Nearly 550 German Choirboys Abused At Renowned Catholic School, Report Say

[trotsky]

http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/07/19/538103579/nearly-550-german-choir-boys-abused-at-renowned-catholic-school-report-says

The education at the Regensburg Domspatzen — a boys' choir that enjoys worldwide renown and has been around for upwards of a millennium — "was oriented toward top musical achievements and the choir's success," the report said, as translated by The New York Times. "Alongside individual motives, institutional motives — namely, breaking the will of the children with the aim of maximum discipline and dedication — formed the basis for violence."

Of the hundreds of cases listed by attorney Ulrich Weber, whose report was commissioned in 2015 by the Regensburg diocese, 67 are believed to have been cases of sexual abuse.

And "these are not 547 cases where an individual was affected once," former choir member Alexander Probst told Reuters. "Rather, this was an ongoing practice over decades where 547 children were tormented, abused, mistreated and socially harmed."

Weber concentrated especially on the period between 1945 and 1992, during which time Georg Ratzinger, Benedict's brother, led the choir for about three decades. Ratzinger, who has previously acknowledged slapping students and apologized, was singled out by Weber "for turning a blind eye and not intervening despite having knowledge." Reuters does note that the investigation did not find that Ratzinger was aware of sexual abuse.

As usual, the coverup only makes it worse.

[Lordquinton]

1. Horrorifying

The arCC has so much to answer for.