child molestation

Child molestation is any action that violates a legal prohibition against sexual contact with children. Some applicable laws specifically use the term "child molestation," while other laws use various terms such as "lewd and lascivious acts" or "sexual conduct with a minor."

Some jurisdictions prohibit contact with certain areas of a child's body (e.g., the genitals), but make exceptions for situations such as medical examinations or bathing. Other jurisdictions have chosen to focus on motivations rather than specific actions. Those areas tend to have laws that prohibit any contact with a child when it is believed that the contact is for the purpose of sexual gratification.

Laws of the latter category are often considered to be more onerous, since they require a judge or a jury to make a determination about the defendant's motives, rather than simply to decide whether or not the defendant touched a particular part of the child's body.

A man in California was imprisoned under the state's motivation-based child molestation law for sucking on a boy's toes. While his conduct was clearly very sexualized and arguably inappropriate, the decision nonetheless raised concern among many boylovers, since the man's actions did not involve any contact with the traditional "private parts." More alarming still was the testimony of one expert witness in the trial, who suggested that a person could be subconsciously sexually aroused while touching a child, thereby committing a crime without even being aware of it.

Child molestor

Child molester is sometimes used by boylovers and girllovers as a pejorative term for an adult who rapes or otherwise coerces a child into unwanted sexual activity. Usage varies among the general population, but in most instances the term is applied to any person who has been convicted of child molestation.

Boylovers frequently express a disdain for child molestation equal to (if not more vigorous than) that expressed by society at large. Boylovers have the added burden, however, of having to work against a common assumption that boylove, sexually expressed or not, is in and of itself child molestation.

The distinguishing factor between a boylover and a child molester is that of thought, action, and—where action is concerned—consent. Whereas a child molester is someone who has commited an act of molestation, a boylover is simply somebody who is attracted—often sexually—to boys, which is not an action. While a boylover ideally will respect the wishes of the child and put his interest above any personal considerations, a child molester is simply using a child as an object for sexual gratification and is unconcerned for the child's wishes.

Society commonly argues that if a person is aged below the age of consent, he or she is not able to give informed consent about being part of a sexual relationship. People who hold this view thus argue that any sexual intimacy with such a person is an act of child molestation. Many boylovers argue that depending on age and psychological maturity, boys can give consent and sometimes even actively seek a sexual relationship with an adult friend. Such a relationship, they argue, is not child molestation. Note that some may hold this view and still be opposed to sexual relationships with boys because of society's harmful reaction towards the boys or the legal implications for themselves.