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Denise, a Jamaican survivor of clergy sexual abuse, recognized a profound disconnect between the teachings and laws of faith-based institutions, including the Catholic Church, and their implementation to safeguard children.
In response, she founded FAITH HAS FEET, an international organization dedicated to community-based solutions that combine grassroots advocacy, survivor leadership, and policy reform. Its mission is to protect children from sexual violence wherever they live, learn, or worship.
Through education, collaboration, and evidence-based strategies, FAITH HAS FEET equips young people with the tools, life skills, and business acumen needed to build safe, prosperous futures. Beyond advocacy, the organization creates pathways to justice, healing, and lasting protection.
Denise holds a PhD in Psychoneurology and is an international speaker and mentor. She is also a member of the Brave Movement and has recently been featured in Ms. Magazine and the Brave Movement blog, calling for justice, transparency, and reform from the Catholic Church.
"The G20 is vital to ending violence against children: it convenes leaders with the power and resources to act. If they don’t, who will? As a survivor leader, I’m there to insist promises from the last VAC Ministerial become measurable policy action to end childhood sexual violence—now, in every country."
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The first 100 days of Pope Leo XIV — A threshold of transformation or more of the same?
Pope Leo XIV’s first 100 days hold promise for a turning point in Church leadership.
August 20, 2025
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Why the G7 must prioritize childhood sexual violence: A survivor’s call from Jamaica to the world
As a survivor, I speak with the weight of lived experience. As an advocate, I speak for the countless children whose voices are still silenced
June 5, 2025
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Healing and safety
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Survivors expect Pope Leo XIV to build bridges to justice and reform
As a Jamaican survivor of clergy sexual abuse, I have witnessed that cover-ups and systemic failures continue to plague the Church globally. The certainty that any clergy member found guilty of sexual abuse will be permanently removed from ministry will pave the way for a Christ-centered Church, restoring trust and transparency. A Global Survivors Council, with the authority to oversee and enforce compliance with the zero- tolerance law, would be a profound indicator that the Church is ready to confront this clergy abuse crisis with genuine accountability. Survivors now look with expectation that he will ensure the evil of clergy sexual abuse will no longer prevail.
May 16, 2025
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How legislative and policy reform can protect children from sexual violence in religious spaces
Our mission is to put an end to the systems that allow violence against children in faith-based institutions, especially in the Catholic Church. Our role at ECA has been to examine and advocate for the reform of the laws within the Church that have allowed the sexual abuse of hundreds of thousands of children and perpetuated the cover-up of those crimes. In 2014, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child issued a series of recommendations to the Vatican to ensure the safety of children who are part of the Catholic Church: Canon Law reform. An independent mechanism for monitoring children's rights and the conduct of the Catholic hierarchy in managing sexual abuse. Multiple countries have issued reports following widespread investigations into sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, including Australia, France, England, and Wales. ECA has presented several horrendous cases of clergy sexual abuse to both committees at the United Nations, including the Provalo case in Argentina involving the abuse of deaf and mute children. This decision emphasized the need for comprehensive reparation for all forms of violence against children, including sexual abuse, physical violence, and mistreatment in public, private, and religious institutions.
December 11, 2024
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In our hands: ending violence against children through multi-sectoral prevention and early intervention support services
I am a psychoneurologist, human rights consultant, and one of the founding members of ECA: Ending Clergy Abuse.ECA is a volunteer-led global justice project that has grown over the last 7 years across 5 continents. We have members in 23 countries, with the largest concentration in Latin America. Our mission is to end the systems that allow child violence to persist in faith-based institutions, especially in the Catholic Church.
November 28, 2024
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