Virtuous Pedophiles
Virtuous Pedophiles (aka Virped, founded June, 2012) is an online forum and peer support community for anti-contact MAPs.
The forum is home to pedophiles who agree to conduct themselves in a socially-appropriate fashion, refusing to support the social acceptance of sex between adults and minors. Such pedophiles might be referred to ACNOMAPS - Anti-contact and NOMAP. Members have presented themselves as battling against unwanted impulses,[1] leading some to describe them as subservient to the predominant medical narrative of pedophilia. Virped nevertheless pursues an agenda of destigmatization in their limited public advocacy work. The group is synonymous with its heyday of the mid-10s in much the same way NAMBLA is associated with the 80s.
The two founders of the group use the pseudonyms Ethan Edwards and Nick Devin, and formed Virped because they objected to B4U-ACT's noncommittal stance re. their deeply held anti-contact views. There are over 2000 users registered, including parents of children, parents of pedophiles, and a few sex researchers. Websites that have pursued a similar approach are the German website Schicksal und Herausforderung (German for Fate and Challenge) and the Czech forum ČEPEK.
The group's efforts have been supported for their potential benefits by several human sexuality experts.[2][3] The group was acknowledged in a New York Times editorial about the distinction between pedophilia and child sexual abuse by law professor Margo Kaplan. Kaplan wrote, "It is not that these individuals are 'inactive' or 'nonpracticing' pedophiles, but rather that pedophilia is a status and not an act." In 2022, the group was linked to a pamphleting campaign in the United Kingdom. Despite the fact this was only publicized by a radical feminist with a track record of outrage-mongering, they resulted in the banning of Virped's public account from Twitter.[4] It appears Virped had given a newly recruited social media manager access to their 7-year old Twitter account, and he then made a series of posts claiming that he was engaged in the campaign, oblivious to the risk this posed to the account.
Concept and founding
What We Virtuous Pedophiles Really Believe, by Ethan Edwards (in Alice Lovers Magazine No. 4).
For peer support, Nick was referred to the B4U-ACT peer support group. Unfortunately he did not enjoy his time there. He thought they were unnecessarily antagonistic towards scientists who had befriended him. And, in fact, its leader Richard Kramer alienated these scientists by aggressively criticizing them for supporting the view that there is such a thing as pedophilic disorder, as expressed in the proposed DSM-5 TM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Nick also believed that the societal hatred attached to pedophilia could be reduced if society could be made to understand the difference between pedophilia (sexual feelings towards children) and child sexual abuse (sexual acts with children). He felt that B4U-ACT could make progress in this area, but only if it unequivocally stated that adults should not have sexual contact with children. B4U-ACT refused to do this because it believed this would alienate pedophiles and also, Nick believed, because many of its leaders felt that adult-child sex should be legal. After trying to get B4U-ACT to modify its views, Nick decided the differences were too great to be bridged, and in 2011 he resigned from the organization. He had an idea of creating a website that would express the reality that many pedophiles are dedicated to (and succeed at) avoiding sexual contact with children. Nick began work on a website for this new organization in 2012.
Social Media
Virped has been active on Twitter for some time; @virpeds has an account creation date of October 2015, however, it was suspended in late August, 2022, following the above-mentioned pamphleting controversy. Before the account even existed, they were given some support by James Cantor, mentioned by CBC News, Karen Franklin and the Kinsey Institute.
Virped employed a two-forked social media strategy on Twitter, using one account to collect followers and retweet the comments of another. This appeared to be a strategy to avoid suspensions. It is a little-known fact that Virped's secondary account (@virpedspeaks) continued to operate on a private basis until around the turn of April and May 2023, when it was banned in the wake of Elon Musk's renewed wave of bans against "child exploitation" accounts.[5] In October 2023, undeterred by previous bans, Virped launched @virpedofficial, which has seen minimal activity as per Feb 2024.
Moderation, ethos and criticism
Virped have pursued strict rules of moderation from the outset. According to their founder:
- "we do not allow discussions of whether adult-[minor] sex is fundamentally OK [...] We banned discussion of Trump some time ago, and more recently have banned anti-vax positions [...] we don't allow jokes with the N-word"[6]
Their history with the boylove community goes back some time, and tends not to be particularly positive. They have at times been described as cult-like in their mode of operation.[7][8] The group's use of potentially mischaracterizing terms such as pro-contact and anti-contact has also drawn criticism in some quarters, as has the idea of pro-c MAPs being "lectured" on moral values by forum members, some of whom are ex-cons.
Hard medicalism
Virped's FAQ states "we would certainly wish that any newborn baby not turn out to be a pedophile". This hard medicalist focus has been cited as somewhat concerning, given one of their main supporters is Dr. James Cantor, who aggressively focuses his research on finding biological markers for pedophilia.
Religiousity
Virped have not attempted to hide their religious connections from the very beginning, and the group remains open to people of all faiths. In one article, the experiences of two LDS Virpeds are charted.[9]
Levels of activity
Insiders had reported a reduction in forum activity in 2021 and 2022 - including, but not limited to the absence of key representatives and their activist initiatives. Forum activity was nevertheless healthy by 2024, with over 100 posts per day exceeding its lifetime average.
See also
- Prostasia Foundation
- B4U-ACT
- Mu
- MEDAL
- Ipce
- Todd Nickerson and Gary Gibson - Examples of Virpeds who have gained publicity in the media.
- Operation Underground Railroad - Another organization with religious roots, including LDS, but on the opposite side of the debate.
External links
- Supporters
- Pro-Legalization arguments - A selection of essays by a founder of Virped, appearing to entertain limits and boundaries relating to minor-adult sex. Freak University and The P Word has archived this and many of his writings.
Depictions of similarly aligned pedophiles
These were popular in the mid-10s media, and include various NOMAP-sympathetic documentaries, such as I, Pedophile and The Pedophile Next Door. Further examples:
- Daniel's World - Czech documentary.
- Salon articles focusing on Todd Nickerson.
- TNF.
References
- ↑ "Meet pedophiles who mean well: The men behind VirtuousPedophiles.com are attracted to children but devoted to denying their desires". Salon.com.
- ↑ "Many researchers taking a different view of pedophilia". L.A. Times.
- ↑ "Savage Love Podcast (episode 321) Starts at 21:30". Retrieved 27 April 2014.
- ↑ Reduxx - Virped Pamphlet Campaign
- ↑ G Tenbergen - Virped ban It is of note that this was in the wake of the 2023 Alice Day/Youth Attracted Person controversy.
- ↑ BoyChat post: Introducing (drum roll): Virtuous Pedophiles!
- ↑ BoyChat post: Virtuous Pedophiles is a hoax, nothing more
- ↑ BoyChat post: Who is lying here?
- ↑ Experiences of Latter-day Saint “Virtuous Pedophiles”
- ↑ Our emphasis:
Unlike the 8-year-old, the 13-year-old is likely to think of sex a lot and be very interested. She understands roughly why the man is interested and the power of his desire. But whereas young women and men in their early 20s may find the presence or absence of a sex life as central to happiness, this is far less likely for the 13-year-old. Even if her desire is powerful, the admonition to wait until she is 16 is just not a huge burden on her.
I mentioned that adult women all too often feel coerced into sex they really didn't want. The 13-year-old is far more susceptible to this (though less susceptible than the 8-year-old). She may often want to feel more grown-up than she is -- not the best reason to have sex. A man is more likely to have things she cannot get for herself, such as a car and money, and sex can be a way to get them.
I argued <earlier> that women are typically configured to be very sensitive to betrayal by a man who she thinks is interested in a long-term relationship but who isn't. It is a greater risk for 13-year-olds for a number of reasons. The chances that a relationship will actually last are far lower. The girl will typically be less astute in figuring out whether a man is sincere and whether the relationship actually can last. She is also more emotionally fragile and likely to suffer more from abandonment. She may also think she is just playing around, but later find that sex has unleashed feelings far stronger than simple sexual desire.
Pro-contact pedophiles note that in many societies, girls at age 13 are routinely married. They are correct that the girls are (usually) physically ready for sexual intercourse. They are implicitly correct that such girls do not suffer serious psychological trauma that renders them ineffective adults.
[...]
All that said, some young teen girls are legitimately attracted to adult men. Some know just what they want and go for it. They may later suffer but chalk it up to a learning experience. Even today, with severe penalties a possibility, such relationships are surely very common -- they just rarely make it to the attention of a willing prosecutor.
How do we reconcile the young girl's greater vulnerability (and lower need for sex as part of the good life) with genuine interest and what is quite a common reality? The compromise I propose is that for girls of (say) age 13 and above, there should be no prosecution unless the girl herself wants it -- without heavy pressure from parents or law enforcement. This system leaves in place the most important protection -- if she was raped, there is no need to prove lack of consent. If it can be proven that sex happened, then if she says she did not consent she is automatically right. She could also admit she agreed to the sex but it was under false pretenses -- this should also result in a conviction, though a lighter sentence. But she also has the option to forgive the man and chalk it up to a learning experience. Of course, if she is enthusiastic about the relationship, she would not support prosecution.
Her judgment that she wants the man prosecuted should not be required immediately -- she should have a few years at least to re-evaluate the experience.
[...]
An intriguing alternative accomplishing some of the same purpose would be a <German-style age of consent law>. The age of consent is 14, but subject to certain restrictions involving abuse of power that apply up to age 18.