OHIO
Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests
And they lay out hopes for incoming bishop
Group wants signs down that honor “wrongdoers”
WHAT
Holding signs and childhood photos, clergy sex abuse victims will push Toledo Catholic officials – and their yet-to-be-named next bishop– to take specific steps about priests who commit or conceal child sex crimes.
They will give the current church officials a screwdriver and urge them to take down signs on a street and a building that honor
–a priest who was credibly accused of molesting a child, and
–another priest who blocked an investigation into the murder of a nun.
And they will prod the church hierarchy to update and expand its public list of credibly accused child molesting clerics.
They will also give current Toledo Catholic officials a list of three steps to take immediately:
–personally visit each parish where predator priests worked, begging victims to call law enforcement,
–create a “whistleblower fund” to reward church employees who report suspected abuse to police, and
–demote at least one diocesan staffer who has been implicated in the abuse and cover up scandal.
WHEN
Tuesday, Dec. 17 at 10:30 a.m.
WHERE
Outside the Toledo Catholic headquarters, 1933 Spielbusch (near Cherry St) in Toledo
WHO
Two-four members and supporters of SNAP, the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, (SNAPNetwork.org) the nation’s largest support network for men and women abused in religious and institutional settings
WHY
Bishop Leonard Blair has left to head the Hartford archdiocese, after a decade of controversy as head of the Toledo diocese.
SNAP wants the diocese’s temporary leaders to disclose more about child molesting clerics and take steps to reduce the “climate of fear and hopelessness in the church” that they say makes it harder for victims to report sex crimes.
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