From: romulus.ehs.uiuc.edu!m-net.arbornet.org!aaron (Aaron Larson)
To: MIT.EDU!witchhunt

(c) Toronto Star Newspapers, Ltd., December 22, 1994, Pg. A17

Taxpayers sponsored satanic abuse forum Participants told not to
wear all red, black or white clothing

By Tracey Tyler

The Ontario government sponsored a conference dealing with satanic
and ritual abuse where participants were cautioned not to dress in
all black, white or red, or wear stripes or religious symbols, The
Star has learned.

The two-day Toronto conference last month, which was off-limits to
men, received $ 3,876 in provincial funding, an official with the
health ministry confirmed.

The conference for lawyers, therapists and abuse survivors discussed
how to root out memories of being abused by satanists and others,
and how to get the legal system to accept the allegations.

But some Toronto lawyers and therapists specializing in sexual
abuse cases are reacting angrily to the province putting up money
for the event, noting the most authoritative research into claims
of satanic abuse has cast serious doubt on whether it occurs.

A study released this fall by the National Centre on Child Abuse
and Neglect in the United States, an agency aligned with police
and prosecutors, examined nearly 12,000 allegations of satanic and
ritual abuse and found not one could be substantiated.

Three sensational cases of alleged satanic abuse of children have
come to trial in Windsor, Hamilton and Oshawa in recent years with
judges rejecting the allegations in each case.

Health ministry spokesperson Elliott Gold told The Star Monday the
ministry approved funding for the conference long before the study
was released.

The ministry isn't endorsing the legitimacy of satanic abuse claims,
though its name was on the program, he said.

But Ruth Bray, a Toronto forensic psychologist who has testified
frequently in court for both crown and defence lawyers, said
provincial funding for the event "really is amazing."

"When you consider the number of cases of ritual abuse that have
been studied and they've been unable to come up with support for
even one."

Some lawyers feel it was improper for the government to appear to
be giving credibility to a controversial theory - that abuse memories
can be buried and recovered - that courts must decide whether to
accept.

A promotional bulletin for the conference, which was held at the
Church St.  Community Centre on Nov. 25 and 26 and titled "Fighting
the False Memory Backlash," urges participants to "organize, share
information and strategize!" Ritual abuse was a key focus.

"In the interests of being sensitive to ritual abuse survivors,
please do not dress in: All black, white or red, do not wear red
and black together, stripes, black combat boots, or visibly wear
religious (including alternative spirituality) symbols," the
promotional material says.

Such colors and clothing have been linked by some to practitioners
of satanism.

The event was organized by a group called "Truth Tellers" and the
Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic, a Toronto legal clinic, whose
staff members were unavailable for comment.

