February 16, 2011 10:46 AM
Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown tells Lesley Stahl he was the victim of physical, psychological and sexual abuse when he was a child. Stahl profiles the senator Sunday, Feb. 20, 7 p.m. ET/PT.
Sen. Scott Brown Speaks Out on Childhood Abuse
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See all 80 CommentsMy name is Keith Smith. I was abducted, beaten and raped by a stranger. It wasn't a neighbor, a coach, a relative, a family friend or teacher. It was a recidivist pedophile predator who spent time in prison for previous sex crimes; an animal hunting for victims in the quiet suburbs of Lincoln, Rhode Island.
I was able to identify the guy and the car he was driving. He was arrested and indicted but never went to trial. His trial never took place because he was brutally beaten to death in Providence before his court date. 35 years later, no one has ever been charged with the crime.
In the time between the night of my assault and the night he was murdered, I lived in fear. I was afraid he was still around town. Afraid he was looking for me. Afraid he would track me down and kill me. The fear didn't go away when he was murdered. Although he was no longer a threat, the simple life and innocence of a 14-year-old boy was gone forever. Carefree childhood thoughts replaced with the unrelenting realization that my world wasn't a safe place. My peace shattered by a horrific criminal act of sexual violence.
Over the past 35 years, I've been haunted by horrible, recurring memories of what he did to me. He visits me in my sleep. There have been dreams-nightmares actually-dozens of them, sweat inducing, yelling-in-my-sleep nightmares filled with images and emotions as real as they were when it actually happened. It doesn't get easier over time. Long dead, he still visits me, silently sneaking up from out of nowhere when I least expect it. From the grave, he sits by my side on the couch every time the evening news reports a child abduction or sex crime. I don't watch America's Most Wanted or Law and Order SVU, because the stories are a catalyst, triggering long suppressed emotions, feelings, memories, fear and horror. Real life horror stories rip painful suppressed memories out from where they hide, from that recessed place in my brain that stores dark, dangerous, horrible memories. It happened when William Bonin confessed to abducting, raping and murdering 14 boys in California; when Jesse Timmendequas raped and murdered Megan Kanka in New Jersey; when Ben Ownby, missing for four days, and Shawn Hornbeck, missing for four years, were recovered in Missouri.
Despite what happened that night and the constant reminders that continue to haunt me years later, I wouldn't change what happened. The animal that attacked me was a serial predator, a violent pedophile trolling my neighborhood in Lincoln, Rhode Island looking for young boys. He beat me, raped me, and I stayed alive. I lived to see him arrested, indicted and murdered. It might not have turned out this way if he had grabbed one of my friends or another kid from my neighborhood. Perhaps he'd still be alive. Perhaps there would be dozens of more victims and perhaps he would have progressed to the point of silencing his victims by murdering them.
Out of fear, shame and guilt, I've been silent for over three decades, sharing my story with very few people. No more. The silence has to end. What happened to me wasn't my fault. The fear, the shame, the guilt have to go. It's time to stop keeping this secret from the people closest to me, people I care about, people I love, my long-time friends and my family. It's time to speak out to raise public awareness of male sexual assault, to let other survivors know that they're not alone and to help survivors of rape and violent crime understand that the emotion, fear and memories that may still haunt them are not uncommon to those of us who have shared a similar experience.
My novel, Men in My Town, was inspired by these actual events. Men in My Town is available now at www.Amazon.com
For those who suffer in silence, I hope my story brings some comfort, strength, peace and hope.
For additional information, please visit the Men in My Town blog at www.meninmytown.wordpress.com
Is there no one that thinks perhaps the guy is earnest in the how/why/reasons for sharing this story?
I choose to look for the best in people and I see Scott Brown as a brave, resilient, intelligent, hard working,
survivor who has many reasons for telling his story as do all of us. I believe it is in part catharsis, in part to dispel any other mistruths, in part to inspire others that may have been victimized, in part to prepare the way for a potential presidential candidacy in his future. And those are not all the reasons, I am certain.
As for him turning his back on the downtrodden. He simply didn't say that. Leslie Stahl didn't allow him to clarify that point. What he did say was that we needed to find $ to support initiatives that support the downtrodden within the current budget. Imagine, a voice of reason.
Truth be told, I think that people are not used to straightforward folks who are educated and street smart.
I respect Scott Brown and admire him. I also believe him.
Kudos to you Scott!!! Thank you for having the guts to put it out there and to fight for what our state of Massachusetts entrusted you to do.
I'm 45 now and just recently told my wife and family about the abuse I endured for 3 years. It was the hardest thing I had ever had to do. I still wear the scares today, the flashbacks, the nightmares, it is a life sentence.
For those who have been sexually abused in the past, you are not a lone.
COULD NOT HAVE SAID IT BETTER MYSELF. NO ONE IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WILL EVER COME OUT AS AN ADULT AND ADMIT THAT THEY WERE SEXUALLY ABUSED AS A CHILD UNLESS IT REALLY HAPPENED. THERE IS NOTHING TO BE GAINED, ONLY TO HELP AND INFORM THOSE WHO HAVE OR WILL GO THROUGH THAT IN THEIR LIFETIME. AND I FOR ONE BELIEVE SCOTT BROWN.
Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7355810n&tag=nl.e882#ixzz1ELONzNMu
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See all 80 Comments