Readers Write

Acknowledge abuse, then reform

JEAN HOPFENSPERGER • Star Tribune Trinity School at River Ridge in Eagan is one of three schools in the nation run by People of Praise, the small religious community that includes U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett.

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PEOPLE OF PRAISE

On Sunday, the Washington Post printed a front-page story detailing allegations of sexual and physical abuse within the People of Praise and its affiliated Trinity Schools. We are among the people who shared their stories of child abuse with the Post.

Three of us grew up in the Twin Cities area. We are aware that the People of Praise is now preparing to discuss reforms as a group, and we know from experience that there are people of good will within their membership. To these members, we suggest pushing for the following reforms:

1. Acknowledge publicly that there has been a systematic failure to protect People of Praise children from abuse.

2. Compile a list of e-mails of former Trinity Schools students, former People of Praise members as well as children who grew up in the People of Praise. Send out an e-mail encouraging them to report all cases of sexual or physical abuse that occurred within the People of Praise or its Trinity Schools to the police.

3. As the Catholic Church does, publicly name all who have been credibly accused of abuse or concealing abuse within the People of Praise or its schools.

4. Publicly remove all credibly accused members from the People of Praise and/or Trinity Schools on an ongoing basis.

5. Place an equal number of women in the highest leadership positions in the group and give them an equal vote in all of the group’s decisions. Had a more egalitarian structure been in place long ago, we think that at least some of the original abuse might have been avoided.

6. Reform the organization’s culture around “gossip” and “right speech,” which we believe has helped keep members from sharing information about abuse.

To people of good will in the People of Praise, we ask you to step forward and implement these reforms to hold perpetrators accountable. To members of the media, we ask you to check in with the group periodically to see whether they have met these reforms. To all witnesses, victims and whistleblowers, we ask you to report cases of abuse to law enforcement immediately.

KATIE LOGAN, Eden Prairie; SARAH KUEHL, New Market, Minn.; REBECCA GRUNDHOFER, Eden Prairie, and KEVIN CONNOLLY, Philadelphia