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Created page with "This page is a preserved archive of [https://archive.li/FqkDx Wikipedia's page titled "Allyn Walker"], which is scheduled for deletion. This is a copy of the source page as edited at 09:45, 12 May 2023 and may have errors and problems displaying. An editing work is in progress. '''Allyn Walker''' is an American [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_justice#Academic_discipline criminal justice] researcher and author. They are known for their research relating to child..."

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This page is a preserved archive of [https://archive.li/FqkDx Wikipedia's page titled "Allyn Walker"], which is scheduled for deletion. This is a copy of the source page as edited at 09:45, 12 May 2023 and may have errors and problems displaying. An editing work is in progress.

'''Allyn Walker''' is an American [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_justice#Academic_discipline criminal justice] researcher and author. They are known for their research relating to child sexual abuse, their advocacy for mental health treatment for people who are attracted to minors and for their use of the term ''[[Minor-attracted person (Wikipedia archive)|minor-attracted person]]''.<ref>[https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2022/may/15/allyn-walker-professor-whose-pedophilia-research-c/ Professor whose 'minor-attracted person' research on pedophilia created stir lands new job], The Washington Times.</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20211125175050/https://www.newsweek.com/allyn-walker-virginia-old-dominion-university-pedophilia-minor-attracted-1653340 Who is Allyn Walker? ODU Professor Quits After Pedophilia Remarks Spark Backlash], Newsweek via Wayback Machine.</ref><ref>[https://campusreform.org/article?id=19560 Johns Hopkins hires professor known for defending attraction to minors], Campus Reform.</ref><ref>[https://apnews.com/article/media-crime-education-virginia-norfolk-2adff01de54205e6513d5071f29e772a Professor who wrote about adults attracted to minors resigns], AP News.</ref>

Walker has worked as a counselor for victims of sexual assault, as an [[assistant professor]] of sociology and criminal justice at [[Old Dominion University]] from 2019 to 2021,<ref name=":2" /> as well as a [[Postdoctoral Fellow|posdoctoral fellow]] at [[Johns Hopkins University]].<ref name=":9" /> Walker identifies as transgender and uses "they/them" pronouns.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":0" />

In 2021, Walker's use of the term ''minor-attracted people'' in a public interview spawned a controversy that culminated in them being put on [[administrative leave]] from the Old Dominion University due to safety reasons in 2021.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Haulenbeek |first=Sydney |title=ODU's Struggle with Academic Freedom Casts a Long, Dark Shadow |url=https://maceandcrown.com/2245/news/odus-struggle-with-academic-freedom-casts-a-long-dark-shadow/ |archive-url=https://archive.is/IGw5Y |archive-date=9 Aug 2022 |access-date=2023-03-25 |website=Mace & Crown}}</ref><ref name=":2" /> In response to the negative news coverage of the controversy, a letter containing the signatures of 63 experts of the fields of mental health and child sexual abuse was issued in support of Walker's academic work, referring to it as important and ground-breaking.<ref name=":3">{{Cite news |last=Letourneau |first=Elizabeth |date=Dec 3, 2021 |title=A Virginia college professor set off a firestorm about pedophilia |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/12/03/virginia-college-professor-set-off-firestorm-about-pedophilia/}}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":4">{{Cite news |title=ODU professor steps down after firestorm over research into 'minor-attracted people' |language=en-US |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2021/11/24/allyn-walker-odu-professor-resigns/ |access-date=2023-03-25 |issn=0190-8286}}</ref>

Walker is also known for their [[academic book]] ''A Long, Dark Shadow'', which defends the idea that not all people who are sexually attracted to minors are sex offenders and advocates for the facilitation of mental health treatment for these groups.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":8" /> Amid public controversy, the book became a [[Bestseller|best-seller]] on Amazon.<ref name=":5" />

== Academic life ==

Walker's first job was as a [[social work]]er, where they acted as a counsellor for victims of sexual assault and child sexual abuse.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":7">{{Cite web |date=2021-11-24 |title=Professor who wrote about adults attracted to minors resigns |url=https://apnews.com/article/media-crime-education-virginia-norfolk-2adff01de54205e6513d5071f29e772a |access-date=2023-03-26 |website=[[Associated press]] |language=en}}</ref>

In 2017, Walker earned their Ph.D. in [[criminal justice]] at the [[John Jay College of Criminal Justice|John Jay College]] and the [[City University of New York]]. Their thesis was titled ''Understanding Resilience Strategies Among Minor-Attracted Individuals''.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":13">{{Cite journal |last=Walker |first=Allyson |date=2017-09-01 |title=Understanding Resilience Strategies Among Minor-Attracted Individuals |url=https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/2285 |journal=Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects}}</ref> In 2019, they were hired at the [[Old Dominion University]], where they worked as an [[assistant professor]] of sociology and criminal justice.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":2" />

In June 2021, Walker published an [[academic book]] titled ''A Long, Dark Shadow: Minor-Attracted People and Their Pursuit of Dignity.'' The book was built on the research that they had done during their dissertation.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3" /><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite web |date=2021-12-03 |title=Professor placed on leave after saying paedophiles should be destigmatised |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/allyn-walker-professor-paedophile-virginia-b1960427.html |access-date=2023-03-26 |website=[[The Independent]] |language=en}}</ref>

In November 2021, Walker agreed to an [[administrative leave]] from Old Dominion due to violent threats that they had received because of their use of the term ''minor-attracted people''.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":8" />

In May 2022, they were hired as a [[Postdoctoral Fellow|postdoctoral fellow]] at the [[Johns Hopkins University]]'s Moore Center for the Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse.<ref name=":1" />

== Positions and findings ==

=== On child sexual abuse ===
{{See also|Child sexual abuse}}
Walker advocates for the prevention of child sexual abuse through the preemptive clinical treatment of people who are sexually attracted to minors. They also see the stigma of this group of people as a deterrent factor that obstructs them from seeking psychological counsel.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":8" />

A 2022 research lead by Walker reported that 54% of a sample of surveyed [[Social services|social service]] students agreed that they would report "a pedophile" to the police when no sexual offense was mentioned. This rate would, however, drop to 7% when the person in question was labeled as a person with a sexual interest in children but had not committed any child sexual crime.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Schmidt |first=Alexander F. |last2=Niehaus |first2=Susanna |date=November 2022 |title=Outpatient Therapists’ Perspectives on Working With Persons Who Are Sexually Interested in Minors |url=https://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10508-022-02377-6 |journal=Archives of Sexual Behavior |language=en |volume=51 |issue=8 |pages=4157–4178 |doi=10.1007/s10508-022-02377-6 |issn=0004-0002 |pmc=9663344 |pmid=35939157}}</ref>

Walker is opposed to the normalization of sexual activities between adults and children and claims that their beliefs about the topic were mischaracterized by a coordinated media attack against LGBT people.<ref name=":8" /><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":5" /> Walker believes that it is "never OK" for someone to abuse a child, but also that there is no morality attached to the sexual attraction toward children for as long as it is not acted upon.<ref name=":9" />

=== On pedophilia ===
{{See also|Pedophilia}}
Walker believes that pedophilia is a hardwired and unchosen sexual attraction.<ref name=":8" /><ref name=":11">{{Cite web |last=Bindel |first=Julie |date=2023-04-02 |title=Keep child abusers off the rainbow flag |url=https://unherd.com/2023/04/keep-child-abusers-off-the-rainbow-flag/ |access-date=2023-04-11 |website=UnHerd |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref name=":2" /> In their book, ''A Long, Dark Shadow,'' they encouraged people who are attracted to minors to never act upon their sexual desires and to seek psychological counsel if they felt at risk of offending.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Logue |first=Derek W. |date=2022-10-26 |title=How ‘Cancel Culture’ Stifles Efforts to Combat Child Sexual Abuse |url=https://thecrimereport.org/2022/10/26/how-cancel-culture-stifles-efforts-to-combat-child-sexual-abuse/ |access-date=2023-04-11 |website=The Crime Report |language=en-US}}</ref>

Walker has argued that the construction of ''pedophilia'' as a criminal issue has caused a neglect to the mental health of minor-attracted people. They believe that a more humanistic approach to counseling this group of people is beneficial to the prevention of child sexual abuse.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Levenson |first=Jill S. |last2=Grady |first2=Melissa D. |last3=Morin |first3=John W. |date=December 2020 |title=Beyond the “Ick Factor”: Counseling Non-offending Persons with Pedophilia |url=http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10615-019-00712-4 |journal=Clinical Social Work Journal |language=en |volume=48 |issue=4 |pages=380–388 |doi=10.1007/s10615-019-00712-4 |issn=0091-1674}}</ref>

They belive that the notion that all pedophiles are sex offenders is "not true" and leads to many misconceptions about attractions toward minors.<ref name=":10">{{Cite web |last=Schwerha |first=Alexa |date=2022-05-13 |title=Johns Hopkins hires professor known for defending attraction to minors |url=https://campusreform.org/article?id=19560 |access-date=2023-04-11 |website=[[Campus Reform]] |language=en}}</ref> Walker's view that minor-attracted people were simply people who had commited a crime changed after they started researching the topic.<ref name=":2" />

=== On the use of the term minor-attracted person ===
{{See also|Minor-attracted person}}
Walker advocates for the use of the term ''minor-attracted person'' due to the fact that it carries less stigma than the word ''pedophile''. They believe that there is a moral difference between people who have an unchosen attraction to children but have not acted upon such feelings and those who have this same attraction and have done so.<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":2" />

They believe that there is no morality or immorality attached to a sexual attraction, as it is beyond human control. Walker does believe, however, that actions can carry moral connotation.<ref name=":5" />

== ''A Long, Dark Shadow'' ==
In June 2021, Walker released a book titled ''A Long, Dark Shadow: Minor-Attracted People and Their Pursuit of Dignity''.<ref name=":12" /><ref name=":4" /> The book was built on the research they had done during their Ph.D. thesis in 2017. It was published by the [[University of California Press]].<ref name=":2" />

The book documented the lives of people sexually attracted to minors, arguing that those people are not necessarily predators.<ref name=":10" />

In it, Walker stated that they worked as a counselor for victims of sexual abuse, and that they would feel "enraged" by what they heard from their clients, wishing they could have done something to prevent their victimization.<ref name=":0" /> Furthermore, the book describes how Walker's views on people who are attracted to children changed during their research.<ref name=":2" />

=== Reception ===
The book became a best-seller on Amazon.<ref name=":5" />

It was also criticized for its usage of the term ''minor-attracted person''.<ref name=":10" /><ref name=":11" /> In an interview with ''[[Washington Post|The Washington Post]]'', a student who started a [[Change.org]] petition against Walker said that their language was a "slap in the face" of child sexual abuse victims.<ref name=":12">{{Cite web |title=Virginia professor to step down after backlash to research on 'minor-attracted' people |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/virginia-professor-step-backlash-research-minor-attracted-people-rcna6709 |access-date=2023-04-12 |website=NBC News}}</ref> The same student also said that the book gave a "pat on the back" of pedophiles for not acting upon their sexual desires.<ref name=":4" />

== Controversy relating to their "Minor-Attracted people" interview ==
On November 8, 2021, Walker had an online interview with child protection organization Prostasia Foundation about the topic of sexual attractions to minors and child sexual abuse prevention.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Kwong |first=Jessica |date=2021-11-18 |title=Professor on leave for saying attraction to minors isn't immoral |url=https://metro.co.uk/2021/11/18/professor-on-leave-for-saying-sexual-attraction-to-kids-isnt-immoral-15621766/ |access-date=2023-03-26 |website=[[Metro (British newspaper)|Metro]] |language=en}}</ref> Two days later, a [[Trans exclusionary radical feminism|trans-exclusionary radical feminist]] blog published an article titled ''"Non-Binary” University Instructor Calls To ‘Destigmatize’ Pedophilia [sic].'' The article covered Walker's interview with Prostasia, where they advocated for the use of the term ''minor-attracted person'' instead of the word "pedophile". The article also [[misgender]]ed Walker multiple times.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-11-10 |title=UPDATE: "Non-Binary" University Instructor Calls To 'Destigmatize' Pedophilia |url=https://4w.pub/old-dominion-university-assistant-professor-comes-out-in-support-of-destigmatizing-pedophilia/ |access-date=2023-03-26 |website=4W – Feminist News |language=en}}</ref>

On November 12, a clip of Walker's interview with Prostasia was shared by [[Libs of TikTok]] with the title "they are coming for your kids".<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |date=2023-01-03 |title=LibsofTikTok's Interviews Prove She's Not Unbiased. She's Generating Hate |url=https://www.newsweek.com/libsoftiktoks-interviews-prove-shes-not-unbiased-shes-generating-anti-lgbtq-hate-opinion-1771049 |access-date=2023-03-26 |website=Newsweek |language=en}}</ref> Ten days further, amid the public controversy, an [[open letter]] signed by 63 experts of the field of psychology, mental health and criminology was issued to the president and other high-ranking members of the Old Dominion University in defense of Walker.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":4" />

On November 16, Walker agreed to an [[administrative leave]] from the Old Dominion University.<ref name=":4" />

On December 10, Old Dominion’s American Society of University Professors published an open letter in support of Walker.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":9">{{Cite web |date=2021-12-03 |title=ODU chapter of national organization publishes letter sharing concern of professor stepping down over controversial interview |url=https://www.wtkr.com/news/national-organization-publishes-letter-sharing-concern-of-odu-professor-stepping-down-over-controversial-interview |access-date=2023-03-26 |website=[[WTKR]] |language=en}}</ref>

=== Response from the university ===

On November 24, 2021, the president of the university, [[Brian Hemphill]], published a letter condemning the attempts of intimidation and threats against Walker and defending that controversial ideas should be debated and not silenced.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-09-12 |title=A Joint Statement from Old Dominion University and Dr. Allyn Walker |url=https://www.odu.edu/article/a-joint-statement-old-dominion-university-and-dr-allyn-walker |access-date=2023-03-26 |website=Old Dominion University |language=en}}</ref>

=== Media coverage ===
The Libs of TikTok clip of Walker's interview with Prostasia was [[Re-tweet|retweeted]] by American senator [[Ted Cruz]] and [[James A. Lindsay|James Lindsay]]. The ''[[New York Post]]'', the ''Daily Mail'' and Fox News also shared the clip, accusing the professor of trying to normalize the sexual grooming of children. The incident was also discussed on ''[[Tucker Carlson Tonight]]''.<ref name=":3" />

=== Response from Walker ===
Walker told ''[[The Washington Post]]'' that the idea that they were defending child sexual abuse was "absolutely outrageous" and that they, as well as the LGBT community, were a victim of a coordinated media attack.<ref name=":8">{{Cite web |last=Doherty |first=Erin |date=2021-11-20 |title=Old Dominion University professor on leave amid protests over research on pedophilia |url=https://www.axios.com/2021/11/20/old-dominion-professor-leave-research-pedophilia |access-date=2023-03-26 |website=[[Axios (website)|Axios]]}}</ref>

Walker also stated that they, as well as the university campus, had received violent threats during the controversy, and that their positions were mischaracterized, partly due to their trans identity.<ref name=":2" /> In a public statement, Walker stated that their research into this controversial topic had been done in order to identify ways of protecting children.<ref name=":5" />

=== Hiring at Johns Hopkins University ===
On May 25, 2022, days after their contract with the Old Dominion University expired, Walker was hired as a postdoctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins' Moore Center for Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse.<ref name=":9" /> The organization, which describes itself as a center for changing the way that society views child sexual abuse "from inevitable to preventable" made several tweets welcoming Walker as a new member.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-05-15 |title=Professor gets new job after pedophilia research caused stir |url=https://apnews.com/article/education-virginia-norfolk-sexual-abuse-old-dominion-university-6cf49cea85d30d362cb4ed255d8459eb |access-date=2023-04-11 |website=AP NEWS |language=en}}</ref>

== Criticism ==
Walker's research was criticized by the president of the [[International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation]], Michael Salter, for not being victim-centered enough. He said, in 2022, that too much prevention work was being done by researchers who have solely worked with offenders or people sexually attracted to minors.<ref>{{Cite web |last=O'Neil |first=Tyler |date=2022-05-13 |title=Johns Hopkins center against child sexual abuse hires professor who defended 'minor-attracted persons' |url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/johns-hopkins-center-child-sexual-abuse-hires-professor-minor-attracted-persons |access-date=2023-04-13 |website=Fox News |language=en-US}}</ref>{{NoteTag|Allyn Walker has claimed that they have worked as a counselor for sexual assault victims when they were a social worker.<ref name=":7">{{Cite web |date=2021-11-24 |title=Professor who wrote about adults attracted to minors resigns |url=https://apnews.com/article/media-crime-education-virginia-norfolk-2adff01de54205e6513d5071f29e772a |access-date=2023-03-26 |website=[[Associated press]] |language=en}}</ref>|name=note 2}}

In 2023, radical feminist [[Julie Bindel]] accused Walker's academic research of suggesting that the answer to people's attractions to minors was to "feed the beast".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bindel |first=Julie |date=2023-04-02 |title=Keep child abusers off the rainbow flag |url=https://unherd.com/2023/04/keep-child-abusers-off-the-rainbow-flag/ |access-date=2023-04-13 |website=UnHerd |language=en-GB}}</ref>

Walker has also been criticized by [[Bill Donohue]] in a 2022 essay, the president of the [[Catholic League (U.S.)|Catholic League]], who called Walker "a biological woman who thinks she is a man" and tied the normalization of pedophilia to homosexual activism.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Logue |first=Derek W. |date=2022-10-26 |title=How ‘Cancel Culture’ Stifles Efforts to Combat Child Sexual Abuse |url=https://thecrimereport.org/2022/10/26/how-cancel-culture-stifles-efforts-to-combat-child-sexual-abuse/ |access-date=2023-04-13 |website=The Crime Report |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Academic works ==

* Walker, A., Butters, R.P. and Nichols, E. (2022). "'I would report it even if they have not committed anything': Social service students' attitudes toward minor-attracted people". ''Sexual Abuse'', '''34''' (1), pp. 52–77.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Walker |first=Allyn |last2=Butters |first2=Robert P. |last3=Nichols |first3=Erin |date=2022 |title='I Would Report It Even If They Have Not Committed Anything': Social Service Students' Attitudes Toward Minor-Attracted People |url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33586525/ |journal=Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment |volume=34 |issue=1 |pages=52–77 |doi=10.1177/1079063221993480 |issn=1573-286X |pmid=33586525}}</ref>
* Walker, A. (2021). ''A Long, Dark Shadow: Minor-attracted people and their pursuit of dignity''. Univ of California Press.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Walker |first=Allyn |url=https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520306363/a-long-dark-shadow |title=A Long, Dark Shadow: Minor-Attracted People and Their Pursuit of Dignity |date=2021 |isbn=978-0-520-30636-3}}</ref>
* Walker, A. (2017). ''Understanding resilience strategies among minor-attracted individuals'' (Doctoral dissertation). CUNY Academic Works.<ref name=":13" />

== See also ==
{{Portal|Sexuality|Crime}}
* [[Klaus Michael Beier]]
* [[Rind et al. controversy|Rind ''et al.'' controversy]]
* [[Transformative justice]]

== Notes ==
{{NoteFoot}}

== References ==

{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* [https://prostasia.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Letter-of-Support-for-Walker-from-Researchers_Clinicians.pdf Letter of Support for Walker from Researchers and Clinicians]

{{Authority control}}
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Allyn Walker (Wikipedia archive) - Revision history

Lecter at 07:10, 7 May 2024