Rapists Legally Allowed to See "Their Child" ?

          In the article entitled Child custody right for rapists? Most states have them, written by Ed Payne and Ted Rowlands, I discovered that a lot of states give custody rights to men who are fathers to children with women they raped. I had no idea that this happened. I’d like to say that my opinion on this matter is made with a clear head, but it’s not possible. I can’t imagine why men who have committed such terrible actions should have any sort of contact with the victim or their child. Honestly, it’s not even okay for them to call the baby theirs. 

When a man stoops to such a low level of morality and humanity, and forcibly takes a woman for his own pleasure, they should never be allowed near women again, let alone a child. Perhaps that makes me sound harsh. I understand that people make mistakes in life and that they don’t necessarily define them. However, in the case of rape, that’s not a mistake. A man is fully aware that the act he is committing is not legal, is not okay, and is not acceptable. There is absolutely no excuse for taking advantage of another human being in such a horrible and disgusting way.

I think that the custody rights states offer these men should not exist. In fact, I have no idea why they do. I don’t understand what the reasoning behind their existence is. Laws are created to protect citizens. By having laws that give rapists the right to see the child, it puts the mother and the child in danger. Therefore, it is not a good law. I think it’s important to pass a law that takes away the rights from these men. Shawna Prewitt, a woman interviewed for this article, said that had she known that the rapist would have these rights, she’s not sure that she would have decided to keep her child.

I hope that I am never in this situation. I think it is a horrible situation to be in. I cannot imagine how terrible and scary it must be for women to know that the abuser who disrupted their lives so tremendously, has a right to step back in. The government really needs to do some thinking and realize the consequences that the creation of these laws has. They need to make sure they take everything into consideration and hopefully see that giving rapists these rights is not the right thing to do.