How could this happen to so many children?

by Mark Trahant in Native Currents. Discussion »

ST. MICHAEL, ALASKA - It’s trite to write that winter days are short this far north. And it is remarkable watching the sun skate through the sky in such a hurry to disappear. But more than the sun’s pace, it’s the angle that makes a December visit this close to the Arctic Circle so amazing. The rays from the low horizon create stark shadows, an almost frightening mix of light and dark.

These harsh shadows define, for me, the terrible abuses by Catholic church authorities that took place here and in so many other parts of Alaska. The remote locations and a network of pedophiles and other abusers made these villages ideal settings both for the crimes and later as a way to avoid prosecution. Hundreds of victims brought this tragic story to light. But in the shadows there remains this fact: Not a single person has been criminally prosecuted for their actions.

How could this happen to so many children? Why didn’t it stop? And why didn’t perpetrators go to jail?

Those questions will be answered April 19 on PBS’ Frontline in a 30-minute piece called, “The Silence.” I was the reporter on that film. It was a co-presentation with Native American Public Telecommunications. “The Silence” was produced by Tom Curran, who grew up Catholic and is from Alaska. He has been working on the story for nearly four years. The veteran documentary filmmaker had shot several Iditarod races and said he felt a deep connection with Native communities. “I saw this as an egregious example of the church did… and it was a story that had to be told.”

Mark Trahant
Shoshone-Bannock

Mark Trahant is a writer, speaker and Twitter poet. He is a member of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes and lives in Fort Hall, Idaho. Trahant’s recent book, “The Last Great Battle of the Indian Wars,” is the story of Sen. Henry Jackson and Forrest Gerard.