Catholic scandal :: essays research papers

Bishops Acknowledge Role in Crisis DALLAS (AP) - America's Roman Catholic bishops opened their historic meeting on clerical sex abuse Thursday by bluntly acknowledging that their mistakes helped cause the crisis, then yielding the floor to victims who described how pain permeated their lives. Photos AP Photo Slideshows AP Photo Catholic Church Abuse Controversy Audio/Video Victims Demand Zero Tolerance, More Accountability for Church Leaders (WFAA, Dallas) Bishops Open Priest Sex Abuse Talks (AP) The bishops followed the morning session by going behind closed doors to take up proposals aimed at reforming the way the church handles abuse claims. Whether to adopt a zero tolerance policy — ousting any priest found guilty of a single case of abuse — was among the decisions facing them. The closed-door talks could continue into the evening. Public debate and action was scheduled Friday. Outside the hotel where the meeting was being held, about 50 people protested the church's handling of abuse cases. There were no arrests. Bishop Wilton Gregory, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, opened the meeting with a remarkably direct address, calling the crisis "perhaps the gravest we have faced." Abuse victim Michael Bland, of Chicago, told the bishops how he joined the priesthood but then left after trying to convince church leaders to take action against his molester. He urged the prelates to get rid of all those who abuse children. "The priesthood lost me but kept the perpetrator," Bland said. "The church has taken care of him." Gregory pledged to take action to restore parishioners' badly shaken faith in the church hierarchy. "The crisis, in truth, is about a profound loss of confidence by the faithful in our leadership," he said. That's "because of our failures in addressing the crime of the sexual abuse of children and young people by priests and church personnel." He admitted "we did not go far enough to ensure that every child and minor was safe from sexual abuse. Rightfully, the faithful are questioning why we failed to take the necessary steps." The bishops rarely allow lay Catholics to speak at their meetings, but three Catholic thinkers who have been following the abuse crisis were given the chance to address the church leaders after Gregory. They were followed by the abuse victims. Bland said he came forward with his molestation claim while he was still a priest. Suddenly, he felt he "was no longer one of the good guys but one of the victims to be dealt with.

Advocacy for Diverse Clientele Essay

Dealing with the everyday hustle and bustle that life throws at them. African-American women continue to rise above and stand out while doing so. They have been labeled as different, from their parenting style down to their style of dress. These women have also been ridiculed, labeled in a negative manner, and even mistreated. For example, they have earned lower wages than African-American males and whites. On the other hand, they have also been viewed as strong willed individuals. For examples, they have headed more than forty percent of their families while managing careers, and raising children. African-American females are heterogeneous in terms of identity, educational level, and social class. They are a diverse population attempting to rise above the different stereotypes daily. ADVOCACY PROCESSES Advocacy for African American females will lead, develop, and educate them in areas to help them become more aware of their strengths. One advocacy organization is The Coalition of African American Women (CAAW, 2014). The CAAW is a regional coalition of African American women with a goal of enhancing communities of Color in the Deep South. This organization shares information on the state of the African American community; informs and strategizes on how to access resources to support community development and restoration. They also focus on the empowerment, restoration, and development of black women as civic and community leaders. This organization works to develop the positive aspects of the African American woman. CAAW comes together to connect and empower African American women in the Deep South. The National Council of Negro Women leads, develops, and advocates for women of African descent as they support their families and communities. They advocate, conduct research, and provide national and community-based health, education, and economic empowerment services and programs to assist these women (NCNW, 2014). PUBLIC POLICIES Public policies that have affected care provided to African American females would be the Civil Rights Movement, Hate Crimes, Voting Rights, and Racism. These concerns affected the race as a whole and causing oppression, depression, and many additional negative concerns. From this, also came strength and perseverance. The race as a whole has been able to rise above and move forward in a positive direction. STRATEGIES FOR WORKING WITH AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN In counseling African American women, issues involving racial identity and conflict should be explored. Counselors can help African American females counteract negative images associated with being Black and being female; enhancing internal strength by developing pride and dignity in Black womanhood can serve as a buffer to racism and sexism and can prevent the incorporation of negative images into their own belief systems (Sue & Sue, 2013, p. 374). Counselors should be aware of the culture and familiar with the struggles and life events that have taken place for African American females in order to relate, build rapport, and be helpful to them. Family strategies for working with African American females include exploring the possibility of extended or nontraditional family arrangements. Therefore, questions should be directed toward clarifying who is living in the home and who helps out. Therapists/Counselors should work to strengthen and increase functionality of the original family structure rather than attempt to change it. One of the strengths of the African American family is that men, women, and children are allowed to adopt multiple roles within the family (Sue & Sue, 2013, p. 369). Community strategies for working with African American females include spiritual beliefs. Spiritual beliefs are important to many African Americans and serve as a protective factor in response to stressors. If a client is heavily involved in church activities or has strong religious beliefs, the counselor might consider enlisting church leaders to help the client (or family) deal with social and economic stressors or conflicts involving the family, school, or community. Church personnel often have enhanced understanding of the family dynamics and living conditions of parishioners (Sue & Sue, 2013, p. 370). COMMUNITY RESOURCES There are several community resources currently available for African  American women to assist them with everyday living and concerns that may be taking place in their life. One community resource is Black Mental Health Alliance (BMHA). BMHA is a private non-profit 501(C) 3 organization which provides training, consultation, support groups, resource referral, public information, and educational resources regarding mental health and mental illness issues. Additional information can be located at http://www.blackmentalhealth.com/. The National Leadership Council (NLC) is comprised of individuals who share an interest in promoting the strengths & health of African American children, families, and communities. The group represents an array of perspectives including consumers & family members, education, human resource development, nursing, psychiatry & psychology, research, and social work. The NLC seeks to provide leadership in building and supporting behavioral health systems that r educe disparities and contribute to optimal health in our communities. Additional information can be located at http://nlcouncil.com/about.html. A final available resource is the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). NAMI offers a Multicultural Action Center with African American Resources. This resource provides personal stories and quotes as well as important information on mental illness and how it affects the family in a real-world tone. This colorful resource carries the messages to the African Americans that they are not alone, recovery is possible, and identifies where to find more information and where to seek help. Additional information can be located at http://www.nami.org. History denotes policies that impacted the delivery and accessibility of services to African Americans. However, in 1964, the Civil Rights Act banned discrimination. Discrimination was banned, but individuals continue to be discriminated against and oppressed because of the color of their skin, how they dress, where they live, and with whom they associate with. Working with diverse population can be very rewarding. Meeting different people and learning from their backgrounds can be very informative. This interaction can also be complex in the fact of gathering research and learning different practice issues. Therefore, counselors should be culturally competent and develop a broad awakening related to one’s knowledge of beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors different from theirs. References Black Mental Health Alliance. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.blackmentalhealth.com/. Gulf Coast Center for Law and Policy. (2014). Coalition of African American Women. Retrieved from http://www.gcclp.org. National Alliance on Mental Illness (2014). Multicultural Action Center. Retrieved from http://www.nami.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Find_Support/Multicultural_Support/Resources/African_American_Resources.htm. National Council of Negro Women. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.ncnw.org/. National Leadership Council. (n.d.). African American Behavioral Health. Retrieved from http://nlcouncil.com/about.html. Sue, D., & Sue, D. (2013). Counseling the culturally diverse: Theory and Practice (6th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

The Geography of Detroits Decline

The Geography of Detroit's Decline During the mid-20th century, Detroit was the fourth largest city in the United States with a population of over 1.85 million people. It was a thriving metropolis that embodied the American Dream - a land of opportunity and growth. Today, Detroit has become a symbol of urban decay. Detroits infrastructure is crumbling and the city is operating at $300 million dollars short of municipal sustainability. It is now the crime capital of America, with 7 out of 10 crimes unsolved. More than a million people have left the city since its prominent fifties. There is a multitude of reasons as to why Detroit fell apart, but all the fundamental causes are rooted in geography. Demographic Shift The rapid shift in Detroits demographics led to racial hostility. Social tensions were further perpetuated when many desegregation policies were signed into law in the 1950s, forcing residents to integrate. For years, violent racial riots engulfed the city, but the most destructive one occurred on Sunday, July 23, 1967. A police confrontation with patrons at a local unlicensed bar sparked a five-day riot that left 43 dead, 467 injured, 7,200 arrests and more than 2,000 buildings destroyed. The violence and destruction only ended when the National Guard and Army were ordered to intervene. Shortly after this 12th street riot, many residents started to flee the city, particularly the whites. They moved out by the thousands into neighboring suburbs such as Royal Oak, Ferndale, and Auburn Hills. By 2010, whites only made up 10.6% of Detroits population. The Size Detroit is particularly difficult to maintain because its residents are so spread out. There is too much infrastructure relative to the level of demand. This means large sections of the city are left unused and unrepaired. A scattered population also means law, fire, and emergency medical personnel have to travel greater distances on average to provide care. Moreover, since Detroit has experienced consistent capital exodus for the past forty years, the city is unable to afford an adequate public service workforce. This has caused crime to skyrocket, which further encouraged rapid out-migration. Industry Many of Americas older cities faced a de-industrialization crisis starting in the 1970s, but most of them were able to establish an urban resurgence. The success of cities like Minneapolis and Boston is reflected on their high number of college graduates (over 43%) and their entrepreneurial spirit. In many ways, the success of the Big Three inadvertently restricted entrepreneurship in Detroit. With the high wages earned on the assembly lines, workers had little reason to pursue higher education. This, in conjunction with the city having to reduce the number of teachers and after-school programs due to declining tax revenues, has caused Detroit to fall behind in academics. Today, only 18% of Detroit adults have a college degree (versus a national average of 27%), and the city is also struggling to control the brain drain. Ford Motor Company no longer has a factory in Detroit, but General Motors and Chrysler still do, and the city remains dependent on them. However, for a large portion of the 1990s and early 2000s, the Big Three did not react well to changing market demands. Consumers started to shift from power-driven automotive muscle to more stylish and fuel-efficient vehicles. The American automakers struggled against their foreign counterparts both domestically and internationally. All three companies were on the verge of bankruptcy and their financial distress was reflected on Detroit. Public Transportation Infrastructure Unlike their neighbors Chicago and Toronto, Detroit never developed a subway, trolley, or intricate bus system. The only light rail the city has is its People Mover, which only encircles 2.9-miles of the downtown area. It has a single set of track and only runs in one direction. Although designed to move up to 15 million riders a year, it only serves 2 million. The People Mover is considered an ineffective rail, costing taxpayers $12 million annually to operate. The biggest problem with not having a sophisticated public infrastructure is that it promotes sprawl. Since so many people in the Motor City owned a car, they all moved away, opting to live in the suburbs and just commuting to downtown for work. Additionally, as people moved out, businesses eventually followed, leading to even fewer opportunities in this once great city. References Okrent, Daniel (2009). Detroit: The Death- and Possible Life- of a Great City. Retrieved from: time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1926017-1,00.htmlGlaeser, Edward (2011). Detroits Decline and the Folly of Light Rail. Retrieved from: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704050204576218884253373312.html