Stop Child Abuse Now (SCAN) - 2995

Tonight's special guest is Marita Murphy from Ballarat, Victoria, Australia, a CSA survivor  currently in appeals court for assaults from almost 50 years ago. Marita's mother raised her and 6 older siblings after her father died of a brain tumor. By age 7 her mother became unwell and Marita temporarily lived with a community family where she was molested and raped by 2 teens. Her story is another Catholic cover-up, and she wrote a public testimony about growing up in the Maryknoll Catholic settlement separate from outside society and not understanding what happened until later .. when she learned what the word 'rape' meant. Marita remembers her behavior changing drastically, experiencing emotional rages, and cutting off all her hair in attempts to avoid attention from boys. She initially loved school, but it became a struggle, and at age 12 she dropped out. The church pushed ideas about “sins of the flesh” and “impure thoughts.” She suffered in silence until her mother's death when she felt free to make a police report, “It was really harrowing to relive the experience over again.” Later she confronted one of her abusers! “He got in my face and said, 'Do you know WHO I am?'" She replied, “I know for certain now who YOU are - you're the man who raped me when I was a little girl!” Marita has been married for over 33 years, raising their three children and training racehorses. She feels the courts have been failing her so far, but she isn't giving up. “Thank goodness for the Internet and Facebook, as it's the only platform left for me."