Accusing the Milwaukee archdiocese of continuing to hide abuse cases, a
victim has expressed disappointment at the publication of retired
Archbishop Rembert Weakland's memoir.
Arthur Budzinski said the excerpts from the book that have been disclosed ahead of its June release are striking, Associated Press reports.
Now 60, the former student at a Milwaukee-area Catholic school for the deaf believes leaders failed to protect students and Weakland should have tried harder to defrock the abuser.
"It just doesn't make sense, it sounds like he's changing his story," said Kiki Dawson, Budzinski's daughter, as she translated his sign language at a news conference.
Weakland wrote in an e-mail Monday to The Associated Press that he tried in his memoir to recount how he and the archdiocese dealt with abuse cases and his own growth in understanding the problem.
"That this account will assuage the anger of so many victims is dubious," he wrote. "I am not sure my words can be that effective, but I hope that at least, with open minds, they will see my sincerity and the progress that was made."
But Weakland's sincerity is what Budzinski and others questioned Monday.
Peter Isely, the Midwest director of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, said Weakland was more interested in sheltering the abuser at the deaf school, Fr Lawrence Murphy, than finding the truth.
"There are current cases against the archdiocese and their senior management for covering this up. The effects of Fr Murphy's crimes are ongoing," Isely said. "Fr Murphy may be dead, but his legacy lives on. And the people who were involved in this case are alive and well."
Murphy worked at St. John's School for the Deaf in St Francis from 1950 to 1974 and worked for the archdiocese until he died in 1998. In 2004, the archdiocese named Murphy as one of 43 Milwaukee-area priests restricted from duties because of abuse allegations.
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Milwaukee clergy abuse victim upset with memoir (Associated Press)