USC’s George Tyndall is gone, but sexual abuse survivors still deserve a choice

I was already a survivor of sexual assault when I went to see Dr. George Tyndall at the University of Southern California student health center.

My experience with him triggered past emotions and memories, and caused painful new ones. It also made me part of a group of thousands of USC students and alumni abused by Tyndall over three decades.

My story, like those of so many others, began with a routine gynecological exam. As an older graduate student who identified as polyamorous and bisexual, I was fairly comfortable discussing my sexual history and orientation and was familiar with routine procedures.

But with Tyndall, I became uncomfortable very quickly. He was unprofessional in his interest about my sex life and asked about the best sex positions for two women. Without fully closing the curtain in the exam room, he performed a “skin check” by scrutinizing and roughly handling my naked body. read more »

The Vatican editor who exposed the sexual abuse of nuns – and took on the Pope

In the church women’s magazine, Lucetta Scaraffia exposed rape and secret abortions. Then, she and her team quit. She reveals what happened

On 26 March, Lucetta Scaraffia sent a letter to Pope Francis. She was, at the time, the editor of the Vatican’s glossy women’s magazine Women Church World: a title that in its seven years had taken aim at misogyny in the church, exposed the shocking sexual abuse of nuns and the secret abortions priests had paid for to get rid of the evidence.

“We are throwing in the towel,” she told the pope. “Because we feel surrounded by an atmosphere of distrust and progressive delegitimisation.” The “we” was the 11-strong editorial team, all but two of whom quit on the same day, accusing the church elders of attempting to gag them. “A vital initiative has been reduced to silence and there has been a return to the antiquated and arid custom of choosing women considered trustworthy from on high, under the direct control of men.” read more »

Boy Scouts Settle Sex Abuse Suit Brought by Washington Man

A local chapter of the Boy Scouts of America has settled a lawsuit brought by a Washington state man who says he was sexually abused at the age of 14 by two scout leaders who had previously been identified in Boy Scouts' "perversion files." read more »