Women tell of assaults, harassment in #ChurchToo

PITTSBURGH
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

December 10, 2017

By Peter Smith

When United Methodists’ Council of Bishops met recently, it held break-out discussions on the topic of sexual harassment and misconduct in their churches.

The discussion had been scheduled before the Harvey Weinstein scandal unleashed a tsunami of revelations of sexual misconduct in media, politics and other fields, but the news of the day underscored the gravity of the discussions, said Pittsburgh Area Bishop Cynthia Moore-Koikoi.

“We had an opportunity to share our own stories,” Bishop Moore-Koikoi said. “For me to be able to say to my colleagues, ‘Me too,’ was valuable to hear.”

In both her previous career as a school psychologist and as a minister, “there have been times I have had unwanted advances from people who were my superiors.”

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