Father calls for the protection of children, LDS responds with Excommunication

For immediate release, September 17, 2018

Statement by Judy Larson, Volunteer Vice-President of SNAP and SNAP Utah Leader, 801-831-5277,[email protected])

Sam Young,  founder of Protect LDS Children, raised objections to his Church's practice of questioning children alone, behind closed doors, particularly since some of those children were targeted with sexually explicit questions. Four of Sam's six daughters were subjected to this practice, which is why he became an activist. The LDS Church responded by excommunicating Sam on Sunday.

https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Sugar-Land-bishop-excommunicated-for-speaking-out-13233642.php?utm_campaign=email-tablet&utm_source=CMS%20Sharing%20Button&utm_medium=social

SNAP is appalled that a man who is only speaking up to protect children would be banned from his community. The Mormon Church should instead be thanking him for his care and concern for LDS children. 

The Church said that “The issue is not that you have concerns or even that you disagree with the church’s guidelines.  Rather, it is your persistent, aggressive effort to persuade others of your point of view.” 

However, Sam had simply implored other parents to stand up for their children and attend the ecclesiastical interviews with them, and to demand that this practice be banned. His mantra is “No 'one on one' interview, no sexually explicit questions, EVER.” 

During the disciplinary council Sam and his wife spoke up for all those who were harmed by the practice of adult men taking minors behind closed doors for one on one questioning, some of which was sexually explicit.  No other institutional church allows one on one meetings with children. Sam has collected 29 sexual explicit questions survivors of those interviews have shared with him. Some were so inappropriate that they cannot shared on public media. 

We simply do not understand any Church would excommunicate anyone who is working so hard to protect the community's children. We hope that wiser heads will prevail when the decision is appealed.

(SNAP, the Survivors Network, is the world's oldest and largest support group for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings. SNAP was founded in 1988 and has a network of more than 25,000 survivors and supporters. Our website isSNAPnetwork.org )   

Contact:  Judy Larson  (801-831-5277, [email protected]), Michael Norris (713-855-9178,[email protected]), Melanie Sakoda (925-708-6175, [email protected])