Amongst the growing amount of public acknowledgment, that âthose foreign cases of #childabuseâ are in fact happening within their own neighbourhood, at their own school, or âworst stillâ to their own children – itâs understandable that some parentâs concerns wonât be for that safety of their own victimised child, but for themselves to be able to reclaim âwasted moniesâ. As we now live in a consumerist society, occasionally we hear of broken families, where their sole-concern is in filling their own hip pockets with some of that đ°, as fractures often occur in these horse-or-cart structures. (Experienced Satire)
As examples of some Private/Elite schools in Brisbane whoâve offered out some damages-compensation-(not hush money), here are some examples + links:
As these were just a handful of examples of how a church-founded country of Australia, can be dealing with immersed control of a tax-free body, whilst still battling for equal rights of colonial-Indigenous after-effects – there are many more layers to unpack!
Posted Fri 19 Mar 2021 at 12:33pmFriday 19 Mar 2021 at 12:33pm, updated Fri 19 Mar 2021 at 11:30pmFriday 19 Mar 2021 at 11:30pm
Brisbane Boys’ College Captain Mason Black with his mother Michelle Monsur.(Supplied: Brisbane Boys’ College)
The school captain of one of Brisbane’s top private boys’ schools has called on his peers to put an end to rape culture and be proactive in stopping the sexual assault and harassment of women.
Key points:
Brisbane Boys’ College captain Mason Black made a powerful speech to his peers
The Queensland government has ordered a review of how sexual consent is taught in both independent and state schools
Queensland public and private schools were named in anonymous testimonies about sexual assault in an online viral petition
Brisbane Boys College (BBC) captain Mason Black made the resounding speech in front of peers on Thursday, calling on them to “accept this injustice against women and stand up for what is right”.
It follows thousands of Australian students anonymously detailing harrowing accounts of rape and sexual assault on a viral petition calling for sexual consent to be taught earlier in schools.
BBC was among the Queensland public and private schools identified on the petition in testimonies from young women.
A video of Mr Black’s speech calling for a change in culture at the college and broader society, has attracted about 260,000 views on Instagram and tens of thousands on Facebook.
In his speech, Mr Black revealed his mother had been sexually abused at just 10-years of age.
“Are you brave enough to ask your mum about her experiences? What about your sisters? Friends?” he said.
“I wish I grew up in an Australia where the narrative that one in three women will be physically or sexually abused at some point in their life wasn’t true, but it is.”
It comes as the Queensland government undertakes a review of sexual consent education in both public and independent schools across the state.
“I feel so ashamed that this issue is a part of our history and our culture.
“I feel ashamed that the action of some reflects poorly on us all, but realistically it isn’t just those who are mentioned in the media.
“If you have ever objectified a woman based on her looks, talked about females in a misogynistic way, or taken advantage without consent, you are part of the problem.
“Seemingly harmless comments can have such devastating effects.”
He called on his peers to “stop being boys” and “be human”.
“Every person in this room must not just be an advocate for equality, but in our every action and deed we have to be proactive in stopping the abuse.”
The student called on his peers to put an end to slurs and derogatory comments, to stand up to “any man” if they see it happening, and keep their mates accountable.
“Each and every one of us have an obligation to each other to not follow the ways of the past, and to take our future on a new path,” he said.
The speech was lauded on social media for inspiring a change in culture but drew some criticism that the same attitudes were not held among his peers.
One 16-year-old Brisbane schoolgirl, Anya, voiced her frustration that the speech had received so much praise “over the voices of millions of women around the world, some of whom in recent weeks have had the courage to be vulnerable when sharing their past experiences with sexual assault”.
“It’s been widely recognised a massive part of the problem is the way men are praised for doing the bare minimum yet women are compelled to overcompensate for their lack to “keep them safe”, her post on Instagram said.
Chanel Contos speaks with TODAY after her petition to change consent education in schools went viral.
WARNING: Distressing
Thousands of students from across every part of Australia have spoken out about a chilling culture of normalised rape and sexual assault â as pressure grows for systemic change.
Since being overwhelmed by the response to her petition â calling for earlier and more holistic sexual education lessons â Sydneysider Chanel Contos has received more than 4000 testimonies from students in South Australia, Western Australia, Victoria, Queensland, the ACT and NSW.
Overnight, she launched a website where the disturbing accounts are beginning to be made public for the first time.
There are already more than 1500 testimonies on the website â and many of them bear eerie similarities to the vile stories that emerged from Sydney schoolsshortly after the petition first went live.
In many of the freshly-uploaded accounts, students say they were raped while unconscious at parties or woke up to being touched by someone inappropriately.
MELBOURNE SCHOOLS MENTIONED
Many of the new testimonies come from Melbourne schools, where students say there is a similar culture to the chauvinistic club-like mentality reported in some Sydney all-boys schools in the initial testimonies.
One former student at Carey Grammar School said she was 16 and at a party when she smoked her first joint and passed out on a bed.
âI thought Iâd be safe as the host went to my school,â she said, recounting the incident in 2012. âInstead he came in and got into bed with me.â
She said the boy then started digitally penetrating her, and wouldnât stop even though she repeatedly asked him to.
She said a friend of the boy entered the room and âjoined inâ â before spreading rumours around the school about the victimâs body.
âWhen I told my ex boyfriend a few years later he told me I asked for it and shouldnât have laid down,â she said. âThereâs so much wrong to this story.â
In another testimony, a former Firbank Grammar School student said she and her mates were invited to a âmassive party of about 500 peopleâ when she was in year 9.
âIt was one of my first experiences drinking a lot and I was vomiting at the back of the party and going in and out of consciousness,â she said. âI donât remember anything but the next day I found an Instagram picture of me passed out next to my vomit with a guy I donât know with his hands up my dress.â
She said the St Kevinâs College studentâs friends took pictures and posted them online.
âI reported the photo every day for a long time before it was removed and it still terrifies me that lots of people I donât know have that photo,â she said. âI also donât know what else was done to me that night because I donât remember.â
âRAPE CULTUREâ BEING EXPOSED
The disturbing accounts are just some of hundreds that have been uploaded overnight, and Ms Contos told news.com.au that thousands more will be uploaded soon.
âIâm really excited that this is reaching different states because once these stories start coming out in other parts of the country, I think we will see the same response weâve seen in NSW,â she said.
âThe more people that come forward, the more it will help the cause and it will expose the rape culture in our society.â
Former Kambala student Chanel Contos started an anonymous online petition to improve sex and consent education in schools across Australia. Picture: Supplied
Private Sydney schools in particular were mentioned time and time again in the initial testimonies, and Ms Contos said she was already seeing positive signs that schools and MPs in the city were taking the petition seriously.
She is meeting with several headmasters in the schools mentioned tomorrow as well as Liberal MP for Wentworth Dave Sharma â who has thrown his support behind the campaign.
âAs the response to this petition makes clear, weâve all got to do better in educating our children, at home and in our schools,â Mr Sharma said.
PARENTS PULL STUDENTS OUT OF PRIVATE SCHOOLS
As the pressure grows for systemic change, itâs clear some parents arenât willing to wait.
Some of those who sent their boys to Sydney private schools mentioned in the petition have spoken out, and some have reportedly sent their children to other schools.
One father of a year 9 student at Kings School in Parramatta told the Sun-Heraldelite schools cultivated a culture of entitlement and privilege, which he said leads to a lack of âsensitivityâ towards others.
âThey teach these kids theyâre the best, theyâre the chosen ones, theyâre going to run Australia, theyâre going to conquer the world,â he said.
The parent said he chose the private school for his son to give him a better chance, but worried he and his wife would struggle to teach the child to be empathetic towards others.
News.com.au has contacted the school for comment.
Member for Wentworth Dave Sharma is meeting with Ms Contos tomorrow. Picture: John Appleyard
MELBOURNE SCHOOLS RESPOND
Meanwhile, Melbourne schools mentioned in the new testimonies have expressed their concern.
The body representing some of Melbourneâs most prestigious Catholic schools â including St Kevinâs College, Parade College, St Maryâs College, St Josephâs College and St Bernardâs College â said the petition had pushed them to take action and signalled they would work with parents to address the issue.
âThe powerful testimonies provided by the many young women in the online petition are disturbing and are an indictment on societal decency,â said Edmund Rice Education Australia executive director Dr Craig Wattam.
âAll of us â schools, families, and the broader community â must carefully consider and revisit issues pertaining to sex education.
âMore specifically, sexual consent education is required for both young men and women and we need to be providing this education in early adolescence.â
News.com.au has also reached out to Carey Grammar School for comment.
Queenslandâs most prestigious boysâ schools have been rocked by graphic allegations of rape and sexual assault committed by current and former students, with private school girls publishing shocking claims online.
Allegations against Brisbane Grammar School, Brisbane Boysâ College, Toowoomba Grammar School, Nudgee College, St Josephâs College Gregory Terrace, Anglican Church Grammar School and St Laurenceâs College students are among the thousands of testimonies posted on a viral petition calling for earlier education on sexual consent.
Petition creator Sydney student Chanel Contosâ call for victims to share stories of sexual assaults perpetrated by all-boysâ school students in an effort to highlight ârape cultureâ has resulted in more than 4000 responses from across the county.
î Chanel Contos launched a petition and website which was flooded with allegations of rape and sexual assault by private school students. Picture: Instagram
Ms Contos said distressing stories from Queensland girls quickly flooded in after the petition was shared widely on social media.
One posted by a former All Hallowsâ student alleges she was raped by a boy from the prestigious St Laurenceâs School in Brisbane, while a second All Hallowsâ student claims she was coerced into losing her virginity to a Churchie boy and woke up âcovered in bloodâ.
î A number of former All Hallows’ students claim they were raped by boys from Brisbane private schools. Picture: Supplied
Another wrote there were âmultiple occasions with various students from St Laurenceâs and St Josephâs College Gregory Terrace â I learnt the hard way about consent.
âI was raped and left in the dark, bleeding between my legs as I was robbed of my virginity. âIt was painful and I didnât tell anyone because I was ashamed.â
A claim by a former Stuartholme student alleges she was raped at a party by a Terrace student.
âEveryone at that party including my âfriendsâ at the time let me get drunkenly led into that room and no one did anything to intervene,â the post states.
Another Stuartholme student wrote she was coerced into having sex by an older boy and âeventually gave inâ.
A post claiming to be from a former St Aidanâs Anglican Girls School student alleges she was raped in Year 9 by a Year 10 Nudgee College student.
âImmediately after the assault I told a friend and she slut shamed me and told me I was âtoo drunkâ and asked âwhat did you expectâ,â it read.
St Joseph’s Gregory Terrace College at Spring Hill. Picture: SuppliedSt Laurence’s College in South Brisbane. Picture: Supplied
A fellow St Aidanâs student wrote she was âdigitally rapedâ at a school dance by a Brisbane Boysâ College student while his friends laughed.
Ms Contos said while the majority of responses to her petition referenced private boysâ schools, she believed similar stories were happening âin every school in Australiaâ.
âBut the issue is heightened in same sex schools because itâs not an adequate representation of reality,â she said.
âYou often only see the opposite sex on the weekend, when the main goal is having a story to tell on Monday.â
Ms Contos said while she had been in touch with politicians from New South Wales and Victoria in regards to the disturbing nature of the allegations, no one from the Queensland government had yet attempted to contact her.
Headmasters and principals expressed their horror at the allegations, and said they were committed to enhancing programs focused on educating their students on consent and respectful sexual relationships.
Brisbane Grammar School headmaster Anthony MicallefChurchie headmaster Dr Alan Campbell
Brisbane Grammar School headmaster Anthony Micallef yesterday wrote to parents he was âappalledâ by the accounts.
âWhile every school has programs to educate students about respectful relationships, drugs and alcohol, and the issue of consent, every parent and educator fears that young people may still make terrible decisions that have lifelong consequences,â Mr Micallef said.
âThe traumatic experiences the young women describe in the online petition, and the behaviours perpetrated by young men, suggest this issue is ongoing and must be addressed.â
Churchie headmaster Alan Campbell also issued a letter to parents, stating as a boys school they had a âspecial responsibilityâ to educate boys to grow to be good men who will respect women and men equally.
He said sexual consent was taught and discussed in Year 9 and Year 12.
Brisbane Boysâ College at Toowong. Picture: Facebook
Toowoomba Grammar Headmaster John Kinniburgh commended the girls for âstanding up and speaking out.â
âNo person, regardless of age or gender, should ever be subjected to unwanted sexual or peer group pressure,â he said.
âTGS has programs in place that teach students about respectful relationships, consent and the criminal nature of sexual harassment and assault.â
St Josephâs College, Gregory Terrace principal Michael Carroll said the schoolâs sex education began in Year 5 and 6, with consent addressed directly with Years 10, 11 and 12.
âWe have been developing a stronger focus on respectful relations over the past 12-18 months at Terrace and this has been a significant stimulus to create a narrower focus around age-appropriate discussions about sex education and in particular, consent in sex,â he said.
In an unexpected âsports resultâ & with numerous congratulations given, RCbbc can now post that 2 of the 3 âpresumptionsâ that were made in the 2013-17 Royal Commission of some other victims have now been admitted true. As devastating as that was, an unexpected leap in the victims/families/relatives/schools from other houses & years have also come forth. Itâs motivation like these moments, that drive RCbbc on.
BBC Captainâs badge, including logo: âSit Sine Labe Decusâ
Thereâs no greater reward, than hearing that some of this info has helped âbridge the gapâ that was left by the ongoing effects of CSA. Unfortunately these same scenario continue, yet the level of protection is harder to break/sneak through than before. Abuse is a result of human nature, which can be taught out our society, which we still have to be âcriticalâ (suspicious) of. Sit Sine Labe Decus; let Honor stainless be.
Timed perfectly(?), an encounter with some graduates + a younger BBC student occurred on a train TWG-CEN: (eMail contents to BBC, OCA & QR)
/ / / Belatedly & with âitâs a generational thingâ regret as both an Old Boy, OCA-Bursary recipient & past BBC Teacherâs Aide
#duckduckgo, retrieved 2022
volunteer, the following results from a QR TWG-CEN ~3:43pm: – QR/TransLink Concession Card Recepients (4/5 seniors, 1 green)- uniformed BBC Students ârepresent the school & should give the greatest (public) impressionâ (QR, BBC & OCA)- similar BBC Admin messages have been successfully enacted, yet âyounger learn from olderâ isnât practiced- passionate language was triggered, resulting from overall âuntouchable/innocentâ response(?) (predominately seniors)- immediate conversation with QR staff reinforced these âstudents from private schoolsâ conundrum.
Now would be a good time for BBC to seperate itself, from the herd-mentality. Otherwise, expecting ongoing feedback re: these matters.
#Neglect / #negligenttreatment is something that should never have happened. Particularly, when used as a âlearning toolâ for 1st borns. Only when later children are raised âbetterâ, by not exposing them do these âgodly folkâ change their practices: Nothing to see here â move on!
RETRIEVED via @treacl + @royalcommbbc tweets (May 2022).
Tags: NRS, RC, SDBC and tagged 1st borns, baptist, BBC, boys brigade, child sexual abuse, Church, church family, ecosystem, first borns, girls brigade, habitus, history, neglect, patterns, RC, redress, royal commission, SDBC, support, youth group
As I have been speaking with a close support-team, Iâm starting to sketch out what Iâd expect for both BBC/PMSA + Qld Baptist Church/QB to say (âa direct personal responseâ). As my car accident had been linked with these memories, Iâll be requesting âunder special circumstancesâ recordings to be made. Iâll keep you informed âŚ
Finding the right Counsellor may take time, yet when you do it can make needed impact. As I had attended BBC under an OCA award, there may be inclusion of this. Perhaps a seperate âApologyâ will be neededâŚ
By Donna FieldPosted Tue 10 Nov 2015 at 2:27pmTuesday 10 Nov 2015 at 2:27pm, updated Tue 10 Nov 2015 at 5:11pmTuesday 10 Nov 2015 at 5:11pm
Gregory Knight gave evidence to the child sex abuse royal commission via video link.(AAP Image: Dan Peled)
A convicted paedophile teacher has accused students of making up stories about him after he was convicted of a child sex offence.
Key points:
– Convicted paedophile teacher Gregory Knight claims students made up stories
– In 1994, Knight was convicted of child sex offences in NT
– He taught music at Brisbane’s St Paul’s in the 1980s, 1990s
– He was convicted of sexually abusing a St Paul’s student
The conduct of former music teacher Gregory Robert Knight, as well as that of former counsellor Kevin John Lynch, is under scrutiny at the child sexual abuse royal commission underway at the Brisbane Magistrates Court.
Both men worked at Brisbane’s St Paul’s School during the 1980s and 1990s.
Knight later resigned from St Paul’s and moved to the Northern Territory to work at Darwin’s Dripstone High School, where serious allegations of child abuse were made against him in 1993.
The school and the NT Department of Education refused Knight’s offer to resign, with the school sacking him on the spot.
In 1994, Knight was convicted and sentenced to eight years in jail with a three-year non-parole period for child sex offences in the Northern Territory.
In 2005, he was subsequently convicted of sexually abusing a former St Paul’s student, identified at the inquiry as BSG.
He appeared this afternoon at the commission via video link.
“Now in Darwin as I have stated I went off the rails, I behaved badly and I’m not dodging around that one bit,” Knight said.
“It was after that and at the time when compensation was being handed out to students who had been at St Paul’s well after I’d left there that we had BSG come along and start asking ‘Oh, can I put in a bit of a story’ and away it went.”
BSG’s lawyer, Roger Singh, challenged Knight’s statement.
You are a disgrace. It cannot be denied that you are a paedophile.
“You were charged, convicted and sentenced for horrific sexual violation against BSG,” he said.
“There was no successful appeal, and for you to proclaim your innocence is absurd and delusional.
“You are a disgrace. It cannot be denied that you are a paedophile.”
Counsel assisting the inquiry David Lloyd also reminded Knight of his paedophile conviction and suggested: “It’s just delusional isn’t it, your position?”
Knight replied: “No, it isn’t.”
Knight sacked by BBC before being being employed by St Paul’s
Former Brisbane Boys College (BBC) principal Graeme Thomson told the inquiry he sacked Knight after hearing reports of questionable conduct from students in 1980.
Mr Thomson employed Knight unaware of crimes he had committed in South Australia, but said when boys from BBC came to him about strange behaviour around boarders in the showers, he took action.
I took cognisance and gave pre-eminence to two well-known truths, where’s there’s smoke there’s fire and prevention is better than cure.
He said he subsequently told St Paul’s principal Gilbert Case about the behaviour, yet Knight was still employed by the school.
“He [Knight] made no effort to offer an explanation and did not refute the details,” Mr Thomson said.
“I was confounded by his inability or his unwillingness to make a comment [about the allegations].
“When Knight did not respond with any denial, I took cognisance and gave pre-eminence to two well-known truths, where there’s smoke there’s fire and prevention is better than cure.”
Mr Thomson said he then registered his concern with BBC’s governing body and they agreed Knight had to go.
“I told Knight that his position was summarily terminated and I instructed him to make sure he left the school in the next 24 hours,” Mr Thomson said.
Former SA education minister ‘could have done more’
Knight had worked as a teacher in South Australia, where a 1978 inquiry held by the Education Department found he had engaged in disgraceful conduct towards students.
Dr Hopgood and Knight were in a band together at the time of the abuse.
That inquiry recommended Knight be dismissed from teaching, but Dr Hopgood instead accepted Knight’s resignation and gave him a positive reference “in the way in which he was able to lead a band”.
Knight admitted he had likely used the reference to gain a teaching job in Brisbane.
“It was a nice reference and it wasn’t drawing him into any conflict,” he said.
