#csem vent

[donttellmehowtoheal]

[ghostgiving]

fucking tell me one more time that fanfiction of a fictional child in a sexual situation with a fictional adult is exactly the same as a video of me being raped in a bathroom at twelve years old being posted online. tell me that again. do you honestly fucking hear yourselves.

[somewhereinarea51]

I was such easy prey for you

All you had to do was wait for it to get dark

Waiting outside the window

Seeing me alone

Attacking, hurting

You try to claim me as yours

I didn't even fight back

Why did I let you do it?

Please tell me why

[donttellmehowtoheal]

[donttellmehowtoheal]

[donttellmehowtoheal]

[donttellmehowtoheal]

[donttellmehowtoheal]

@idontknowwhatisme A good question. Csem is child sexual exploitation material. I am a survivor, so I post vents about it sometimes.

(More info under the cut, if anyone is interested.)

Csem is also called csam (child sexual abuse material). Either is ok. I prefer csem bc it validates survivors who have difficulty seeing what happened as abuse. It used to be called cp (child pornography), but that term is inaccurate and harmful, so it's being replaced.

Legally speaking, in the US, csem:

is a visual representation (photo or video) or can be turned into one (undeveloped film or image data saved in a different format)

and shows a living person who can be identified as a minor (under 18)

and is a record of abuse ( including contact abuse and sexualized nudity)

It has to hit all 3 requirements.

There is a category of art that falls under current csem laws. It's sometimes referred to as "simulated." In order for a piece of art to fall under that category, it must be photorealistic. To you or I, it must genuinely look like csem. If it's obviously art, it isn't "simulated csem." It's just art. (Personally, I despise this regulation.)

Csem is almost never prosecuted. However, reporting matters.

If you know where the csem came from, or if it's a physical copy, please report it to the local child services department.

If it's online, and you're pretty sure it's from the US, please report it to NCMEC.

If it's online, and you're pretty sure it's from outside of the US... unfortunately, that's handled by a division of ICE. My recommendation is to report it to NCMEC and let them pass it off if necessary.

I appreciate all interest in csem and survivorship. Being an adult survivor is complicated, and I'm glad that making vent art/poetry has helped me. I hope it helps someone else too.