Start Here: Change These Policies to Better Prevent Abuse by LDS Priesthood Leaders #MormonMeToo
[image error]Include women equally with men in LDS Church policymaking. Current policy is written almost exclusively by men, with almost all women in the church banned from even reading many church policies. As such, it is not surprising that church policy is biased toward protecting men from false allegations instead of protecting women from rape.
Provide a hotline or ombudsman program for church members to report abuse. At present, a hotline exists for male church leaders to call and get legal advice to protect themselves, but rank-and-file members have no recourse.
Church disciplinary councils need to include women. Currently, only men may call or staff church disciplinary councils, so women have no say as to whether abusers will be permitted to stay in our congregations and female survivors must endure the traumatizing experience of describing how they were sexually abused to all-male panels.
Two-deep leadership and background checks should apply to all church leaders who work with children. Mormon boys are protected by these common sense approaches at Boy Scout activities, but the church does not require the same degree of protection for girls. Neither are protected during ecclesiastical interviews.
Ecclesiastical interviews should include standard informed consent language, informing church members of their basic rights such as the right to refuse to answer questions and the right to end the interview at any time.
Require church leaders to refer sexual assault survivors to professionals for counseling. Untrained, volunteer clergy are not equipped to handle such cases.
Limit ecclesiastical power. There is no bill of rights for church members and many policies on the books give untrained, volunteer, male clergy, working with little or no oversight, broad power to punish local members who do not comply with their demands.
Ordain women. Mormons are taught that men preside and protect, but history has taught that systems in which women must depend on men to protect them do not work. Dependent women are not safe women.
For a more detailed list of potential policy changes, see A Values-based Approach to Woman-friendly Policy in the LDS Church.
