Sins of the Fathers: A Three Part Series Examining Black Victims of Sexual Abuse by Catholic Priests

By Ashahed M. Muhammad -Asst. Editor- | Last updated: Sep 23, 2010 - 2:56:18 PM

At the end of 2009 and the beginning of 2010, The Final Call published a series of articles by Assistant Editor, Ashahed Muhammad focusing on Black victims of sexual abuse by Catholic Priests titled "Sins of the Fathers." The response was overwhelming, not only in the United States, but also in the United Kingdom, parts of Africa and the Middle East. In the context of new allegations of impropriety reaching all the way to The Vatican, we are reposting the articles below.

Black Victims of Sex Abuse Charge Inaction and Cover-up by the Catholic Church (Part 1)

CHICAGO (FinalCall.com) - David Nolan, now 42, said his sordid tale of sexual abuse by a Catholic priest began when he was 13 years old. He said the priest used his position of authority and power to have sex with dozens of young boys at will, and seemingly without fear of punishment.

“We put them (priests) on pedestals almost to the point where I thought they were more than superhuman in a sense,” said Mr. Nolan. At one time, Mr. Nolan tried to tell, however, when he went to the Chicago Police, they called him a liar and laughed at him. Scared with no resources and no protection, Mr. Nolan's victimizer forced him to recant. Even after many complaints by members of the congregation, his victimizer was transferred to a bigger church on Chicago's Southside.

“No one cares about young Black boys being molested, but I'm reading in the news everyday how holy hell is being raised by White victims being sexually abused,” said Mr. Nolan, who said a young male relative was also sexually abused by the same priest.

Read the full article
http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/National_News_2/article_6632.shtml

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The Silent Screams of Victims of Sexual Abuse by Catholic Priests (Part 2)

CHICAGO (FinalCall.com) - Alicia Sample told The Final Call about a six-year ordeal in which she was used as a sex slave, gang raped, sodomized and physically beaten regularly by Fr. Fitzmaurice and others, at his behest.

Fr. Fitzmaurice had a group of young men that acted as his henchmen, and he would sometimes get Alicia out of class during school hours and order Alicia to report to what he called “the clubhouse.”

Alicia said the priest would order her to perform oral sex on them and tell them to beat her if she refused. He would threaten to have her and her siblings removed from school if she refused to comply with his deviant sexual wishes.
“They would penetrate me sometimes with objects, they would anally rape me,” said Alicia. “Sometimes, they would take all of my clothes and hang me out of the second floor window of the clubhouse and threaten to drop me and say ‘who is going to miss your n----r ass if we drop you?' and my life was just flashing before me,” Alicia said.

Read the full article
http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/National_News_2/article_6698.shtml

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Seeking Justice: A Crisis in the Catholic Church (Part 3)

CHICAGO (FinalCall.com) - The Roman Catholic Church in America has been reeling for the past decade with shocking instances of sexual abuse at the hands of members of its sacred and secretive clergy.

The most recent embarrassment for the Catholic Church reached right into The Vatican. Angelo Balducci, a Gentleman of His Holiness—an exclusive group of servants inside the Pope's household—was caught by law enforcement officials via wiretap allegedly arranging trysts with male prostitutes.

Multi-million dollar settlements in response to sex scandals are reported with regularity, almost daily in the media, and stretch across the Atlantic Ocean to Ireland and Rome. However, you don't have to go that far to hear sordid tales of abuse and misconduct, nor do you have to travel far to see the twisted emotional wreckage that exists in the lives of many of the victims.

Read the full article
http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/National_News_2/article_6823.shtml

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