WOODLAND PARK (NJ)
North Jersey Record / NorthJersey.com
September 8, 2018
By Deena Yellin
For a long time, Mark Crawford was afraid to tell anyone he was sexually abused and beaten by his family’s priest when he was a child.
“I feared he would take his own life and mine if I ever disclosed the abuse,” he said, recalling the emotional manipulation and violence that went on for years. “There was constant fear and anxiety. At times, I feared for my life.”
And when he finally summoned the courage to tell church leaders his tale of horror, he said he was dismissed.
Now, a 55-year-old married father of three, Crawford has turned his pain into a positive force as an advocate for other victims of sexual abuse. He’s the New Jersey director of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, or SNAP. He has testified before the New Jersey State Senate about sex abuse of minors and appeared on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” in a segment about sexual abuse.
The Woodbridge resident is now lobbying for two bills before the New Jersey legislature: S477 in the Senate and A3648 in the Assembly. The bills aim to eliminate the statute of limitations for victims of child sexual abuse and hold institutions accountable for failing to protect children. Current laws demand that civil action be filed within two years after a victim turns 18.
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