April 27, 2021 – Awake Milwaukee is honored to stand with abuse survivors and their advocates as Attorney General Josh Kaul announces an investigation into sexual abuse in the state’s Catholic dioceses and religious orders. The attorney general invited Executive Director Sara Larson to participate in today’s press conference at the State Capitol in Madison to speak on behalf of Wisconsin Catholics who support this inquiry.
Awake Milwaukee offers a particularly important perspective on this developing news story, as our organization is composed of abuse survivors and concerned Catholics who are working together to address the twin crises of sexual abuse and leadership failures in the Catholic Church.
In response to this announcement, Awake is creating spaces that allow concerned Catholics to understand and discuss this news and is developing resources for Catholic leaders to use in addressing the investigation in their parishes. Awake encourages survivors and others with information to reach out to the Wisconsin Department of Justice at SupportSurvivors.widoj.gov or 877-222-2620.
Executive Director Sara Larson says, “As committed Catholics, we are heartbroken and outraged over the abuse that has taken place in our Church, and we welcome the Attorney General investigation as an opportunity to better understand what has happened in the past – and what is happening today. While we recognize that the process and findings of this investigation may be painful for Catholics, we believe that transformation and healing are only possible when we know the whole truth. Our Catholic faith compels us to work for justice and act in solidarity with those who are suffering, so we commit to stand with all victim-survivors and we hope that this investigation brings them some measure of justice and peace.”
About Awake Milwaukee
Awake is an independent grassroots nonprofit organization of Catholics responding to the abuse crisis in the Catholic Church. Our mission is to awaken our community to the full reality of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church and work for transformation and healing in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. More information can be found at www.awakemilwaukee.org.
