Response to Anonymous by Sue McPherson, May 19, 2013
. . . continued from ‘Anne Kneale and Bill Mates: age, gender, and sexual exploitation’
http://samcpherson.homestead.com/files/Miscellaneous/AnneKneale_Bill_MatesPt2.doc
Anne Kneale says in court, “He was there to take care of us as students, as youth . . .He was there to protect us and be the responsible adult in a foreign country. He totally abused that vulnerability that we had” (Former Ingersoll Economic officer Bill Mates pleads guilty to sexual exploitation in London courtroom, by Jane Sims). But I wonder, but couldn’t this kind of sexual incident between them have also happened while they were both living in Ingersoll, Ontario?
Whether in Africa or Ingersoll, it would be reasonable for her to fear that upsetting Mates by rejecting him sexually could end up in her not getting needed references for jobs or university. It’s something all girls and women have to think about. It’s a line women walk, between being sexually attractive to men, wanting men to like them, and on the other hand, having men see them as capable and efficient.
If Anne did feel vulnerable away from home in Africa, why would she wear a sexually provocative bikini out in public (by definition sexually provocative), why would she hug Mates, and laugh with him, and share secrets? Consensual sexual indiscretions are more likely to happen when people are away than when they are in their home territory. People do things they wouldn’t ordinarily do. Of course, she has the right to change her mind at any moment before intercourse takes place – or any other sex act, but she didn’t do that. She went ahead with it. But that’s irrelevant, according to the law, because she was only 17 years of age, he was a much older man, and he was in a position of authority over her.
Under the law, there was no such thing as ‘consent’ in this case. But a law is only a good law as long as it does the job it is meant to do, and and will allow exceptional circumstances to be taken into consideration. When I read about this case, I saw two people who sincerely liked one another, until one of them stepped over the line, sexually. People may feel shocked at the age difference, but until sex came into it, here were two people who got along together and enjoyed one another’s company.
For the logic behind the changes in laws created to help deal with chat rooms, trafficking of women and the exploitation of disabled children (as well as children in institutions and those forced into pornography), read ‘Child sexual exploitation and the age of consent’ by Professor Katherine Covell. It is now accessible on my website, with some points of interest highlighted.
You’re right. The law forbidding “sexual exploitation, ” (C-15) for ages 16-18, originated in 1998 (Parliament of Canada Bill C-22, 2006). The new laws – C2 (?), which raised the specific forms of child sexual exploitation, came more recently, in 2006. I’m not familiar with law in general, and these are complex. But also, 2006 was when people like K Covell wrote about the value of sex education that would raise awareness of young people about predatory sexual behaviour, and sexual relationships in general.
It seems to me that the court case of Bill Mates vs Anne Kneale is an example of how a man can be caught up in laws that haven’t yet been brought up to par with the changing cultural environment, and how a woman cane encounter the unexpected because she hasn’t been forewarned. Society has experienced changes in attitudes towards authority, in part due to the new face of feminism, although research and laws might take some time to catch up. Recognizing the ways young people see themselves, as apparent authorities themselves, or as sexually capable in their personal relationships, and in this case recognizing that young women act differently today than they did 20 years ago is essential if what is wanted is a better understanding of such cases involving alleged abuse of authority.
Anne Kneale seemed to think it was okay to dress provocatively (in a bikini) and yet not make it clear to Bill Mates that she wasn’t interested when he expressed a sexual interest in her. At the same time, they were apparently sharing a close relationship. It apparently came as a complete surprise when he pulled her into the train’s toilet, wanting (or expecting) sex. Something doesn’t add up. Yes, we have a conscience, Anon, but also a body, hormones, feelings, and emotions. Are women to be blamed for ‘leading a man on’? Or is it a more of an ethical question - of taking responsibility and communicating better so that such situations don’t happen, rather than doing whatever one wants and letting the other person think whatever they will?
You say all human urges are controllable. Is that why obesity and alcoholism and obesity are so easily overcome? In this case, having a young lass in a bikini unabashedly interact with the older man with no awareness, apparently, of the effect she was having on him, like a piece of chocolate cake with ice cream, is something to be considered. Especially in today’s world of hook-up culture, a man might reasonably misinterpret the actions of the woman. And even though he was the main voice of authority on this trip, it appears that they saw themselves as equals in some ways – hugging, telling secrets, etc, perhaps as part of the same social class.
You also stated that the number of months left until Kneale's birthday is not relevant. It is relevant, but only because under the law, if they had had sex one month later he would not have been committing a crime. Then it would have been purely an ethical issue (unless his job description forbade it), and if it were an ethical issue, then surely both parties would be expected to consider the part they had played in the misunderstanding. He broke the trust she had in him, and placed her in a situation where she felt she had no choice but to submit, but before that happened, she may have uneccessarily allowed a situation to continue when it should have been stopped.
I do realize that Bill Mates did plead guilty, just as the trial was about to begin. But one only has to read about other cases where the alleged perpetrator did not ‘take responsibility’ (in the eyes of those who wrote up the pre-sentence report, or relatives of the victims) to see how much worse off he would have been if he had tried to fight it (read about Bonita Purtill on my blog).
It is contradictory that Anne Kneale went to Africa as a ‘high achiever’ even though she lacked the awareness to recognize when the man who was a chaperone for the trip might be about to betray the trust she had in him. Mates wasn’t the only chaperone, though all three were men, apparently, with no women chaperones. The position of trust was for one month period, although Mates and Kneale had known one another for a long time and had developed a closeness over that time before going on the trip to Africa as part of a special program for high achievers sponsored by the Duke of Edinburgh Awards program.
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Under the law, Bill Mates was guilty, and indeed was declared ‘guilty as charged.’ But the circumstances of this case have raised other issues, one being the apparent lack of responsibility of schools clubs, etc in Ingersoll to make sure these young people off to Africa were as prepared as they possibly could be for such eventualities; secondly, the Duke of Edinburgh program itself, which may not have provided adequate guidelines, such as those suggested by Katherine Covell in her article, to arm young people with knowledge and skills on how to deal with unwanted sexual encounters; third, the neglect of others on the trip to mention the increasing closeness of the relationship between Mates and Kneale to other chaperones; and fourth, the absence of responsibility felt by the young woman, Anne Kneale. I’m sure most men would rather she had indicated a lack of interest than continue to behave in that manner.
. . . continued from ‘Anne Kneale and Bill Mates: age, gender, and sexual exploitation’
By Sue McPherson
Sue’s Views on the News
Apr 14, 2013
http://suemcpherson.blogspot.ca/2013/04/anne-kneale-and-bill-mates-age-gender.html
References
Child sexual exploitation and the age of consent
By Katherine Covell, Ph.D.
Sept 7, 2006 [note correction of date of earlier listing of this article here]
Canadian Children's Rights Centre
http://www.canadiancrc.com/Child_sexual_exploitation_age_consent_K_Covell_07SEP06.aspx
Retrieved Apr 10, 2013
http://samcpherson.homestead.com/files/Miscellaneous/2006_Sept_Child_SexualExploitation_AgeOfConsent.doc
Former Ingersoll Economic officer Bill Mates pleads guilty to sexual exploitation in London courtroom
By Jane Sims
London Free Press
Mar 19, 2013
http://www.lfpress.com/2013/03/18/former-ingersoll-economic-officer-bill-mates-pleads-guilty-to-sexual-exploitation-in-london-courtroom
Parliament of Canada Bill C-22
Prepared by: Robin MacKay, Law and Government Division
Parliament of Canada
Feb 21, 2007, Revised Aug 2, 2007
http://www.parl.gc.ca/About/Parliament/LegislativeSummaries/bills_ls.asp?ls=c22&parl=39&ses=1
Retr May 16, 2013
http://samcpherson.homestead.com/files/Miscellaneous/Parliament_of_Canada_Bill_C_22.doc