4,228 entries for Historical Context
BackMr Brander retired in the mid-1980s. He was subsequently convicted of abusing a boy to whom he was giving grinds. The publicity following this conviction led a former pupil of Walsh Island NS to come forward and make a statement to the Gardaí, which resulted in a full-scale investigation into Mr Brander’s period of service there.
Around the time of his third trial, Mr Brander wrote to the Christian Brothers saying that he himself had been a victim of sexual interference during his time in the Christian Brothers after he joined the Congregation in the 1930s. He described several occasions over a period of 10 years during his education and training in the Brothers when he was sexually abused by a number of named persons. The latest of the incidents happened in the 1940s. One of the offenders he named was a Brother who was expelled from the Congregation because of sexual abuse. In the letter Mr Brander said: I was very innocent when joining, and I look upon those incidents as having a profound influence on my teaching years.
Mr Rothe continued his quest to have his concerns, namely the exposure of Mr Brander and a general inquiry into the abuse of children, dealt with, in contacts with a number of politicians, some of whom raised the issues with Ministers for Education.
1.By permitting Mr Brander to be eased out of the Congregation, the Christian Brothers did nothing to prevent him continuing in a career of teaching, despite his repeated sexual interference with children and knowledge as to the danger he represented to them. The Provincial at the time of his dispensation said that ‘we could not allow him in future to have any contact with boys as it would be dangerous for himself and for the boys’. 2.Within days of leaving the Congregation, Mr Brander took up a position as Principal of a National School, which would have necessitated some form of application process to the School Manager, who was most likely the parish priest of the area. It is scarcely credible that an accurate reference could have been furnished, so the possibilities are that a favourable reference was given which satisfied the employer or that the latter did not seek a reference. In either case, there is ground for suspicion. 3.During the course of his subsequent career, Mr Brander’s sexual and/or physical abuse of children came to the knowledge of his employers, including a parish priest and senior members of two separate communities of nuns, a Bishop, members of the clergy, the Gardaí, the Department of Education and an Inspector thereof, and colleague teachers, but on each occasion he was able to continue his career. 4.By choosing to take the easy way out, the persons and bodies with knowledge of Mr Brander’s activities must bear heavy responsibility for the damage he did to children throughout his career and following his retirement.
Six (6) witnesses commented that family visits and the opportunity to go home for holidays and be outside the institutions were the most positive memories of their time there.
The following section summaries the information provided by witnesses during their hearings regarding their adult lives, including details about relationships, employment and parenting. It also identifies some of the reported ongoing effects of childhood abuse in the witnesses’ lives.
Thirty two (32) of the 58 witnesses, 22 male and 10 female, who reported being abused in special needs facilities were single at the time of their hearing. Twenty eight (28) of those witnesses reported never having been married or involved in intimate relationships. Four (4) other witnesses were currently single having been previously involved in relationships for short periods. Twenty two (22) witnesses, 13 male and nine female, were married. Four (4) other witnesses reported being in long-term relationships, currently or in the past.
Twenty six (26) witnesses, 19 male and seven female, who reported being single and who had never married, were in sheltered living situations or had lived in residential facilities for most of their lives. Eighteen (18) witnesses, 11 male and seven female, who were married at the time of their hearing described their marriages as happy, stable, supportive and of many years duration. Several witnesses reported meeting and marrying partners who had similar childhood experiences as their own. Met... (my)... husband to be, got married and didn’t go back to work. When I met my husband we had great communication ... I was so happy to be with him ... we left all the past behind, we really forgot about that ...(childhood abuse)...
Eighteen (18) witnesses described themselves as having struggled with the effects of institutional care and abuse for years following their discharge from special needs schools and residential facilities. Childhood sexual abuse was reported by 10 witnesses to have had a particularly detrimental effect on their adult relationships. Alcohol abuse and unresolved anger were noted features of the relationships difficulties described by a small number of witnesses. I started drinking too much, found myself not able to go into work the next day and I didn’t feel very good about that ... went to AA ... for all my sins I think I do still drink more than I should ... they all say to me “you’re such a nice man without it” ... • For...years after I left I lived the best I could. I wasn’t aware that things were so difficult as they were, I normalised all that went wrong...That left me socially very difficult...I couldn’t handle it at all, relationships and that... • I’d say all the group... (former co-residents)... ended up in trouble with alcohol, or social isolation or didn’t make it into relationships at all.... A lot of them... (are)... very bitter and isolated, they continue to survive, just survive.
Counselling and the support of partners, family and professionals were all reported to have contributed to happier outcomes for a number of witnesses. Married... ( many years)... very happy. My wife understands my problem. We have...children. I didn’t understand for a long time, when I got married first ... about... (sexual)... relations...(until)... I went to see the counsellor ... I don’t know how ...wife ... did enjoy the relationship. Because of sexual abuse in the school, that put me off... I can’t enjoy sexual relations... (but)... we have worked it out,... wife...is brilliant.
Twenty (20) witnesses, 12 male and eight female, reported having a total of 59 children. Ten (10) described having good relationships with their children. Four (4) witnesses described themselves as overprotective of their children and another three reported being harsh or abusive parents. They reported hitting and slapping their children, commenting that they treated their children as they had been treated themselves. When my children were bold or wild I slapped them. Sometimes I slapped them around the face and I remember one day.... I slapped him... (son)... repeatedly around the face. He started crying, he got frightened, I lost my temper with him I think, I didn’t realise until afterwards that it was wrong to slap. It was what I had learned in school ... I didn’t know anything about child abuse. I remember when I was driving there was a big...(advertising poster)... about how not to slap your child, that it can affect them mentally, and that had a huge impact. I was wondering, you know, what did I do to my children?... (I)... felt so guilty, so very, very guilty. I was very hard on them, I did slap them very hard ... distressed and crying ... I remember seeing this poster and I felt so guilty.... I loved them... and they loved me and I remember thinking why did I do that to them?... I realised I learned that from the school, they did that to me all the time and I did that to the children. I feel terrible guilty about that ... and then I stopped and they behaved very well after that.
Other witnesses described being angry a lot of the time for unspecified reasons. They now believe their anger and unhappiness was related to childhood experiences, which they acknowledge contributed to unhappy family lives for their own children.
Twenty-three (23) witnesses, 15 male and eight female, were employed at the time of their hearing, three others were working at home and three were retired. Five (5) witnesses reported being unemployed and the remaining 24 witnesses, 18 male and six female, were in receipt of disability income. Five (5) of these 24 witnesses had been previously employed for substantial periods of time.
As previously stated, many of the 19 witnesses with sensory impairments commented on the inadequate level of education provided for them in the schools, where the main emphasis was on remediation for their particular disability. They reported being denied both an academic education and the means to communicate effectively in mainstream society. These witnesses repeatedly remarked on the consequent disadvantages for them in their later work lives. While many witnesses established themselves in successful careers, they nevertheless reported having struggled for years to overcome the shortcomings of their education.
Eighteen (18) of the 58 witnesses reported receiving second-level education for some time in their adolescence. Five (5) of these 18 witnesses subsequently attended third-level education. The remaining 40 witnesses reported attending school at primary level, in 20 instances until they were aged 16 years or older.