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| Yeshiva University. Inset: Finkelstein and Gordon - Photo Credit: YU (Forward) |
$380 million. That buys a lot of doughnuts.
There is an old saying that goes something like this: If
someone tells you it’s not about the money – it’s about the money.
According to report in several news media (e.g. the Jewish Press and the Forward), 19 students that
were sexually abused by either former Talmud teacher, Macy Gordon or former principal, George
Finkelstein (both of Yeshiva University’s high school) - have filed suit against
YU to the tune of that awesome figure.
Wouldn’t you like to be the lawyer handling this case?
I have little doubt about the veracity of these survivors’
claims. I believe that they were abused the way they said they were. And I believe
that even though most of them have probably gone on to lead normal lives, they
have nevertheless suffered the ill effects of sex abuse that is common to victims
of it. Those are serious and lifelong traumas that are difficult if not
impossible to overcome. From the Forward:
The abuse took a terrible toll on students, according to the lawsuit. Many have suffered from depression, anxiety, nightmares, flashbacks, drug and alcohol abuse, sexual addiction, emotional distress, broken marriages, and problems holding down a job. Some have spent years in counseling and on medication.
I have nothing but sympathy for those who suffer like that.
I can’t imagine living with that kind of stress and anxiety; and going through what these young men have gone through - and in most cases
being kept secret and suffering alone in silence for fear of the stigma
attached to known survivors. I believe that sex abusers and their enablers
ought to be fully punished.
I also believe their stated claims that they tried to confront YU
to acknowledge the pain they suffered and respond were to no avail. They were
basically given the bum’s rush. I am not going to defend YU here. They should
have dealt with it properly. They didn’t. They did what all institutions that
have had sex abuse in their midst have done in the past. They tried to cover it
up in order to protect their reputations.
I support an independent, complete and thorough
investigation of that entire episode. And the results should be made public.
Indeed YU needs to come to terms with its mistakes and make amends to the best
of its ability with the resolve to never let anything like this ever happen
again.
My problem here is the money. This is not just about compensating
the victims for their pain. It is not just about punitive damages. It is about
making a lot of money off of that pain. And I am troubled by it.
If anywhere near that kind of money is paid in some sort
of settlement, it is an obscene amount of money and it makes me question the
very credibility of the claim that it’s all about their pain.
It isn’t so much that I have pity on YU’s money. It’s that I
am beginning to question the real motives of the victims here. The only way I
could even begin to accept that it’s not about the money is if the bulk of it (say…
$300 of the $380 million) is used to set up some kind of sex abuse treatment center
that would help future victims deal with their pain. That would then speak
volumes about their sincerity. Otherwise... I’m not so sure.
