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News and Links for Ex-Jehovah’s Witnesses: PBS Newshour Asks, “Did Jehovah’s Witnesses Cover Up Child Sex Abuse?”

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PBS NewsHour full episode Feb. 17, 2015

The link above will take you to the full episode, but the part about Jehovah’s Witnesses can be seen below. It is called “Did Jehovah’s Witnesses Cover Up Child Sex Abuse?”

I think most of us are pretty sure the answer is yes. Especially since it’s hard to be an active member of the ex-Witness community without knowing at least few exxers who had similar experiences.

Jehovah’s Witness Report gives a short summary of related information here. Cedars of Jehovah’s Witness Survey fame gives a summary of the episode here. Here is an article I wrote for Michigan Skeptics a while back; make sure to check the comments. 🙂 Note that this was written a while ago and more information has come to light since then.

Jehovah’s Witnesses use 1st Amendment to hide child sex abuse claims

The religion’s parent organization, the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, issued the directives in at least 10 memos dating back to 1989. Although the memos were anonymously written, Watchtower officials have testified that the organization’s Governing Body approved them all.

Remember the part in bold. The next time a Witness tells you these letters are all apostate fabrications, you can now tell them how mistaken they are. Why would officials admit it in court if it wasn’t true?

Candace Conti Letters

A list of documents regarding the ongoing Candace Conti case, the first ex-Witness to successfully sue the Watchtower for its failure to warn other Witnesses about known pedophiles.

Are Jehovah’s Witnesses a Cult?

According to Janja Lalich and Michael Langone, a psychologist and the executive director for ICSA (International Cultic Studies Association at icsahome.com), several characteristics* that may be present to a greater or lesser degree, and which help to distinguish cults from other communities or groups are:

This one comes from AAWA’s website and is written by Richard Kelly.

DateLine TV Watchtower Jehovah’s Witnesses Pedophilia Witness for the Prosecution

An older story exposing the problems with Jehovah’s Witnesses and pedophilia, but also from a major news source.

 

News And Links For Ex-Jehovah’s Witnesses: Association of Anti-Watchtower Activists in the News

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As mentioned in my last post, the Association of Anti-Watchtower Activists (AAWA) is here to make the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society a less crappy place to live in1 and to help ex-Jehovah’s Witnesses who need it.

I have some updates for you about the Association of Anti-Watchtower Activists below.

AAWA has an update for us at An eventful journey – summing up AAWA’s launch | JWActivists.org

There have been highs, and there have been lows! I will do my best to state candidly and factually what we did right and what we got wrong.

My fellow board members and I went into this with our eyes wide open, expecting to divide opinion and make mistakes – but it was always going to be impossible to predict the response to something that has never been done before to this extent.

Atheism TV ran a story about the AAWA via The Infidel; News for the Damned (2013-04-12). The part about AAWA is about two minutes in. Note that this is a video link to an online news channel on YouTube.

Religion News ran a story called New organization takes on Jehovah’s Witnesses’ Watch Tower Society

AAWA says it is a strictly religiously-neutral organization. Legally incorporated on March 7th 2013, AAWA works with a Board of Directors, an Advisory Board, and volunteers.

Here’s a link at Topix called Association of Anti-Watchtower Activists about the AAWA. One commentator had this to say:

They selected a politically incorrect name out of the gate

Interesting name selection

Folks like to be For something. hence Pro-

While they are not to excited to Be against something. Hence Anti

The abortion groups learned this and on both sides of the issues changed their names to

Pro life

Pro choice

As jw we were so shutout of political things we never learned these techniques that others learned years ago from being involved in politics

Just my 2

I confess some misgivings about the name as well. I do think it conveys the wrong message on one level. Yes, it’s a strong name for a strong stance, but it also makes the association sound like it could be full of extremists who want to picket Bethel headquarters. On the other hand, what do you call it? “The Association of Pro-Ex-Jehovah’s Witnesses?”

There were also some rumblings about the name at JWD.

Time will tell. If need be, I suppose they can always change the name.

The AAWA was also mentioned at a blog called 100 USES FOR MUESLI at this link: Watchtower, beware!

You can volunteer to help the AAWA through their website and can join their Facebook page (but you have to be invited first). You can also get a badge added to your Facebook profile pic here to show your support.

  1. Yes, if you’re one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, we already know what you will say. The Society’s “truth” is awesome, every day is a dream come true. I know. I just disagree. ↩

Video: A Message To Jehovah’s Witnesses From Antiwatchtower Activists

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Video: A Message To Jehovah’s Witnesses From Antiwatchtower Activists

This is video from a new group with a new website.

JWActivists.org is the official website of The Association of Anti-Watchtower Activists, a legally incorporated organization representing an international group of campaigners against the Watch Tower Society. Most of its associates are either current or former Jehovah’s Witnesses.

The best part is the message on their Open Offer page:

AAWA extends an open offer to the Watch Tower Society to meet with the Governing Body (or its representatives) to discuss ways in which the organization can continue its religious activities without harming both current and former believers. AAWA firmly believes in the rights of religious freedom, but not when these impinge on other individual rights. Specifically, AAWA believes that Watchtower has become guilty of impinging the individual rights of its followers in five key areas…

The message implies that this isn’t a website for angry rants or name calling. They seem to be in-line with my own philosophy on dealing with the culture of Jehovah’s Witnesses and the organization behind it, the Watchtower Bible & Tract Society. I hope you guys will support this voice of sanity.

Best of luck to AAWA from the Atheist Geek!