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Thursday, March 15, 2012

SECOND ANNUAL PASSOVER MODEL FREEDOM SEDER FOR ADVOCATES AND SURVIVORS OF ABUSE MARCH 29 2012

COME JOIN US AND SHOW YOUR SUPPORT TO VICTIMS AND SURVIVORS OF ABUSE IN A PRE-PASSOVER MODEL SEDER WHERE WE CELEBRATE OUR STRUGGLE TO BE FREE OF BONDAGE AND PAIN AND HELP SURVIVORS  RETURN TO A LIFE OF NORMALCY AND HAPPINESS
                                        
                        WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES  OF ALL FAITHS  
      
                                                               https://www.facebook.com/events/260981313985582/ 
                                                    
                                                      

      
                                                         THURSDAY  MARCH  29, 2012       7:00  P.M


                                                         CONGERGATION  BNEI ISREAL OF LINDEN HEIGHTS
                                                         9 TH AV   CORNER  46 STREET BROOKLYN NY 11219
                                                         CALL US FOR MORE INFORMATION

                                                                     1  800  621 8551
THE GREAT SINGER  
CHAIM   KISS
IN PERSON WILL SING SONGS OF HOPE


                                                                          RABBI YOSEF BLAU
                                                               SPIRITUAL LEADER OF YESHIVA UNIVERSITY  
                                                                         WILL ADDRESS  THE EVENT                               
                    ..             live music,gourmet ,sharing   


         personal stories and distribution of free food to survivors ...................and more              
                                  
                                                                              
WE THANK OUR SUPPORTERS AND SPONSORS   
  




                                                                           
                                                               

Monday, March 12, 2012

DID CARDINAL DOLAN MAKE A DEAL WITH RABBI DAVID ZWEIBEL OF AGUDATH ISREAL OF AMERICA TO KILL THE CVA BILL (MARKEY BILL) BY NOT OBJECTING TO THE NYS GAY MARRIAGE BILL


AGUDA CUDDLING UP TO SENATE LEADER DEAN SKELOS
                                                                       
                                                    SHAME   SHAME  SHAME 

Cardinal Dolan: Republican Senators ‘Burned’ Us on Same-Gender Marriage

(Monday, March 12th, 2012)
Cardinal Dolan has revealed for the first time that New York’s gay marriage vote caught the Catholic Church flat-footed — insisting it was “burned” by Senate Republicans who claimed the legislation didn’t have a prayer.
“We got burned last year when we were told the redefinition of marriage didn’t have much of a chance — and of course it did,” Dolan told the Daily News as he prepared for Monday’s annual Albany lobbying trip.
“Our Senate leaders, we highly appreciated them being with us all along,” he explained. “When they kind of assured us it didn’t have much of a chance — not that we let up, but we probably would have been much more vigorous and even more physically present if we knew there was a chance.”
when protesters on both sides loudly filled the Capitol, many wondered why top Church leadership wasn’t there. Dolan was across the country at a conference.
“We got a little stung, and it could be as much our fault as anyone else’s,” Dolan said.
In the end, same-gender marriage passed the Senate 33-29, with four Republicans voting for it.
Dolan and Gov. Cuomo disagreed on the issue, but the cardinal credits the governor for always being upfront about his position.
While there are issues the Church still opposes lawmakers on, Dolan and the bishops plan to congratulate state leaders for what he deemed a new sense of purpose and value in Albany.
“There’s a lot of areas where we agree,” he said. “When we go up, we’re always careful not to just be naysayers.”
A top priority for the Church this year is blocking a bill to strengthen abortion rights in New York.
It was a question about the unlikely chance of that bill passing the Republican-controlled Senate that got Dolan talking about the need for vigilance after last year’s gay marriage vote.
The cardinal gave measured support for Cuomo’s push for pension reform, noting that even the Church is considering trimming retirement benefits to deal with tough fiscal realities.
“As long as it can be done without hurting the dignity and security that people have, given the huge deficit and economic strain the government is under, there might have to be some trimming,” he said.
(Source: NY Daily News)

Thursday, March 8, 2012

A HAPPY PURIM OP-ED BY DR ASHER LIPNER CO-CHAIR COALITION OF JEWISH ADVOCATES FOR CHILDREN O CHAIR COALITION OF JEWISH ADVOCATES

DR ASHER LIPNER
COALITION OF JEWISH ADVOCATES
                                                                     
Purim and unmasking child molestation

Many of the websites that promote protection for children and healing for survivors of sexual abuse (www.adkanenough.com, www.jewishcommunitywatch.com, www.voicesofjustice.com, and www.jewishparentsforsafeyeshivas.com) are pointing out that with all of the drinking and the relaxation of rules and social structures on the holiday, now is an especially important time to talk to children about personal safety.  Unfortunately, many pedophiles celebrate by taking advantage of the festivities to harm children.  Children of all ages need to be reminded now and regularly that nobody has the right to touch them in their private parts or to force them to touch others’ private parts.  They need to know that whoever it is who attempts to do this or in any way makes them feel uncomfortable, whether a family friend, a relative, a sibling, a teacher a rebbe or even a parent, they should immediately run away and tell a (safe) parent or trusted adult.  They need to be reassured that they will be heard, believed and protected.
Purim also contains a lesson for all of us about the communal problem of child sexual abuse in the custom for people to dress up in costumes and wear masks.  One of the reasons for the make believe is to remind us that so much of our lives are lived behind the masks we wear so that others, and even we ourselves, cannot recognize who we really are.  A great part of who we are and who the world is remains hidden.
Hashem’s name does not appear in the entire Megilla, and the hint of the Purim story in the Torah comes from the Passuk that speaks of Hester Panim, Hashem’s hiding His face from us, alluding to Ester.  Hashem wears a mask to hide from us at times, making life’s events seem as arbitrary and capricious as Haman’s lottery of when to annihilate the Jews.
Our job, with the inspiration of the Purim celebration is to see beyond the mask and to recognize that everything that happens in our lives has a higher meaning and a hidden truth.  Finding Hashem and exposing his love for us is the purpose of the Jewish people. 
In the horrible epidemic of child sexual abuse that has been allowed to plague our community for too long, we can clearly see that all of us also wear masks that conceal our true feelings about this spiritual holocaust.  We need to be inspired by the message of Purim to let our guard down and allow ourselves to be vulnerable to knowing ourselves better so that we can come together to stop the terrible damage.
Victims of abuse often wear masks of being happy and successful in life, peaceful and strong.  Many grow up to be talented, creative people with a deep concern and understanding of others and have great accomplishments.  But underneath their masks, they often suffer terribly in silence from feelings of shame and terror and a deep unending loneliness.
Molesters, as well, are notoriously ingenious at creating masks to hide their true intentions, playing the role of charming and dynamic youth leaders and teachers, or trustworthy, religious family men.   The façade of the sexual abusers masks their inherently deceitful, manipulative and selfish nature, and their deviant and dangerous desires and behaviors.
Teens who are “at risk” and who go “off the derech” can appear to us as rebellious, oppositional and unreachable.  In reality, they often feel betrayed and abandoned by the adults who are supposed to protect them, leading to an overwhelming sense of disillusionment and alienation.
Too many parents fool themselves by hiding behind a veneer of security and safety, confident that our community is a perfectly safe place in which to raise children.  If they would allow themselves to open their eyes and ears to what is happening in their shuls, schools, camps and neighborhoods, they would be shocked and frightened at their helplessness to completely protect their families from abuse in the community. 
Many rabbanim and askanim, community organizations and newspapers express compassion and seriousness about tackling the problem of molestation.  Their many private meetings and few public pronouncements belie their true state of mind – a confused passivity, born of anxious concern for the community’s image - a paralysis that protects only the molesters, never the children.
Advocates for children and for victims of abuse often appear as angry people, filled with righteous indignation, cynical about the “powers that be” and hysterically bent on exposing the evil that lurks in our midst.  What is not as readily seen by the casual observer is the deep-down devastation they experience, and the never-ending hope and yearning, in spite of it all, for the Jewish people to wake up and confront the issue of child abuse once and for all.
The identity confusion that can be caused by wearing masks is also alluded to in the Purim custom of drinking until we are too intoxicated to know the difference between Arur Haman and Baruch Mordechai. Even drunks can know the difference between a blessing and a curse, but because we hide our true natures, it is often easy to confuse people’s identities, including our very own.   
When is it that we are we denying who we truly are, like the Jews who celebrated at King Achashverosh’s party and pretended they belonged there and all was well?  And when are we being courageous and brave like Queen Ester, who revealed her true identity and Haman’s true colors, risking it all to save her people?  Will the real Mordechai and the real Haman please stand up?
Hiding our true selves behind masks is our attempt to protect ourselves from challenge and conflict.  But it actually creates division, turning the “Am Echad” into a people who are “Mefuzar and Meforad”.   The revelation of truth by Mordechai and Esther, in which “Vnahapoch Hu”, everything was turned upside down and inside out, brought salvation and healing for every single Jewish, man, woman and child.  And it inspired a newfound communal unity and connection to Hashem, to Torah and to each other.
Layehudim Haysa Orah V’Simcha V’Sason V’Ykar.
 The Jewish people rejoiced in the revelation of the truth about who they really are. 
Keyn Tihye Lanu.                                                                     
Dr. Asher Lipner, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist in Flatbush who works with survivors of traumatic abuse and child moles and co-chair coalition of jewish advocates

TO ALL THE BIGOTS AND RACISTS OF THE WORLD ... THERE IS HOPE TAKE MEDS


New York                      HAPPY PURIM TO ALL
         
- A common heart disease drug may have the unusual side effect of combating racism, a new study suggests.
                                      
Volunteers given the beta-blocker, used to treat chest pains and lower heart rates, scored lower on a standard psychological test of “implicit” racist attitudes. They appeared to be less racially prejudiced at a subconscious level than another group treated with a “dummy” placebo pill.
Scientists believe the discovery can be explained by the fact that racism is fundamentally founded on fear.
Propranolol acts both on nerve circuits that govern automatic functions such as heart rate and the part of the brain involved in fear and emotional responses. The drug is also used to treat anxiety and panic.
Experimental psychologist Dr Sylvia Terbeck, from Oxford University, who led the study published in the journal Psychopharmacology, said: “Our results offer new evidence about the processes in the brain that shape implicit racial bias.
Implicit racial bias can occur even in people with a sincere belief in equality. Given the key role that such implicit attitudes appear to play in discrimination against other ethnic groups, and the widespread use of propranolol for medical purposes, our findings are also of considerable ethical interest.”
martin luther king and rabbi abraham heschel marching aganst bigotry

The test involved categorising positive and negative words, and pictures of black and white individuals, on a computer screen. More than a third of the volunteers had a “negative” IAT score, meaning they were biased towards being non-racist at a subconscious level. This was not seen in any member of the placebo group.
Co-author Professor Julian Savulescu, from Oxford University’s Faculty of Philosophy, said: “Such research raises the tantalising possibility that our unconscious racial attitudes could be modulated using drugs, a possibility that requires careful ethical analysis.
“Biological research aiming to make people morally better has a dark history. And propranolol is not a pill to cure racism. But given that many people are already using drugs like propranolol which have ‘moral’ side effects, we at least need to better understand what these effects are.”

Thursday, March 1, 2012

HUNDREDS AT ALBANY "PRESS CONFERENCE" URGE THE GOVERNOR, AND THE LEGISLATURE, TO ENACT THE "CHILD VICTIMS ACT" ( MARKEY BILL) WHICH WILL INCREASE THE "STATUE OF LIMITATIONS" FOR SEX PREDATORS......... SURVIVORS AND ADVOCATES APPEAL TO "AGUDATH ISRAEL" AND THE "CATHOLIC LEAGUE" TO OPEN THEIR HEARTS TO VICTIMS AND REVERSE THERE OPPOSITION TO THE "MARKEY BILL" THAT WILL GET PAST ABUSERS OFF OUR STREETS!!!


 A  Survivor Of Child Sex Abuse Speaks In Albany



Assemblywoman Marge Markey, Mark Appel, etc Albany CVA Lobby Event 2-29-2012Activists and pols gather in support of the Child Victims Act ( MARKEY BILL)which would extend the statute of limitations for child sex abuse cases. Agudath Israel of America and Satmar, along with the Catholic Church, oppose the bill.
SCHNEUR , ASSEMBLYPERSON MARKEY  . MARK MEYER APPEL
                                             
Assemblywoman Markey and  Mark Meyer Appel introduces a survivor schneur  


http://www.youtube.com/user/voiceoff4?feature=watch




ALBANY, NY, FEBRUARY 29, 2012 --- Assemblywoman Margaret Markey held a press conference here today to present first-person account of abuse survivors who were victimized at the hands of members of religious organizations. The program was held in conjunction with a Lobby Day by supporters of her Child Victims Act of New York (A5488).



“Childhood sexual abuse is society’s dirty little secret,” Markey said. “We know that 20 percent of our youngsters grow up as victims of these crimes. Through these programs this week I want to shed light on the different areas of life and society where abuse occurs and help my colleagues to understand how important it is that we adopt this bill in 2012.”
Speakers on February 29th included Professor Marci Hamilton of Yeshiva University’s Cardozo Law School, a nationally-recognized authority of statutes of limitations across America.

EXPERT SAYS NY IS ONE OF WORST: New York is one of the worst states in the country in the protection of children, and that stems from inadequate reporting laws and shockingly short statutes of limitations,” said Professor Hamilton,  “and it appears that the members of the Legislature are now giving the statutes of limitation the serious attention they deserve.”
She added, “At a minimum, there are two reforms needed: extend (and even eliminate) the civil and criminal SOLs and enact a civil window, which would permit victims currently shut out of the justice system to bring their cases against the perpetrators and the institutions that enabled the perpetrators with easy access to children.. As I document in, my book, Justice Denied: What America Must Do to Protect Children, these reforms will protect today's children, prevent abuse in the future, and give a measure of justice to victims.  The New York state courts have repeatedly held that they are not the place to get these laws corrected -- it is up to the legislature. The Markey bill is the best first step for New York, because it provides a window and an extension (5 years).  I would hope in future that extension would be extended again.”

Hamilton continued, “It is well-known that the primary opponent to protecting New York's children is the Catholic Conference, the lobbying organization for New York's Catholic bishops.  The bishops, led by Cardinal Timothy Dolan, are sinking hundreds of thousands of their parishioners' dollars to fight child sex abuse victims in New York.  They are joined by Agudath Israel, which means that 2 religious organizations are the political enemies of New York's children. They have chosen the side of the perpetrators.” 

HAD TO GO TO MASSACHUSETTS TO GET JUSTICE: Also speaking was attorney Tina Weber and one of her clients who was among the victims who successfully took their case against a pedophile priest to neighboring Massachusetts courts when they couldn’t get justice in New York.    Tina Weber said, “It’s been a year since the conviction of Father Mecure and his sentencing, but in my dealing with church officials on behalf of the men who testified against him, I think the church may have lost its focus.  As the single biggest charitable institution in the world, which has provided for so many over the decades, it cannot now step forward when the most vulnerable members need it the most.”

Mark Meyer Appel said, “Passing  the Child Victims Act is the only way we can ensure that past predators are taken off our streets and bring closure to survivors like Joel Engelman, Schneur Bornstein and others. 2012 is our year of hope to ensure that students of Penn State, Syracuse and children around the state in parochial schools and yeshivas are safe in our communities and past abusers taken off the street.”

Also speaking on the program was Rabbi Gershon Tannenbaum, Director of the Rabbinical Alliance of America, an organization that represents more than 850 synagogue Rabbis. Rabbi Tannenbaum continues as a vigorous advocate for the Child Victims Act .
A EMOTIONAL  CONVERSATION WITH RABBI DAVID ZWEIBEL OF AGUDAH TO SUPPORT OUR BILL AND SAVE OUR CHILDREN
                                                     
CONCEALED MY SECRET UNTIL I WAS OVERWHELMED: Award-winning journalist and television producer Steve Jimenez was another speaker on the program. Mr. Jimenez said,  “My abuse began when I was 10 and continued until shortly before my 14th birthday. It occurred on school grounds, in Prospect Park, at city beaches, in bathhouses, and during class outings. Like most abuse victims, I concealed my secret and shame until the symptoms of post-traumatic stress overwhelmed my life and I was forced to seek decades of treatment.”

According to Jimenez, he has had several meetings with officials of the Brooklyn Diocese including the most recent two bishops. "I've tried talking with them since 2002 and they've done absolutely nothing, other than acting as if they're the ones that have been victimized rather than the other way around," Jimenez said. "It's upsetting to see other communities around the nation taking the lead for years in offering reparation and healing to abuse victims, while New York State has lagged so far behind."
The Lobby Day activity for the Child Victims Act of New York was coordinated by the New York Coalition to Protect Children (www.nyprotectchildren.org).  The group has an active on-line petition available so that the general public can reach out to their own local legislators as well as the Governor and the top leaders of the Assembly and the State Senate. It is at nychildvictimsact.org   An earlier on-line initiative on behalf of the bill in a previous session of the Legislature resulted in sending more than 70,000 petitions to the Governor and legislative leaders.

PROVEN WAY TO FIND PREDATORS: Robert Kristan, who heads the Coalition said: “Studies that show 90% of child sexual abuse is not reported. That can mean only one thing--that the thousands of unknown abusers in New York puts tens of thousands of children in jeopardy every day. The only proven way to find these predators is to allow their victims to identify them whenever they are able to do so, not when an arbitrary law says they can. Only the reforms of the Child Victims Act will makes this possible. We're here to carry that message to New York's legislators.”

Markey’s Child Victims Act has been adopted by the Assembly four times, in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008. However it has failed to succeed in the State Senate. The bill will extend the current statute of limitations for child sex abuse crimes by five years, to age 28, and will also completely suspend the civil statute of limitations for one year. This will help expose older crimes and make it possible to identify previously hidden abusers through the discovery process in court, exposing them and those who have shielded them to ensure they can never abuse a child again.
 “Laws in New York are so lax that many perpetrators evade exposure by waiting out the short statute of limitations. I want to change that because pedophiles who are not exposed will continue to abuse yet more children in the future,” the Assemblywoman said.
WITH ASSEMBLYMAN DOV HIKIND

WITH ASSEMBLYMAN ALEC BROOK KRASNY  A VITO LOPEZ  FRIEND AND IS ANTI THE MARKEY BILL

WITH ASSEMBLYWOMAN RHODA JACOBS