How safe is your child at WDW?

[sweetpee_1993]

I don't think in the past when the boys were younger I was any more worried about pedophiles or such. I was more worried about them getting lost than snatched up. However, I don't think parents should be lulled into some false sense of security because it's Disney and they feel like there's lots of security, cameras, etc. Look at the sicko the got outta the wave pool at one of the Disney water parks snatching the tops off teenage girls and groping them. It can happen anywhere and everywhere including Disney. Where there's a will, there's a way no matter where you are.

 

[DABIGCHEEZ]

I don't think in the past when the boys were younger I was any more worried about pedophiles or such. I was more worried about them getting lost than snatched up. However, I don't think parents should be lulled into some false sense of security because it's Disney and they feel like there's lots of security, cameras, etc. Look at the sicko the got outta the wave pool at one of the Disney water parks snatching the tops off teenage girls and groping them. It can happen anywhere and everywhere including Disney. Where there's a will, there's a way no matter where you are.

Let me preface by saying we have been going to WDW for years and never felt really unsafe. However....

I agree with you 100% Sweetpee. Having been personally involved in an an episode with my kids, niece, and nephew and other kids(5-12 years-old) and an 18 year-old "with problems" (WDW's words not mine) at the Saratoga Springs Main pool a few years back...I wouldn't say WDW is any more safe safe or unsafe then other locations. You just need to keep an eye and ear on your kids regardless. Luckily it was just some wierd(not too bad, just wierd) things that were said to my kids and the other kids while they were in the pool and we were watching from the table... but I was pretty steamed just the same. Turns out the 18 year-olds parents had left him to swim, obviously knowing of his "problems", while they went to dinner. When the other younger kids' parent came(they were at dinner and the grandparents were watching them), the father wanted to kill the 18 year old. My kids, as well as the other kids, knew enough to get out and tell us, security bigwigs came and sort of handled it(although the security at the pool didn't do much).

Anyway... Just because it is WDW doesn't mean it can't happen.

 

[Dwarful]

Well, as the parents of two girls & a niece who have been going to WDW & DL since they were about 18 months old I decided to add my two cents.

First off I think a child abduction could happen anywhere. "Disney" isn't just the parks, there are resorts, Downtown Disney, mini-golf, etc., where it might be 'easier' to grab a chid. As a parent I am not letting anyone...park employees, security cameras, etc., take the place of my job of knowing where my children are. Now that they are older the the oldest ones venture off on their own occasionally. I have never, ever, felt that my children were unsafe at Disney. Although no matter if we are at a value or a deluxe I never let the kids roam free at the resorts...I have seen very little kids going to get cups filled all by themselves. Everyone has different parenting styles...you have to do what makes you feel safe.

We were at MK once when a woman had a baby and left it in the restroom. Not the same by a long shot...but it goes to show you no matter how much the gate cost is there are people who just don't think things through.

 

[me_stitch]

taking a kid from a Disney Park would be like trying to walk out of a casino with a cash machine. you'd be stupid to try and Disney has more camera's and security than we know.

 

[britdaw]

As a parent I am not letting anyone...park employees, security cameras, etc., take the place of my job of knowing where my children are.

I totally agree with this. Just because there are other people around who are "supposed" to help keep things safe doesn't mean we, as parents, should be lax in our own abilities to take care of and keep our kids safe, Disney or not.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

I repeat, I have been taking my children to WDW since they were infants. I'm not afraid of it at all. But as far as Disney covering things up, I'm sure that not everything that goes on there, is front page news.

You don't think it would make front page news that a child gets abducted in Disney World? It sure would. You really think the police will say "Let's ignore that it happened in Magic Kingdom and NOT interview anyone but pretend it happened at a mall in Orlando, that's what Walt would want." No, we'd have heard about it by now if a kid got abducted there. Your husband worries way too much and he shouldn't, this is exactly why the baby industry is rich because parents think they need to wrap bubble around their children.

Put it this way. I'm 30 and was young in the 1980s and early 1990s. I swear to you that in 1991 I was in Philadelphia watching a Major League Baseball game with my parents and I was 11. After the game I was a big explorer and did stuff like this all the time. My folks sat in their seats and told me to walk around the stadium but to come back after a while. Shockingly, I was not abducted. I met up with my parents and we got into our van and went to our hotel. This was 20 years ago. Did kids get abducted then? You bet.

Nothing has changed since I was a kid. Well, ONE thing has changed, no one trusts anyone anymore. Kids were abducted 20 years ago just like today. Now my parents who grew up in the 1950s, it was a different time then, folks didn't even lock their doors in Canada even at night. But from the 1980s or early 1990s to now, nothing has changed, just paranoia. Kids have to learn to be individuals too. They are perfectly safe at WDW.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

I repeat, I have been taking my children to WDW since they were infants. I'm not afraid of it at all. But as far as Disney covering things up, I'm sure that not everything that goes on there, is front page news.

You don't think it would make front page news that a child gets abducted in Disney World? It sure would. You really think the police will say "Let's ignore that it happened in Magic Kingdom and NOT interview anyone but pretend it happened at a mall in Orlando, that's what Walt would want." No, we'd have heard about it by now if a kid got abducted there. Your husband worries way too much and he shouldn't, this is exactly why the baby industry is rich because parents think they need to wrap bubble around their children.

Put it this way. I'm 30 and was young in the 1980s and early 1990s. I swear to you that in 1991 I was in Philadelphia watching a Major League Baseball game with my parents and I was 11. After the game I was a big explorer and did stuff like this all the time. My folks sat in their seats and told me to walk around the stadium but to come back after a while. Shockingly, I was not abducted. I met up with my parents and we got into our van and went to our hotel. This was 20 years ago. Did kids get abducted then? You bet. But I was a big boy and my parents trusted me and society in general more. I asked my mom the other day if she'd let any of her 4 grandkids do this nowadays and she immediately said no. Why is that?

Nothing has changed since I was a kid. Well, ONE thing has changed, no one trusts anyone anymore. Kids were abducted 20 years ago just like today. Now my parents who grew up in the 1950s, it was a different time then, folks didn't even lock their doors in Canada even at night. But from the 1980s or early 1990s to now, nothing has changed, just paranoia. Kids have to learn to be individuals too. They are perfectly safe at WDW. Would you gamble being a child predator by picking a kid up at Magic Kingdom and HOPING to get him/her through the gate at Main Street only to pray that she doesn't make a peep on the monorail/ferry and from the tram to the parking lot? That's gutsy!

 

[Rob562]

http://www.snopes.com/horrors/parental/kidnap.asp

I also suggest people seek out the "Stranger Danger" episode that was in the first or second season of Penn & Teller's TV show "Bulls***".

-Rob

 

[marni1971]

Wow.

Nowhere is totally safe. WDW is possibly safer than most places.

 

[Banksy]

So my husband and I were having a discussion about children and how safe they are at WDW. He thinks it's the perfect place for child snatchers and pedophiles to prey on small children. I think people wouldn't pay $90 to go inside the park, considering they have to take transportation to get there, go through security, etc., to take a child. He thinks things happen to kids all the time there and that Disney keeps it covered up. His quote was, "If you want ice cream, you go to an ice cream store, if you want a child, you go to Disney World."

Any statistics on this?

We're not really strange people, we were considering taking our grandson and my son-in-law is concerned about his safety.

It is most likely harder to snatch a kid from disney. First they would have to get out the park, THEN out of disney. Plus with all those people around....


....I know what you mean, at first thought i guess you think about all the horrible things that could happen, but when you actually think about it, it is unlikely.

 

[SFMarine]

taking a kid from a Disney Park would be like trying to walk out of a casino with a cash machine. you'd be stupid to try and Disney has more camera's and security than we know.

+1...I can't see it happening. The place is completely filled with people and security.

 

[zurgandfriend]

Morgan started going with me when he was 5. Initially, we had constant contact, he was either holding my hand or being carried. That never changed until he was 11 :lookaroun

At 11 he was always in earshot.

At 12 he was allowed a few solo excursions into the parks.

At 13 he spent good chunks of time on his own.

Since then, he follows me unfailingly wherever I go, but knows he doesn't have to.

Safety was never a concern.

That’s very similar to what we did with our son. At 12 we let him “off the leash” and let him explore a park by himself as well as order his own counter service meals.

Our son also likes to stay close to Mom and Dad when at Disney but will go off by himself and do something more extreme when Mom and Dad want to float down the lazy river of a water park or sit through the Festival of the Lion King.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

The only thing that changed is 24 hour media where sensationalism speculation and appealing to flat liners is far more important that accuracy and fact, especially when kids are involved. A scared population is easier to manipulate.

 

[bmarkelon]

I always feel super safe with my kiddos in Disney. Like others have posted I am so much more paranoid of one of my kids taking off in a store...World of Disney in DTD at night is a pretty much a panic attack for me.

 

[Silver Figment]

I don't think you should worry about your kids at WDW, it really is pretty safe.

 

[nolatron]

Last year I spent a day along with my 2yr DD at WDW. I had her in a Mickey Mouse harness w/leash the whole day and we walked holding hands. I was primarily concerned of someone taking her, but of her unexpectedly darting off and getting lost in the crowd.

Day 2 and forward on the trip she was either riding in the stroller, holding my or mommy's hand, wearing the leash or being carried on my shoulders.

In other words, she always had contact with a parent just like MontyMon did so neither option (lost or abducted) was a possibility.

 

[The Mom]

The only thing that changed is 24 hour media where sensationalism speculation and appealing to flat liners is far more important that accuracy and fact, especially when kids are involved. A scared population is easier to manipulate.

I absolutely agree. Just as our parents and grandparents were having premarital/extramarital s e x prior to the 60s, children were being abducted - but in lesser numbers. The only two things that have changed are 24 hr, national/international coverage (these things were kept local way back when) and the increase in the divorce rate, with causes more custodial issues.

True stranger abductions are pretty rare but are more likely to end up tragically. But your child is much more likely to be injured/killed accidentally either at WDW or traveling to get there or home again.

From what I've read, a Pedophile is much more likely to cultivate a relationship with your child, either through organizations - or by wooing a woman in order to get near her children. Snatching an unknown child is more likely to be the action of someone who is psychotic (someone who enjoys killing or raping ) or a criminal (ransom) rather than a pervert.

And the huge numbers of "missing" children being reported include any child under 18, including runaways, throwaways (the parents just don't care if their child disappears) and non-custodial/family abductions.

So, IMO, your children aren't in any more danger at WDW than anyplace else, and might actually be safer than they are in your hometown.

 

[rsoxguy]

The only thing that changed is 24 hour media where sensationalism speculation and appealing to flat liners is far more important that accuracy and fact, especially when kids are involved. A scared population is easier to manipulate.

I absolutely agree. Just as our parents and grandparents were having premarital/extramarital s e x prior to the 60s, children were being abducted - but in lesser numbers. The only two things that have changed are 24 hr, national/international coverage (these things were kept local way back when) and the increase in the divorce rate, with causes more custodial issues.

True stranger abductions are pretty rare but are more likely to end up tragically. But your child is much more likely to be injured/killed accidentally either at WDW or traveling to get there or home again.

From what I've read, a Pedophile is much more likely to cultivate a relationship with your child, either through organizations - or by wooing a woman in order to get near her children. Snatching an unknown child is more likely to be the action of someone who is psychotic (someone who enjoys killing or raping ) or a criminal (ransom) rather than a pervert.

And the huge numbers of "missing" children being reported include any child under 18, including runaways, throwaways (the parents just don't care if their child disappears) and non-custodial/family abductions.

So, IMO, your children aren't in any more danger at WDW than anyplace else, and might actually be safer than they are in your hometown.

I completely agree. The news media has to fill airtime, and they obsess over stories that would not have made national news years ago. Minutiae has become the fodder for leading stories, and overexposure is the norm for news that does matter. I do not believe that children are at a greater risk in modern times. By the way Mom, you said s e x on the forum. I'm telling Steve.....

 

[sweetpee_1993]

I can't help but read this stuff and think about the fact that Adam Walsh was taken in broad daylight from a Sears store that had security and cameras not all that far from where Disney World is located. That happened when I was a kid and, thanks to the undying efforts of his father, things HAVE changed a great deal towards awareness, procedure, etc. as a direct result. I cannot stress enough that the key to safety is NOT letting your guard down, not even at Disney. Pedophiles, criminals, etc. can very well be in the parks with you. There's no background check to get into the parks. You can't imagine someone being allowed to leave a park with a screaming child but who's to say the child would be screaming? Maybe they're convinced that this person is okay? It would take a split second for someone to pop a sun hat, sunglasses, and change of clothes on a kid. Better yet, make a boy appear to be a girl or a girl appear to be a boy. Now your description of your child is worthless. Who says a sicko needs to get a kid out of the park to do something unspeakable to them? Again, it takes no time at all. You think cameras & security would be a big deterrent. Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe the would-be perp sees this as reasons to be more crafty with their disguise. All those security cameras may just be gathering footage of something that happened...past tense...like it happened and then the authorities can rewind the recordings and watch it. Didn't stop it.

If you think that every bad thing that happens is news fodder, think again. Disney or not. I worked in Law Enforcement communications. The press got crumbs that was hand-fed to them by a PIO. Some of the biggest, most out-there serious events I worked with (including a few cases directly involved in child molestation & kiddie ) the press never had a clue. Why? Because we didn't tell them. The victim didn't tell them. If (and that's a big "if") a child were molested or abducted from Disney property I'm quite sure it could be kept quiet. If the cast, investigators, and family don't contact the media it could be kept private.

No, police scanners don't pick up all radio traffic either. Where I worked we ran on a digital communications system that was not scannable unless you had one of our radios programmed to pick up the specific "channel" we were talking on. If a radio was unaccounted for it was remotely shut down. Privacy can be achieved.

I'm not trying to be doom-n-gloom or all conspiracy-crazed. I have no clue if this sort of thing has ever occurred at WDW. My argument is that it could. Just because we've never heard of it doesn't mean it hasn't. Just because it hasn't happened doesn't mean it can't. Don't be lulled into a false sense of security because you're at Disney. They do all they can to provide a safe environment but we have to do our part, too.

As a kid growing up in Orlando we always understood from our folks that tourists who were in their vacation bliss were often targets for theft, etc. To this day when I go on vacation my parents will give me the lecture to be extra-careful, watch more closely, be aware at all times, etc. Don't let your guard down because it's Disney.

Wouldn't it stink for the first case of something unthinkable to involve you and your family? I don't think a single parent of an abducted child ever in a million years thought it would or could happen to them. Yet it did.

 

[MKCP 1985]

While all of that is true, remember the original question was whether Disney World is a pedophile magnet where children are less safe than other places.

That answer has to be a resounding "no." :wave: