Child & Youth Protection

The U.S. bishops’ annual report on compliance with the “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People” shows that 2,930 victim survivors came forward with 3,103 allegations during the audit year of July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021.

As the Catholic Church in the United States marks two decades since the U.S. bishops adopted a document establishing policies to deal with allegations of sexual abuse of children by clergy, Jesuit Father Jerry McGlone worries about the psychological responses the event could trigger.

The goal of the victim assistance coordinator is to be “trauma informed,” affirming that a survivor’s trauma is real and that there are specific do’s and don’ts that must be observed in helping someone on the road to healing.