We Are Adult Survivors of Child Abuse and Neglect

On January 15, 2010 the Supreme Judicial Court in Massachusetts upheld the sexual assault convictions of defrocked Roman Catholic priest Paul M. Shanley, who used the same tried-and-true baloney defense that past Catholic church perpetrators have used - that his accuser had made up his story about being abused.[1] The findings stated that “an individual may experience dissociative amnesia was supported in the record, not only by expert testimony but by a wide collection of clinical observations and a survey of academic literature.”

The priest’s attorney said he believed “recovered memories” was junk science. This is the same nonsense that has been stated for decades, but this time his defense didn’t work. What is disturbing, though, is that his conviction was won due to the attorney’s arduous work where he “vigorously attacked the credibility of the victim before the jury.” The court did not fully buy into the extensive research debunking the false claims of perpetrators that survivors can’t suppress memories of their abuse.

In the category of “DID” on my website, which stands for Dissociative Identity Disorder, I have written 21 articles tracing the history of this false information about repressed memories, and I hope you will take the time to read it. Because most recent articles are listed first, you will have to click backwards to get to the very beginning or just click on Dissociative Identity Disorder – Part 1 to begin the series.

I state in Dissociative Identity Disorder – Part 21 that “They (child molesters and those that support them) operate in full view with an air of respectability while at the same time work very hard behind closed doors to silence therapists and ultimately, survivors. It is very insidious behavior, but since the media will not conduct an in-depth honest analysis of these issues, the uninformed public believes what they read.”

I would like your feedback on what we can do to help turn this fabrication of the truth around—that we do, and can, develop amnesia regarding past abuse. It is a major defense mechanism to not have to deal with the pain from our abuse. What are your suggestions?