dominion protested over the professor’s attempt to obfuscate the nature of sexual predators. Although the university furloughed Walker, the professor continued to defend his stance while attacking his critics as hostile to academic freedom and misguided by “rightwing media.”

The Walker incident is not a standalone event. In fact, his advocacy for pedophiles highlights the crisis that critical theory poses for higher education, as it attempts to dismantle every social taboo and normalize every form of immoral conduct. 

In his book, “A Long, Dark Shadow: Minor-Attracted People and Their Pursuit of Dignity,” published by the University of California press, Walker derives “MAPs” as a new term for pedophiles from a group called B4U-ACT. Dedicated to “compassionate assistance” in the form of therapy and advocacy for pedophiles, the group also publishes its own research journal. In the introduction of “A Long, Dark Shadow,” Walker attempts to explain the difference between a “minor-attracted person” and pedophile by swapping words based on the stigma they carry.  On the first page of the book, Walker states that “B4U-ACT uses the term MAPs, rather than the term ‘pedophile,’ to decrease stigma against this group.” Walker adopts the same term for the same reason. 

The politics of sexual identity permeate the introduction of “A Long Dark Shadow.” There, Walker advocates for the inclusion of MAPs as part of the larger LGBT community by approaching attraction to minors as an orientation, and stating that “the fact of children’s inability to consent to sex is irrelevant to the application of the term ‘sexual orientation’ towards attractions to minors.” Walker tacitly recognizes the threat that pedophiles pose, while also focusing on “coping methods” and “strategies for non-offending” MAPs. 

Redefinition carries consequences, and the left boasts a long history of redefining words to shatter traditional beliefs. In June, the Biden administration replaced “mother” as a term with “birthing person” in the 2022 budget. Multiple states and government agencies have replaced “illegal alien” with “undocumented immigrant,” while California switched “homeless” with the term “unhoused” to retain control of narratives and debates on the issue.

At issue is Walker’s wish to redefine pedophilia from an activity to a group identity. This is the basic move of the left — an activity can be prohibited, but a group identity possesses uncompromisable rights. To establish a “MAP” identity is to establish rights for pedophiles — and once pedophiles have rights, nothing will be allowed to contravene those rights. MAPs will gain the right to work in schools, to act as they will with children age 17, age 16 . . . and so on.

It should be noted that “A Long Dark Shadow” passed peer review and was published by a reputable academic press. Academia’s ideological consensus has already shifted toward acceptance of pedophilia. K-12 schools already allow for depictions of child sexuality under the guise of equity, despite a considerable resistance by parents. If the material of pedophiliac pornography is already in the school libraries, how can further acquiescence to pedophilia be resisted?

Walker has now resigned, effective the end of May — and his removal from the faculty of Old Dominion may bring the public controversy to a temporary close. But his success in persuading colleagues that his work met all applicable standards for legitimate research, and his further success in having his findings published by one of the most important university presses in the country, demonstrate that the barriers in academe to his ideas are flimsy. Without a doubt, there will be further efforts to advance the cause of “minor-attracted persons.”

Ian Oxnevad is a recent Ph.D. in political science from the University of California and a member of the National Association of Scholars.