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	U.S. Group Voices Anger at Polanski's Defenders Crienglish October 1, 2009 http://english.cri.cn/6966/2009/10/01/1821s519848.htm A national group for the rights of victims who are sexually abused by priests has voiced its anger Wednesday at those who side with Roman Polanski, an acclaimed film director and accused child-molester. Joelle Casteix, the Southwestern regional director of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (SNAP), said at a news conference outside the district attorney's office in downtown Los Angeles that its disgusting that some people "have decided to say that protecting a child molester is more important than keeping children safe." Challenging those to face the abuse victims, she called for the speedy extradition of Polanski from Switzerland and pleaded with people to boycott movies and TV shows made by the 76-year-old Polish French director and his defenders. In a statement published on its website, SNAP named prominent Hollywood directors and producers Martin Scorsece and Woody Allen as those who jumped to Polanski's defense and praised LA prosecutors for their "persistence" and "equal treatment." The group originally planned to hold a large-scale demonstration to voice their stand, but in the end only one member, Joelle Casteix, showed up. Several victims and their family members, who were to appear on the occasion holding pictures and signs of themselves when they were abused by clergy members, were not present. Since Polanski's arrest and the announcement that he will be extradited to the U.S., some entertainment figures have expressed sympathy for him. These public statements of support, SNAP says, make teenagers who are being victimized now feel intimidated and hopeless, thus staying silent and enabling their predators to keep hurting them and others. "Rallying around admitted child rapists also rubs salt into the wounds of other rape victims, both adults and kids," it said. SNAP feels that Polanski's painful childhood and his wife's murder is irrelevant, as is his victim's personal decision to forgive him. What matters most, SNAP contends, "is that a child predator is kept away from kids and that criminals learn they can't simply hire smart lawyers, make themselves popular, flee the country, and get off scot-free." A support group aimed at helping victims readjusting themselves with impact, SNAP was founded in 1988 by Barbara Blaine who herself was a victim in the childhood.
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