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The Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests SNAP
Press Release
MEDIA ADVISORY FOR: Friday, March 4, 2005 Sex Abuse Victims Call For Boycott of Catholic Religious Order
They Also Want Moratorium on "Importing Abusive Priests" Into Oakland
At Least Seven Admitted & Suspected Molesters Living Near School
SNAP Want Names of Predatory Clerics To Be Made Public
But Oakland's Bishop Supports Keeping Their Identities Secret
-- Catholics here and across the nation to stop donating to a religious order, -- local Catholic leaders to stop bringing to proven, admitted and suspected molester-priests in a quiet residential Oakland neighborhood near two schools, and -- Oakland officials to hold an open public hearing about the situation
WHEN: WHERE: WHO:
WHY:
The Dominicans kept the presence of the potentially dangerous men secret, until church insiders leaked information to SNAP, which has since exposed this reckeless behavior and pushed for more honesty, safety and responsiveness from Catholic officials, to no avail.
Despite repeated requests from concerned neighbors and SNAP members, both the head of the Dominicans (Fr. Roberto Corral) and Oakland's Catholic diocese (Bishop Allen Vigneron) refuse to name the molesters. At a meeting yesterday with victims, Vigneron reiterated that he does NOT favor publicly identifying the molesters. This leaves area families vulnerable to shrewd predators. (The sex offenders leave the facilities often. One of them, against the prohibitions of the Dominicans, visted Thailand recently.)
Given these concerns, SNAP is launching a nationwide boycott, urging
Catholics to NOT donate to the Dominicans. They also want church officials
to agree to a six month moratorium on importing more molesters here. And
SNAP is encouraging Oakland officials to hold an open community forum
about the two pedophile priest centers, so that neighbors can be better
informed of the risks they are facing.
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Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests www.snapnetwork.org | ||