"Scarlet Letter" Laws: Appropriate?

[M.K]

In AP English III, we are about to finish reading The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, a book based in colonial Puritan colonies. The book is centered around Hester Prynne, a woman who, believing that her husband has died at sea, conceives a child with the town's minister Dimmesdale. Realizing that her husband is indeed NOT dead, she is tried and committed for Adultery. She stands at the scaffold grasping Pearl, her sinfully conceived daughter, and is sentenced to three hours of public humiliation at the scaffold, and a lifetime of wearing a Scarlet "A" on her chest, publically branding her as an "Adulterer".

On the basis of this book, "Scarlet Letter" laws are those that prohibit the daily actions of sex offenders and/or publically expose them AS sex offenders.
For example, a judge in Texas required all registered sex offenders to place a sign outside their residence that read "Danger! Registered Sex Offender Lives Here!" and sentenced them to Probational House Arrest.
Another law in North Carolina prohibited child sex offenders from public access to places where children might congregate, such as churches, schools, and day cares.
However, this also comes with a great amount of hostility. Many sex offenders preach a willingness to change, and denying access to such places like church/synagogue/insert religious place of worship here may deter them from seeking spiritual guidance. Also, sex offenders raise the point that murderers, burglars, and fraudulent individuals are released from jail with no preventative clauses, free to do whatever they please.
Sex offenders have the highest rate of recidivism of all crimes in the United States.

Again, the questions I would like to raise include the following:

1. Do you believe that child predators should be prohibited from accessing places that children might gather, even at the risk of hostility?

2. Do you believe that the sex offenders should be released into society freely after they serve their time?

3. Do you believe in the human ability to change natures? EX, do you believe alcoholics, sex offenders, or those with addictions can truly overcome their addictions or just learn to manage it?

Spoiler

Hey guys, I plan to show this topic to my teacher, so try to keep it clean and appropriate. Try to keep your flaming to an absolute minimum. Thanks a ton!

 

[Riddle]

1. Do you believe that child predators should be prohibited from accessing places that children might gather, even at the risk of hostility?

2. Do you believe that the sex offenders should be released into society freely after they serve their time?

3. Do you believe in the human ability to change natures? EX, do you believe alcoholics, sex offenders, or those with addictions can truly overcome their addictions or just learn to manage it?

1) I think that child predators/convicted pedophiles should be prohibited from areas with children, but only until they have shown that they can control their urges and desires. Many pedophiles resent their condition, but never seek help with it. If they lose control of their desires just once and go to jail, they can learn about their many options to help them. If they pursue options such as counseling and drugs that reduce testosterone (assuming they are male) then after a certain time period where they are steadily given limited amounts of freedom and they show they can control their urges then they should be allowed to be free. Recidivism rates for pedophiles and sex offenders who seek counseling and helpful drugs is 9.9% so most will be able to control their desires. On the subject of using spirituality to work through their difficulties, I believe that their should be services provided for sex offenders to be able to worship freely.

2) The simple answer is no. however the complicated answer may be read above. I believe that sex offenders should be given counseling and they should have to show progressively that they can control their desires.

3) I do believe that people can get over addictions and learn to change. Humans spend their whole life changing physically and mentally. Our knowledge changes and our habits change; there's no end to the things that we change as we grow. Addictions are like habits except they are harder to change. However, if you can get yourself out of the habit of smoking or something else long enough then you can change that habit. However, there are some things you mentioned that can't change. Pedophiles, for one, are unable to change their desires for pre-pubescent children are unable to be stopped just like we can't change our desires for the opposite(or same) sex. It is just their sexuality. The only thing that can be done to stop these desires is to stop the production of hormones and with the loss of hormones these desires are repressed. However, this is just managing the problem and if the drugs that are stopping the hormones aren't taken anymore then the urges will come back.


Hi Meta-Kirby's teacher!