Catholic Officials in Newark Did Nothing to Protect Children Despite Knowing of Abuse Allegations for at least 13 Years
We are not at all surprised to learn that a Catholic priest in Newark was allowed to keep working despite being accused of child sexual abuse. What is particularly galling in this case is just how terrible the excuses given by Newark Church officials are. We hope that parishioners and the public will express their outrage at the lack of respect and care shown towards Newark children.
According to a recent lawsuit, officials from the Archdiocese of Newark said that they “had no authority” to punish Fr. Kevin Gugliotta after it was reported to them in 2003 that he abused children while working as a Boy Scout leader in the 1980s. Fine, perhaps they could not "punish" the priest, but they could certainly have prevented him from working around other children. The fact that Catholic officials waved away the allegations and allowed Fr. Gugliotta to work as a parish priest for thirteen years, even allowing him to oversee youth ministry, shows how little they actually care about preventing cases of sexual abuse and protecting the children in their care. Church leaders consistently make exaggerated pleas and overwrought apologies for abuse, but when the rubber hits the road, they do the bare minimum when it actually matters.
So many children could have been spared the pain of childhood sexual abuse if Newark Catholic officials had decided to restrict Fr. Gugliotta’s ministry to prevent him from being around children. Instead, they threw up their hands, claimed to be powerless, and subjected more children to abuse. It is outrageous and there should be serious punishments for every person involved in the decision to allow Fr. Gugliotta to keep working around children.
CONTACT: Mark Crawford, SNAP New Jersey (732-632-7687, [email protected]), Zach Hiner, SNAP Executive Director ([email protected], 517-974-9009)
(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)
Winter Appeal 2023
To our friends,
2023 has been a long year with many ups and downs for us all. As we close out the year, we at SNAP hope that you are feeling like you are on your way to being healthy, fulfilled, and happy. This past year has brought both successes and challenges. Thanks to the support you have shown in the past, we’ve been able to celebrate the good days and weather the stormy ones. Now, we are once again asking for your support as we work to support survivors new and old as we ‘Move SNAP Forward.’
At SNAP we are proud to have hosted a very well-attended conference in August 2023. This event allowed us to gather friends, survivors, advocates, and allies for a weekend of camaraderie and connection. We were so happy to be able to welcome many first-time attendees to gather in person and are already looking forward to the next conference.
To strengthen our movement for justice, healing, and prevention, SNAP will be expanding our peer support and providing more volunteer opportunities in the coming year. Through this great work, we are ensuring survivor voices are represented as we work for significant change that will benefit children and survivors.
Right now, survivors worldwide are getting the help they need from SNAP, and more and more reach out to us daily, but we need your help to keep those programs going and get our volunteers the training they need to thrive.
Your tax-deductible gift to SNAP can help offset the cost of our important mission. If you are not in a position to contribute, you can still support us by sharing this letter with those who can. As we continue to fight for survivors across the globe, your donation or sharing the great work SNAP does will help us continue our work to protect the vulnerable, heal the wounded, and prevent abuse.
Your donation ensures SNAP will be there for those who need us more than ever!
Warmly,
Michael W. McDonnell, C.P.S.
Interim Executive Director
Showing 1 comment