SNAP opines on the report into the institutional responses to child sexual abuse in England and Wales

(For Immediate Release October 20, 2022) 

The final report into the institutional responses to child sexual abuse in England and Wales has been released. This report is yet another example that child sexual abuse is a scourge that affects every institution in every country and requires the full power of the government in order to intervene, prevent abuse, and protect children.

This report is the outcome of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse which aimed to examine the actions – and failures – of a broad range of institutions and organizations. Combined with the contributions of thousands of Truth Project participants, this report provided the government with more knowledge that can be used to protect future generations of children.

To us, this report is more evidence that demonstrates widespread institutional abuse across a range of religions. So far, reports from countries like England, Australia, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, and various states in the United States have demonstrated that there are common threads between nations that have allowed institutional child sexual abuse to go unchecked, including a lack of oversight and accountability to a refusal by church leaders to admit that the problem is ongoing. We have no doubt that these same problems exist in the United States today.

We believe that it is beyond time for our federal government officials to demonstrate the same care for children that the above nations have demonstrated. We desperately need a federal-level inquiry into institutional child sexual abuse in order to fully comprehend the scope and depth of child sexual abuse in our country.

We won't be able to properly avoid future abuse and cover-up unless we show the same degree of interest in learning how abuse and cover-up function in our nation. America can take the initiative and be a leader in this problem, and we urge President Biden to conduct an executive investigation.

While the report lays bare critical facts that show how church officials protected and prevented prosecution it leads to a common theme we have seen globally, “depravity, abuse, and criminal conduct” was allowed to continue. We hope that others in the U.S. are as concerned as we are about this theme playing out across our nation and will join our call for oversight and accountability from the federal government.

CONTACT: Mike McDonnell, SNAP Communications Manager (267-261-0578, [email protected])  Zach Hiner, SNAP Executive Director (517-974-9009, [email protected]), Shaun Dougherty, SNAP Board President (814-341-8386 [email protected]) 

 (SNAP, the Survivors Network, has been providing support for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings for 30 years. We have more than 25,000 survivors and supporters in our network. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)

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