Barbara Biggs

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Barbara Biggs (born 3 December, 1956), is an Australian journalist, social commentator, best-selling author and child protection campaigner.[1][2][3][4]

Contents

[edit] Published works

Biggs' first book (published by Sly Ink, 2003) was autobiographical, called In Moral Danger, about her life up to the age of 22. The book tells of her sexual abuse from the age of 14 by a well-known criminal barrister.[5] It explains the damaging after effects following her abuse, including time spent in a psychiatric hospital, escaping Cambodia weeks before it fell to the Khmer Rouge and being a prostitute in Japan. It also describes how she attempted suicide four times, received death threats and caused national headlines - all before the age of 22.

Biggs has been interviewed about her story written in In Moral Danger by some of Australia and Britain's most respected journalists, interviewers and publications including Scotland on Sunday [6], BBC4's Woman's Hour's Jenni Murray [7], Australia's Robyn Williams [1], Phillip Adams [2] and George Negus [3].

In Moral Danger has since been released in the UK (2004)[4], New Zealand (2005)[5], where it became Number One on the best-seller list, and has been translated for publication in Sweden and Greece (2006).[citation needed]

For the sequel, published in 2004, The Road Home, former Governor General of Australia Peter Hollingworth wrote a foreword. Two years earlier he had made self-regretable comments about child sexual abuse and mishandled certain complaints made to him during his career as an Anglican priest. After reading In Moral Danger he felt enlightened by Biggs. In his words, "I accepted Barbara's point that I did not understand the 'emotional mechanics' of child sexual abuse and the long-term destructive effect on a victim's later life." He added "Her story will be an inspiration to others facing similar circumstances. Victims will see that they are not alone and will be encouraged to speak out about their own emotional responses to abuse." [8][9]

Biggs' third book (Sly Ink, 2005), The Accidental Renovator: A Paris Story, is about her exploits in buying an apartment in Paris in 2003. A combination of travel book, gonzo-journalistic treatment of the seedier side of Paris life and 'gallery of characters' met whilst renovating the apartment in 2004.

Biggs' fourth book, Chat Room (Micklind Enterprises, 2006). It is about a 13-year-old girl who falls victim to a predator (posing as a child) in a teen chat room. Some of the inside information of this novel was provided by the Australian Federal Police and their files on offenders.[10] It was also released in New Zealand in October 2006 [6]

Sex and Money: How to Get More, (Micklind Enterprises, 2006), is Biggs' fifth book, and treats of her own lessons learned in the course of a bizarre and varied life.

[edit] Child Protection Campaigner

Since In Moral Danger was published, Biggs has become an advocate for social change and awareness about child sexual abuse. [11] She now speaks about her life and child sexual abuse to welfare professionals, prisoners, offenders in treatment programs, troubled youths, students and to women's groups.

Regarding abuse victims, Biggs writes and speaks about the much-misunderstood phenomenon of emotional attachment to the abuser, common to many abuse victims. Biggs tells how she 'fell in love' with her abuser, suppressing her real feelings about the abuse to mould it into a 'love story' and about how this became the most damaging aspect of her abuse, the effects of which lingered for decades. [12][13]

[edit] Political Candidacy

Biggs stood as an Upper House candidate in the for new political party, People Power, in the 2006 Victorian election[11][7]. Running for the Northern Metropolitan Region seat, she eventually lost to the Greens candidate Greg Barber.[8] This is not sourced: She also wrote the party's child protection policy. Because of the party's preference deals (negotiated by co-founders Stephen Mayne and Vern Hughes), she was the last candidate eliminated before the Greens candidate took the seat.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Biggs, Barbara. "There is nothing normal about child sex abuse", The Independent (London), November 1, 2004.
  2. ^ Biggs, Barbara. "There’s sex and there's love - but not always together", On Line Opinion (Australia), November 13, 2006.
  3. ^ Peterson-McKinnon, Nicole. "Sex and money: both need discipline", The Sydney Morning Herald, November 26, 2006. Retrieved on December 10, 2006.
  4. ^ Biggs, Barbara. "Outing won't stop sex crimes", Herald Sun, December 11, 2006.
  5. ^ Episode 22 Barbara Biggs Interview. Retrieved on December 10, 2006.
  6. ^ Catherine Deveney. "Against all odds", Scotland on Sunday, October 3, 2004.
  7. ^ "Barbara Biggs (interview)", BBC Woman's Hour, September 21, 2004. Retrieved on December 9, 2006.
  8. ^ Murphy, Damien. "Public penance for a tormented priest", Sydney Morning Hearald, May 4, 2004. Retrieved on December 12, 2006.
  9. ^ Hollingworth, Peter. "A wiser man, after a victim's challenge", Sydney Morning Hearald, May 4, 2004. Retrieved on December 12, 2006.
  10. ^ "Experiences from a 'Chat Room'", Shine TV, November 20, 2006. Retrieved on December 12, 2006.
  11. ^ a b Mansingh, Nitika. "From child slave to author", The Age, November 24, 2006. Retrieved on December 9, 2006.
  12. ^ "Barbara Biggs (interview)", ABC Radio, July 16, 2006. Retrieved on December 10, 2006.
  13. ^ Biggs, Barbara. "Falling in love with the abuser compounds, not excuses, their crime", On Line Opinion (Australia), October 23, 2004.

[edit] External links

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