There is no greater silence than when we refuse to hear
On the anniversary of the Apology to Victims and Survivors of Institutional Sexual Abuse.
Each year, we gather together in this place to reflect on the Apology that was delivered here in 2018, and crucially, why it was delivered.
And as we do, it is easy to fall into familiar metaphors of darkness and shadow. But that would be a mistake, because many of these violations were not hidden from view.
As the Royal Commission so unflinchingly told us, so many childhoods were violated brazenly in the full light of knowledge and awareness.
And the violators were often individuals and institutions that felt secure behind the shield of trust, confident that in the court of credibility, they once again had the upper hand over those they preyed upon.
They acted with impunity.
Betrayal was meted out in darkness and in light.
Trust was destroyed in darkness and in light.
And those children, who should have known nothing but love and safety, were left unbelieved and unheard in darkness and in light.
All around us were voices that were ignored. Voices that we didn’t believe.
And in the end, voices that were never raised because there didn’t seem to be any point.
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