Pedophile advocacy groups

Pedophile advocacy groups (alternatively spelled paedophile advocacy groups in Commonwealth English) are organizations that advocate adult sexual relations with children. Groups have existed dating back to 1962 in multiple countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Norway, Germany and the Netherlands. They have faced opposition from the vast majority of society.

In the 20th century, many pro-pedophile groups were founded during the Sexual Revolution. In the United States, pro-pedophile groups such as the René Guyon Society have existed since the 1960s. In Britain, the Paedophile Information Exchange (PIE), led by Tom O'Carroll, has operated from 1974 to 1984 and openly collaborated with other political organizations such as the Albany Trust and the NCCL. In France, many intellectuals signed petitions against age of consent laws during the 1970s, as part of wider debates around age of consent reform at the time. The Netherlands was once seen as one of the main centers of pedophile activism.

History

20th century

United States

In the United States, pro-pedophile groups have often been inspired by their European counterparts, with some being transitory in nature and emerging in wake of criminal cases, and others being more long-lived. Some of these organizations have been investigated by law-enforcement agencies, with seizures of evidence, arrests and incarcerations of their leaders taking place. Some members of these groups have used pseudonyms to hide their identities.