Religion and Sexual Abuse

So I recently read an article about sexual abuse in Buddhist religious establishments, and how the perpetrators get away with it. I've read similiar articles about Christianity - and yes, about Judaism as well - though I do beleive there has been a very concentrated effort in the past decade in the Orthodox community to make people more aware about sexual harrasment, and to provide people with avenues to turn to in the case of sexual abuse.

Anyhow, whenever these articles come out, some self-righteous atheist writes an op-ed about how terrible religion is and how it enables sexual abuse. The truth is however, that while there are many factors that contribute to sexual abuse, what really enables it on a societal level is power: Anytime men are in positions of power over women, abuse occurs - not by all men of course, but by certain men who take advantage of the opportunity. There have not been enough societal structures enabling women en mass to be in positions of power over men en masse (at least in Western society), so there is no comparable data for women using power to abuse men. The truth is however, that whether it is an office setting, a political party (for example, the virulently atheist Communist Party in Russia, in which you needed to be in good standing with party superiors in order to get ahead), a classroom setting, the military, or any social organization that puts men in positions of power over women, abuses have occurred. There are humans involved in religious organizations, which means members of those organizations will commit human flaws - including abuse. But there is nothing inherent in religion or religious society that makes it particularly prone to abuse. It is true that there are coverups, or the concept of protecting the perpetrator from the American legal system, but that happens in any close community, whether it is a religious, cultural, linguistic, or ethnic community - especially if said community feels that it is a minority, there is a fear that turning perpetrators over to the hegemonic majority community is a betrayal. This is not particular to religious communities, nor is it particular to secular ones. So instead of arguing over which is better, let's point fingers at the true perpetrator: The gender power imbalance and invisibile mysogyny that permeates Western culture.

By the way, for those in the Orthodox community seeking help this is a great resource: http://sites.google.com/site/sovrihelpline/

Here is an article from Chabad by a survivor of abuse, with a list of resources at the bottom: http://www.chabad.org/theJewishWoman/article_cdo/aid/934222/jewish/Breaking-the-Silence.htm

I would caution people against going to Ohel Family Services though. I know that the Jewish Week wrote an article blaming them for mishandling a case of abuse. I also know that Ohel denies the Jewish Week's accusation. I don't know who is right, but why turn to an organization that you know for a fact might have mishandled a case of abuse?