VA- Richmond pastor owes victims an apology

For immediate release: Thursday, April 3, 2014 

Statement by Becky Ianni of Virginia, SNAP Leader, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (703-801-6044, [email protected])

We are grateful that Pastor G will not speak at the Good Friday Cedar Street Church service. Rev. Chandler, however, still owes child sex abuse victims, especially those hurt by Pastor G, a public apology. Inviting an indicted serial child molester to have a place of honor in a church is at best insensitive and at worst intimidating.

We are especially grateful to Roscoe Cooper III of Rising Mount Zion Baptist Church and Tyrone Nelson of Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church, who announced their withdrawal from the event.

Pastor G should never had been invited. This thankfully short-l,ived honor makes it harder for victims to come forward.  When charged child molesters are publicly supported and honored victims are intimated into silence. When victims stay silent children aren't safe.

We encourage those pastors, friends and other who know "pastor G" to read SNAP's "What to do when
your Priest/Pastor is accused of abuse,
http://www.snapnetwork.org/what_to_do_when_your_priest_is_accused_of_abuse.

We hope this news will bring some comfort to adults and teens who were sexually assaulted by Pastor G And we hope that his withdrawal will encourage other victims to come forward to authorities.

(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 15,000 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 (314-862-7688 home, 314-503-0003 cell, [email protected])  

 

SNAP Network is a GuideStar Gold Participant