Archdiocese Responds to Victims Group’s Protest

Georgia Bulletin
April 15, 2016

http://www.georgiabulletin.org/news/2016/04/archdiocese-responds-victims-groups-protest/

A small group of members of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) held signs as part of a press conference outside the Cathedral of Christ the King, Atlanta, April 4.

The group asked that the Archdiocese of Atlanta publish on its website a list of those priests, deacons and religious who were accused of molesting children and who worked in the archdiocese. They named six deceased or former priests that they say should be on the list.

In its press release, SNAP acknowledged that the named priests were accused in other places and not in Atlanta. However, the release asserted that they had been in Atlanta at one point in time.

In response to the request, the Archdiocese of Atlanta released a statement, “We regret any instance of abuse and take every allegation seriously… none of the six priests listed were ever priests of the Archdiocese of Atlanta. We have no information regarding any allegations of misconduct during the time these men were present here.”

SNAP was founded in 1988 and has more than 20,000 members, according to its website, which also adds “Despite the word ‘priest’ in our title, we have members who were molested by religious figures of all denominations.”

In its statement, the archdiocese said it has one of the most stringent safe environment policies in the country, “including zero tolerance for abuse.”

“We report all allegations to civil authorities and offer a number of resources on our website: archatl.com/offices/child-and-youth-protection/.”

The Safe Environment Program of the Archdiocese of Atlanta has a mission to “ensure that children, young people, and vulnerable individuals who worship, study, or participate in activities sponsored therein can do so in the safest and most secure setting possible.” Information about this program is available at archatl.com/ministries-services/safe-environment/.

The statement also included the 24-hour hotline for reporting allegations of abuse, 888-437-0764.