Talk:NAMBLA

On the legality of *philia

The final sentence should probably be either removed or rewritten: "This is due primarily to the fact that while ephebephilia is legal in places... paedophilia is not." --Foo 02:25, 2 May 2006 (EDT)

I think it would be advisable to cite a source on the statement in question, if it is to remain. Many States and or Countries have no written law in regards to homosexual activity which leaves consent open to interpretation when it involves homosexual activity. --Fleetwood 19:09, 4 May 2006 (EDT)

I wouldn't take it for granted that he had the United States in mind at all. --Hínandil 22:25, 4 May 2006 (EDT)

NAMBLA operates in the US so it would make sense that he had the US in mind. I'm not aware of any international branches of NAMBLA and if there are it needs to be stated. There are some states in the US where the AOC does not apply to homosexual acts either because it is still technically illegal or not defined. Homosexuality, for example, is illegal in Iran; punishable by death. The AOC hardly applies to that scenario. The NAMBLA Bulletin has been declared pornographic in Canada and is banned from sale or possesion there, (see R vs Sharpe) despite the Canadian AOC of 14 that specifically includes homosexual acts.--Fleetwood 00:10, 6 May 2006 (EDT)

The whole article needs to be revised and copyedited. If someone with a good sense of such things gets to it before I do I won't be at all upset. :) -- Atom 13:27, 2 May 2006 (EDT)

This sentence "This is due primarily to the fact that while ephebephilia is legal in places... paedophilia is not." is the only thing that merits this entire paragraph :

Teenager bias

NAMBLA is popularly considered a pedophilia organization. But the leadership and membership of the organization tend to be more interested in love between men and teenage boys, ephebophilia, than love of younger boys, pedophilia - The North AmericanMan/Boy Love Association is an organization that is not exclusively for TEEN lovers. I fail to see the significance of this paragraph. If those who engage in sex with boys where the legal age is low teens they do so because it is legal. They will not profess activity in illegal behavior. Sadly paedophilia is still illegal. --Viamund 04:44, 3 May 2006 (EDT)

Hi Viamund,

The paragraph you're commenting on (which I wrote) is not really intended to have any significance. It's simply an observation on my part derived from spending a great deal of time with NAMBLA leadership while Free Spirits was being created. I was quite surprised to learn that most (if not all) of the NAMBLA people I met were primarily attracted to teen boys. I went so far as to express that suprise to a couple of the guys and their responses were sort of like "well, gee, we thought everybody knew that." I had never spent any time with NAMBLA people prior that that and all I knew was what I read in the mainstream media, which lead me to believe that NAMBLA was essentially an organization of pedophiles. I was surprised to learn that I was quite wrong about that. And I think the facts are at least interesting enough to mention in the article without needing any significance to justify their presense.

--Jimf3 19:50, 3 May 2006 (EDT)

Youth members

David Thorstad writes, "On December 2, 1978, 150 persons attended a conference on 'Man/Boy Love and the Age of Consent' in Boston's Community Church. Initiated by Tom Reeves of the Boston-Boise Committee, several participants were prominent in the gay and progressive movements, which gave the issue a new urgency. Afterwards, 30 boy-lovers and youth formed their first activist organization, the North American Man/Boy Love Association (NAMBLA). Boy-lovers and gay youth were becoming active protagonists."

That's rather interesting; I hadn't known that NAMBLA had youth members. Usually people's descriptions seem to assume it consisted solely of men interested in youths. Does anyone have more information on this? Thanks. Lysander (talk) 05:12, 18 May 2015 (UTC)