Members of religious groups are sometimes accused of sexual assault. Often, this involves a member of the clergy who is in a position of power within the religious organization. The victim is a member of their congregation, someone who works for the organization or a child who attends with their parents. Often, this type of sexual abuse will involve manipulation, such as the perpetrator trying to convince the victim that God would not want them to report the incident.
Partly because this manipulation keeps people from speaking up, reports show that most victims experience multiple negative events. These may not all be the same – the study lists over a dozen different examples of violations, from sexual talk to asking the victim to disrobe – but the same person has more than one type of abuse happen to them. Let’s look at what the statistics say.
Over 52% report numerous incidents
In one study, victims were asked how many times they had been abused by members of the clergy. More than 5,000 people said that this happened to them repeatedly, making up 52.7% of all people in the study. This is obviously only a small portion of the total number of people who have suffered abuse in America, but the rate does show how common these events are.
Some victims said they were only abused once, of course. But they made up just 25% of the group or slightly less than a third. It’s also worth noting that another 18.3% said that they had experienced abuse “more than once.” This is in addition to the 52.7% who said it happened “numerous times.”
Were you a victim of clergy sexual abuse? If so, be sure you know what legal options you have at this time by seeking qualified guidance that’s speaks directly to your situation.