Allyn Walker is a biological woman who identifies as a transgender male, and she is an assistant professor of sociology and criminal justice at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. Her recent book — released in June — aims to embark on the cultural mission of “destigmatizing” pedophilia — although she refers to it as “minor attraction.”
Titled A Long, Dark Shadow: Minor Attracted People and Their Pursuit of Dignity, she noted in a recent interview that she uses that term because it is the one pedophiles prefer, stating that “MAP advocacy groups like B4U-Act have advocated for the use of the term, and they’ve advocated for it primarily [because] it’s less stigmatizing than other terms like pedophile.”
The publisher’s site describes Walker’s book as follows:
Challenging widespread assumptions that persons who are preferentially attracted to minors — often referred to as “pedophiles” — are necessarily also predators and sex offenders, this book takes readers into the lives of non-offending minor-attracted persons (MAPs). There is little research into non-offending MAPs, a group whose experiences offer valuable insights into the prevention of child abuse. Navigating guilt, shame, and fear, this universally maligned group demonstrates remarkable resilience and commitment to living without offending and to supporting and educating others. Using data from interview-based research, A Long, Dark Shadow offers a crucial account of the lived experiences of this hidden population.
The interview was conducted with a group called Prostasia, which advocates for legalizing child sex dolls in order for pedophiles to have an outlet for what they insist is a form of sexuality. According to the media outlet 4W, B4U-Act “was founded by convicted multi-child rapist Michael Melsheimer for the explicit purposes of normalizing pedophilia and distracting from prevention efforts. In Melsheimer’s own words, he wanted to ensure B4U-Act was never associated with the ‘prevention of offending.’”
