Hardly a week goes by we don't read of adults in positions of trust preying sexually on children, often in our own schools, churches or neighborhoods. Yet, given the frequency of such despicable crimes, we seem reluctant to face this issue head on.

Society has a long tradition of looking the other way when it comes to child predators. It is easier, of course, to assume teachers, coaches, clergy, volunteers, camp counselors, and neighbors are good people. It just feels better trusting those who enter the lives of our children, often out of nowhere and unsupervised. We might sleep better knowing how popular a karate teacher is or how much enthusiasm and time our kids' team coach seems to have for the team.

We need to open our eyes. Child predators can be smart, popular, polished as shiny new pennies and devious. Where will we find pedophiles? Where children gather. How do child predators act? They often establish trust in the community. They court children, groom them and eventually seek to be alone with them.

Research shows child sexual predators are almost all former child victims*. The sickness of pedophilia is learned and apparently contagious. It will continue its frightening plague, too, until we take bold steps toward prevention while also determining how organizations that negligently employ and protect pedophiles should be penalized.

We parents need to openly and frankly discuss with our children the behaviors of child predators. Any adult who seeks to engage a child in talk about their bodies or of a sexual nature, who attempts to be alone with a child, or whose behavior causes a child to feel afraid or uncomfortable should be view with keen suspicion, and we must tell our children so. Children are known to crumble in the face of predators' tactics and to keep secrets when told to do so, particularly when they are being preyed upon by people in positions they have been taught to obey, respect or even love.

Public and private organizations alike are accountable for the safety of children they attract. They are morally responsible for hiring those who do not endeavor to harm children in any manner and should be legally responsible, as well. True, in the absence of psychic abilities even the most thorough screening processes can fail to detect persons of evil intent. Even if those who hire stop being too polite to scrutinize, even if they put away hiring magnifying glasses and pull out microscopes, one cannot guarantee pedophiles won't land in positions of trust. But that does not mean organizations should not be required by law to guard their doors and protect children with all their might.

Directors of schools, churches and youth organizations might take heed from the Catholic Church crisis. Reluctance to watch with eagle eyes employees who have access to children, failure to act at a hint of impropriety, failure to hire only those squeaky clean under the most powerful microscopes, failure to question any employee seeking to be alone at any time with any child, and failure to kick child predators not to the curb but all the way to the police station means we continue facilitating predators and failing our children.

*Web sites about child predators and their behaviors abound. A few good ones:

http://www.bbplaw.com/publications/0604frrkaw.htm

www.operationlookout.org

http://people.hofstra.edu/faculty/charol_s_shakeshaft/