IL- Chicago university insists on hiring sexual harasser
For immediate release: Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Statement by Barbara Dorris of St. Louis, Outreach Director of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (314-503-0003, [email protected])
A Chicago Catholic university is confirming today that it still is hiring the most recent U.S. ambassador to the Vatican despite allegations that he “likely” recently sexually harassed a married couple. This is a stunningly reckless move.
Miguel H. Diaz will start as a professor at Loyola University on July 1. The university says it conducted its own review into the allegations and decided to move forward with hiring Diaz.
We strongly urge Loyola University officials to reverse this irresponsible decision. At a bare minimum, we believe students, staff and the public have a right to know how university officials allegedly conducted their “review” and who was involved in it. We urge students and staff at Loyola to insist on this transparency.
No students and staff at any college should be subjected to sexual harassment. Given the findings of University of Dayton officials, Diaz does not belong on any campus.
This case is similar to one at Adrian College, a Methodist school in Michigan. Adrian officials hired Thomas Hodgman as a professor, despite his sworn admission that he sexually abused a teenaged high school girl, and despite allegations that he impregnated her, gave her a sexually transmitted disease and molested two other girls. One of Hodgman's victims, Joelle Casteix, won a $1.6 million settlement. But Hodgman still teaches at Adrian today.
How can universities continue to be so careless about the safety of their students and staff?
(SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, is the world’s oldest and largest support group for clergy abuse victims. We’ve been around for 25 years and have more than 18,000 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 cell, [email protected]), Barbara Dorris (314-503-0003, [email protected])
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
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