Faraway:
A Suburban Boy’s Story as a Victim of Sex Trafficking
by R.K. Kline and Daniel D. Maurer
We grimace at the sight of Louis CK’s recent comedic
interaction with child molestation on SNL because know deep down inside that
this is nothing to laugh about. In a new
book by R.K. Kline and Daniel D. Maurer tell the story of Kevin’s journey
through adolescence, trying to find out his orientation as a gay teen living in
St. Louis. He met a man who he thought
he could trust, but things turned out to be a nightmare. Instead of guiding him in the right path, Ray
pushed him into a life of sex trafficking, whereby he sent young Kevin to homes
in St. Louis to meet with older men. The
story is a sad tale of the kind of thing that can happen right under our noses
if we aren’t careful to become aware of such things.
The thing that is striking in the book is how Kevin
befriends Stevie and Squirrel and he sees how a friendship should work, even in
the hellish circumstances they were in.
The authors write, “I realize now, of course, that the day I had just
experienced should not be a day experienced by any kid. There was nothing normal about it. But, for some reason, I felt at home with
Stevie and Squirrel (43).” Stevie didn’t
have a home but stayed at Sam on many days, and Squirrel was also all around
the town. These three shared times at
Forest Park, at the zoo, even at the Muny as a way to stick together. And yet, they also shared each other. The thing that struck was that Kevin felt a
tinge a guilt about his actions, even remembering in church the lector quoting
Romans 1 about unnatural and natural relations, but not enough guilt to make
him stop.
The disgusting nature of the events in Kevin’s life
come to the forefront as he is forced within an inch of his life to have sex
with a boy while being filmed. The
abuser told Ray that he could use the boy again next time, a word that is
appropriate for such repulsive activities.
Yet, this is not the end of Kevin’s story, for as he tells in the chapter
on hope, he became an ELCA minister, eventually dealing with his own past
through psychiatry in Hawaii. Kevin puts
the blame for his past on every institution that sought to denounce and
ridicule gay teens, from the church to the schools and families.
Thanks to Two Harbors and Speak Easy for the copy of
this book in exchange for an honest review.
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