Media Release – September 18-19, 2015 – Papal Visit Event

Road to Recovery
September 18, 2015

http://www.road-to-recovery.org/

What

A press conference and distribution of flyers alerting Catholics, the media, and general public that Pope Francis has not made clergy sexual abuse and TRANSPARENCY about it a focus of his visit to the United States beginning September 22, 2015

When

Sunday, September 20, 2015 from 10:00 am until Noon

Where

On the public sidewalk in front of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Fifth Avenue between 50th and 51st Streets, Manhattan, New York City

Who

Victim/survivors of sexual abuse and members of Road to Recovery, Inc., a non-profit charity that assists victims of sexual abuse and their families, including its co-founder and President, Robert M. Hoatson, Ph.D., who was sexually abused as a young adult by religious brothers (including Irish Christian Brother John P. O’Brien who later became an Archdiocese of New York priest, and Irish Christian Brother Joseph Mark Clark, his novice master). Robert Hoatson was abused in the Archdiocese of New York and in other dioceses and counties of the State of New York and was found to be credible by the Irish Christian Brothers

Why

Victim/survivors of sexual abuse by members of the Catholic hierarchy, clergy, religious life, and other church personnel are not able to share in the excitement of the visit of Pope Francis because they have yet to receive the TRUTH about their abusers and enablers. The Catholic Church is still not TRANSPARENT about sexual abuse of children, teenagers and vulnerable adults, and Pope Francis himself has not yet acted definitively regarding abusers who are still in ministry and not removed from the clerical or religious states, bishops who have covered up, and how victim/survivors will be given the resources and services they need to recover. Demonstrators will call on Catholics to demand of Pope Francis that he:

1) Admit his own lack of transparency about what he knew about cases of sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, Argentina;

2) Publicly release the names of all priests, deacons, religious brothers and nuns, and all other employees of the Catholic Church who have been credibly accused of sexual abuse of children;

3) Publicly release the names of the thousands of bishops who have allowed the sexual abuse of innocent children to occur; and,

4) Meet with victim/survivors to discuss the clergy sexual abuse crisis, the healing process, and programs that address the safety of children.

Contacts

Robert M. Hoatson, Ph.D., Road to Recovery, Inc., Livingston, NJ 07039 – 862-368-2800

Attorney Mitchell Garabedian, Boston, MA – 617-523-6250