by Brandy5 17 Replies latest watchtower child-abuse
This is sad but very true. We were told that we would face disciplinary action if we spoke about the molester to anyone else in the congregation. Other wise we would be guilty of "slandering the name of a member in good standing". When we spoke about it on Dateline we were disfellowshipped.
ARoarer
ARoarer,
Wewe you personally on dateline?
brandy
Brandy,
Yes, we worked with the producer for Dateline for a year after they interviewed us and filmed us in our home for over 10 hours. All of those hours that were filmed never made it to the acutal show due to scheduling issues that arose. There were many delays following our interview due to other victims being interviewed, a trial being covered and the 9/11 disaster. But what was finally aired covered the main issues that needed to be addressed and I am glad that I and my family were able to be part of exposing the sexual abuse issues, and opening up the way for other victims to come forward with their experiences. Another important issue that was brought out was the fact that neighborhoods are unaware of criminals with a craving for children are free to go to thier homes and conduct bible studies and have access to thier children with the privacy afforded them by the Watchtower Society and thier policy to shield pedophiles within the organization. At the time Dateline was being filmed the elders and the Watchtower Representatives were lyingly telling the media that they don't allow "known" pedophiles to go door to door. Of course "known" sexual offenders are not "known" to the rank and file members in the congregation, only to the elders who may choose to keep their own family members from being in the car groups of these pedophiles. The molester that was shown at the door on Dateline was filmed undercover prior to our own interview. He was the molester who sexually abused children within his family, his congregation, his circuit and his nieghborhood for several decades, and yet Dateline filmed him having access to his neighborhood under the protection of elders who had personally threatened members in the congregation who knew about the pedophile to stay quiet or they would be disciplined by the committee for gossip and slander. What makes the Watchtower so much more dangerous than the Catholic Church and other religions harboring pedophiles is the fact that molesters among Jehovah' Witnesses are usuallyn elders or members within the families and intercongregationally among families were the "secret" is kept to protect the family name and the Organizations' reputation. It is a family and a church community secret and woe to the victim who speaks out. They are ostrascized and shunned by other members friends and family alike. In other churches families are not involved with silencing the victim. It is usually between the priest and the victim. If the victim speaks out they are still free to come and worship in the church and interact with family and friends without being shunned. Victims who come foreward within the congregation face a whole judicial committee threatening them not to speak about it lest they be brought up on charges of slander or disturbing the peace of the congregation, asked to forgive and let Jehovah deal with it in due time. If they do go to the police the elders will not support the victim or the parents of the victim. If the elders happen to be family members of the victim in an incestuous situation they will try to protect the offender and blame the victim for being disloyal not only to the family ("but remember he's your father, and you must forgive") but "besmearching Jehovah's name " by letting the "worldly authorities" who are "Satan's tool" know what goes on in the congregation. I am supportive of any victim who feels strong enough to speak out about the abuse that Watchtower denys.
You've gotta report these things. You can do it anonymously...
I congratulate you on your courage to speak out. I hope that you did not loose many family members due to shunning. I know how painful that can be.
I only have that one shuns me. This is because after I heard about the dateline show airing I went on the net looking for anything about the program as I missed it. I ran across Silent Lambs web site. I then wrote a letter to the GB on behalf of Bill Bowen, Jo & Barbara Anderson and all victims of they way the WT handles pedophile issues.
She told me that by speaking against the GB I am a wicked apostate!
I do not understand how they can be so blind. This is a very big problem. The two-witness rule is completely ridicules. Like a pedophile is going to invite someone to watch.
So many are harmed by the GB. The GB needs to be put in jail.
Thank you so much for having the courage to go on dateline.
Do you have a copy of the transcript? If so would you mind posting it?
Brandy
Brandy, you can go to Silentlambs Homepage and find the transcripts to Dateline, and the Video
hi brandy. i found your post very interesting as my child was abused by a jw. and in the end i got DF'ed for supposed slander and gossip because of trying to protect other kids in the congo. funny thing was that the 2 witnesses to my supposed slander were weak, mentally ill sisters that twisted what i said to them. they took what i said about the pedo, protected their own kids and then dobbed me in to the elders to get on their good side. had i said what i was DF'ed for, i could have lived with that! but what they quoted me as saying about the pedo's relative was totally untrue, yet i still got DF'ed.
i've posted other threads on this forum about my situation because it has deeply affected my entire family. i have come to the conclusion that in the end the pedo and the borg don't matter, it's the children that need protecting. so for me, i couldn't live with myself knowing that the pedo had contact with so many kids and that i had to keep my mouth shut to save my position in the congregation. how could i face any kid that may have become another victim of this animal, if i could have made a difference and yet chose not to? i knew what i had to do. i knew it would cost me, but i sleet at night knowing i did everything in my power to help others, stuff the cost.
the borg will be held responsible for all the children abused because of their policies. maybe not now, but it will happen. things will only change if people speak out, regardless of the cost. would any parent sit back and weigh up the risks to themselves if they saw a child drowning??????????? a parent would jump in first, save the child and maybe later reflect on the dangers of what they did. but in the heat of the moment, they did what it took to save a life.
too many jw parents trust the borg and put it first, even before their childrens' safety. alot of them believe that if a child is abused, it's the parents' fault for not watching their children properly. that's what a bro. said to my husband when he found out about our child. how comforting that was! so in the end it's up to us adults to do what we can to expose the pedo and protect the innocent.
that's all i have to say. power to the family!
bliss.
