Tucson native Frank Douglas made a small offering to the Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago on Saturday: $200 in pennies. Douglas and a group of about a dozen fellow Catholic activists left the national conference of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, to drop off the boxes of pennies.
The donation, received by a quizzical security guard at the Archdiocese offices at 835 N. Rush St., was seed money for a fund for the estimated 20,000 victims of sexual abuse by clergy in the U.S., Douglas said.
"Bishops have spent millions of dollars on lawyers to re-victimize the victims and their families," Douglas said. "We want the cardinal to redirect (the church's) spending habits."
Douglas is national director of Send The Bishops a Message, which urges Catholics to express outrage that the church's handling of sexual abuse scandals by drastically reducing donations.
"Money is power. Just put a penny on the collection plate when it goes by," he said. "We'll use the power of the purse to send them a message."
About 250 people are in town the SNAP conference, an event that featured speakers and workshops tackling issues ranging from "Starting the Criminal Process" to "Moral Guilt: The Plight of Those Raised in the Roman Catholic Church."
Archdiocese officials were not at the Rush Street headquarters Saturday, and did not immediately return calls from the Tribune.
SIC: CBNT