First Nation-wide Catholic Abuse Bankruptcy Settles

By Joelle Casteix
SNAP
May 23, 2013

http://www.snapnetwork.org/first_nation_wide_catholic_abuse_bankruptcy_settles

Today's settlement is a true landmark for survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of Irish Christian Brothers and their employees. Because brave victims came forward, dozens of predators—some of whom were still in positions of power at schools and universities—have been exposed across the country. Communities including Chicago, Honolulu, Salinas, CA and Bergen County, NJ have now learned that many child sexual crimes and cover-ups happened in their local Irish Christian Brothers’ schools. Few groups of survivors have ever been able to expose so many criminals.

Were it not for brave Irish Christian Brothers survivors, accused and admitted predators would still be in schools, victims would still be suffering in silence and shame, and the truth would still be hidden.

But the journey for justice is not over. The victims in this settlement can still seek accountability from the schools where they were abused and where officials covered up abuse. Survivors can still seek truth from diocesan officials who turned a blind eye to the crimes at the Irish Christian Brothers' schools. We hope that they remain vigilant and continue to protect kids RIGHT NOW.

The Irish Christian Brothers should have done the right thing years ago. They should have reported molesters to the police. They should have reached out to victims. They should have warned communities about the danger. But they didn't. Instead, they waited to get exposed, and then used bankruptcy protection to avoid embarrassing civil trials. While it may be tempting to applaud the Brothers, we urge people to remember their decades-long cover-up of abuse in the United States, Canada and Ireland.