NY--Group praises Buffalo victims & blast bishop and lawmakers

Statement by David Clohessy of St. Louis, Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314 566 9790, [email protected], [email protected])

Buffalo Catholic officials should end their secrecy surrounding clergy sex abuse. They should explain why it takes them more than a year to conclude a purported “church investigation” into child sex crimes. And they should “come clean” and disclose the names, photos, whereabouts and work histories of every single child molesting cleric who lives or works – or lived or worked – in the diocese, whether alive or deceased, diocesan or religious order, whether priests, nun or seminarian, and whether they are proven, admitted or credibly accused child molesters.

http://www.buffalonews.com/city-region/schools/two-ask-pope-francis-to-investigate-how-buffalo-diocese-handled-sex-abuse-claims-20150127  

We applaud the courage of Antonio “Tino” Flores and Vanessa DeRosa, the two Buffalo survivors who are speaking up and working for healing prevention and justice. We fear that Catholic officials will continue to cause them pain. We suspect that Buffalo Bishop Richard Malone and his aides will continue putting their own comfort and careers ahead of the safety of kids and the healing of victims. Still, Flores and DeRosa should be praised for their courage and compassion.

When abuse victims stay silent, nothing changes. When we find the strength to speak, at least there’s a chance one child will be spare the horror that we’ve endured.

Finally, we urge New York lawmakers to reform the archaic, arbitrary, predator-friendly statute of limitations that protects those who commit and conceal child sex crimes and re-victimizes those who have suffered such crimes.

(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We were founded in 1988 and have more than 20,000 members. Despite the word “priest” in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations, including nuns, rabbis, bishops, and Protestant ministers. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)

Contact - David Clohessy 314-566-9790, [email protected], Barbara Dorris 314-503-0003, [email protected], Barbara Blaine 312-399-4747, [email protected]