AAP FACTCHECK – Kamala Harris has vowed to decriminalise pedophilia if elected US president, social media posts claim.
This is false. The Democratic presidential nominee has made no such statement.
Several users have made the claim on Facebook as the current US vice president campaigns for the top job in the United States.
“Kamala Harris Vows To ‘Decriminalize Pedophilia’ if She Wins Presidency,” one post reads.
“Kamala Harris has vowed to decriminalize pedophilia in America if she wins the 2024 election this November.
“Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Harris’ pick as running mate, supports changing the law so that pedophilia is recognized as a legitimate ‘sexual orientation.'”
“Kambala wants to legalize pedophilia. A really huge red pill. Please wake up and quickly,” another post reads, referencing one of the nicknames Donald Trump uses for Ms Harris.
The claim is based on an article from The People’s Voice, a website AAP FactCheck has debunked several times.
The article’s only evidence for the claim is Ms Harris’s vice-president pick Tim Walz signing a bill to “modernize” the Minnesota Human Rights Act as governor of the state.
Several social media posts and Republican politicians made claims that the bill redefined sexual orientation to include pedophilia or protected pedophiles from discrimination in Minnesota.
This is also incorrect. Mr Walz signed the Take Pride Act in 2023 which removed the sentence “‘Sexual orientation’ does not include a physical or sexual attachment to children by an adult”.
State representative Leigh Finke, who introduced the bill, told Fox News Digital in April 2023 the change “updates outdated language that incorrectly ties pedophilia to a person’s sexual orientation”.
“Nothing in the bill changes or weakens any crimes against children, or the state’s ability to prosecute those who break the law,” she said.
“Of course, pedophilia is not a sexual orientation. The language never should have been included in the statutory definition in the first place.”
Pedophilia, which is defined as an ongoing sexual attraction to pre-pubescent children, is not a crime in itself.
However, acting on the attraction is and is broadly categorised as child sexual abuse. The bill does not change this.
Minnesota University law professor Richard Painter said the claim was simply wrong.
“Any sexual act with a child is a very serious felony in Minnesota. It’s child rape. The Take Pride Act changed none of that,” he said.
Under Minnesotan law, someone found guilty could face up to 30 years in jail.
There is also no evidence of Ms Harris, who was a prosecutor, saying she would decriminalise pedophilia if elected as president.
United States Studies Centre senior lecturer Kathryn Schumaker said claims that suggested protecting the rights of LGBTQ+ individuals harmed children were not new.
“Opponents of gay and lesbian rights often made spurious claims that prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation would endanger children,” Dr Schumaker said.
AFP FactCheck and Snopes have also debunked claims about Mr Walz signing a bill to protect pedophiles.
The Verdict
False – The claim is inaccurate.
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Edit: 22/8/24 @ 6:10pm – Paragraph 15 amended to differentiate between pedophilia and child sexual abuse.
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