Child abuse survivors reach out with monument
Beach Metro News - March 13, 2010
Elementary school teacher Kenneth DeLuca was given good references by his employers and moved from school to school. But beneath his handsome charming appearance he was every parent’s nightmare. He attacked little girls in closets, bathrooms, hallways and even in the principal’s office. He kissed and fondled them, used filthy language, rubbed against them, put his hands under their clothes and made them touch his genitals. Nobody believed complaints dating back to 1973. However, in 1996 he pleaded guilty to 14 sexual offences against 13 victims.
A teacher? Yes. Alleged child abusers include babysitters, family friends, teachers and other professionals - people parents trust. But according to a report released by the Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics in 2001, 93% of alleged perpetrators are family members or relatives.
For weeks, I have followed the story of the criminal trial of Tony and Marcia Dooley, charged with second degree murder of seven-year-old Randy Dooley. I am horrified as I read that autopsy photos showed the child's body covered with welts, cuts, bruises and scars. I shudder trying to picture an innocent child who had 14 broken ribs, a broken vertebra, a sliced liver, pneumonia and and four separate brain injuries. I can’t imagine a stepmother who, as his brother testified, would put her unconscious step-son in a bathtub filled with cold water and force ice into his mouth. Physical abuse turned deadly.
These are just two cases - two that made the news. What about the cases hidden behind closed doors? What about the survivors of child abuse who grew up coping with nightmares while the rest of us played with barbies and G.I. Joe’s? It is these survivors artist and psychotherapist Michael Irving had in mind when he decided to sculpt a monument for child abuse victims.