If you have not already, please read Annie Hope’s blog on this issue and the latest podcast on the World According to the Knock (audio embedded above).
THE WARRANT IS AN INSULT TO OUR COMMUNITY
‘The Knock’ is the language used by families of the knock. The innocent unsuspecting family members. When the event occurs, it is severely SHOCKING causing severe PTSD in many cases for the innocent family members. It not only encompasses the initial event, but the series of unfolding events that are just as devastating. The visits from Social Services suspecting that you are an abuser, the dirty looks from community, from teachers, kicked out of families, the long drawn out court system, the false accusations, the rumours, families torn apart, careers destroyed, children traumatised.
The term ‘The Warrant’ does not accurately describe the shocking terrifying experience. The language brings to mind words like anticipated, expected, predictable, inevitable, understandable, anticipated or logical.
By replacing ‘The Knock’ with ‘The Warrant’ that element of utter shock is somewhat removed. When people think of a warrant, it evokes more of an expected or anticipated event. This may of course be true for the offender but could not be further from the truth for the innocent family members.
Society often responds with false assumptions that the families must have known. This could not be further from the truth. The not-knowing part is what defines the baseline for the PTSD that occurs because the family is in a state of shock for many weeks, months, years and more. People in shock react and do not respond. They therefore often make things worse contributing to worsening the likely PTSD.
‘The Knock’ encompasses all the shock factor involved in this phenomenon. Changing the definitive phrase to ‘The Warrant’ removes the explanatory nature of how devastating this event is to families.
Who and why wants to change these terms? Why are they trying to change the narrative which detracts away from innocent family members?
Language is being used to change the narrative. Perhaps to detract any negative view of the police. To justify a terrifying experience for innocent family members. The new language is removing association with the relatively new ‘knock’ phenomena which is a well-known term which sympathises with the family members and helps give them the search terms they need for help.
Those with lived-experience of ‘The Knock’ are typically supportive. Many stay with their spouses or continue allowing their offending child (teenage or adult) to live with them. The innocent family members typically have empathy for offenders within their families and want to help them. They understand that there are discrete differences between the labelling of the offender. They advocate for more research into the pathways of offending. This typically includes understanding that sexual deviant pathways are not the truth for the majority of offenders caught on mainstream websites. Many of these iioc-only mainstream offenders did not go deliberately searching for this material.
Therefore families object to the offenders being mislabelled as a ‘P’ and see a clear difference between this and those who traditionally seek out iioc on the darknet who are more sophisticated at hiding their ISP’s. The state has a responsibility to tackle the growing epidemic. Government agencies need to do more to work with the service providers to discourage the easy accessibility of the material online. It could easily happen to your son, daughter or husband. I hope it doesn’t because I would not wish the pain on anyone.
We wish to see the government and porn industry to be accountable for the continued promotion of increasing violent and deviant material available on free mainstream websites.
Presently, it seems that all the blame for offending is placed on the offender using contact-offender models of explanation. More research is needed as these models need updated. For example, in one study by Middleton, Elliott, Mandeville-Norden and Beech (2006) iioc-only offenders, 15% fall outside the traditional risk-explanations used to for contact-offenders. This is just one indicator that something is amiss. Accurate and updated research is needed to inform social policy and practice.
The people who live through ‘the knock’ feel invisible and let down by society on many levels. They are misunderstood, mislabelled and the criminal justice system, education system, health and social care, media, arts and entertainment industries are all failing to meet their expectations. Then as a final kick in the teeth, the terminology is changed without consent.
When the knock happened to me, it took me 3 years to find help and an online community. For 3 years I suffered alone, was ostracised, had to move my family and start again. I do not say this to seek your pity. I tell you because finding the term ‘the knock’ and the community that came with it was the turning point in the recovery journey for my new life. I would hate to see this hope being taken away from other families. That was the reason I set this website up, to give others hope when I had none. All of this work we have done in the community cannot be undone.
What will you do to end the silence?