CANADA
CBC News
By Jody Porter, CBC News
Male survivors of Ralph Rowe, one of Canada’s most prolific pedophiles, met in Thunder Bay, Ont., this week to see a new documentary about the former Anglican priest and boy scout leader who caused them so much pain.
Survivors Rowe tells the story of three of the estimated 500 victims who fell under the spell of the charismatic priest who flew his own plane into remote First Nations in northwestern Ontario in the 1970s and ’80s.
Other survivors who saw the documentary on Saturday said the film, directed by Daniel Roher, and the discussion around it will help with their healing, but they continue to seek justice for Rowe’s crimes.
“It brought back some memories while I was watching the movie,” said George Aquila Williams, who went out for a cigarette to avoid being too overwhelmed at the screening. “Like one of those guys was talking about how he [Rowe] would come into the room, and ask the kid to come to his blanket and lie down with him. It really bothered me.”
Williams said he was seven years old when Rowe first began abusing him. He became ashamed of who he was, and by the age of 14, he was struggling with addiction. Williams went to prison several times before he confronted his past and pushed for charges against Rowe.
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