Who do the police see when they interview survivors of child abuse and choose to not believe them? I know this has happened to so many of you, it’s a devastating fact. A common fact. It’s also happened to me. I wasn’t believed. I reported my child abuse to the police as an adult. When I gave my statement instead of seeing who I really was with my own individual story, they decided to not see me at all. Their defences, judgements and prejudices were built up like walls. This protected them from seeing, hearing and feeling the truth of the trauma I presented to them. If they couldn’t see me, how could they believe me? They saw someone they had created a rigid idea about. A stereotype, a victim, a liar, someone to be pitied and looked down on. Someone ‘unstable’ who was making it up. Someone with a history of mental health issues. It’s so boring this kind of discrimination, it’s so standard. There’s no looking beyond, no looking within, no seeing, no meeting with the survivor. Just a whole load of prejudice and fear. Fear that this kind of trauma might touch them, that they might have to meet with it and really feel it if they give us full belief. As survivors we need to be questioning the police. We need to hold them to account. Why do they so often discriminate against and label us, rather than believe, be with us and truly see us ? The detective who interviewed me could not bear to see or hear my trauma. He labelled it dramatic. He was supposed to be an expert in child abuse What did he know about trauma ? It’s not easy to speak out that’s why it’s trauma ! We all know as survivors when you’ve been told over and over as a kid if you talk you’ll be killed, your story is not going to come out of your mouth easily. It’s not going to flow gracefully. Surely this is obvious ? So why label us ? We need to ask them who do you see ? What are you afraid of ? Who are you trying to protect? Yourself ? We need to hold up their prejudices and judgements . Then we need to set them straight. The police need to be educated by survivors of abuse so they can become less afraid of meeting us in the truth and seeing who we really are.
