| Dear Sirs & Madams, I understand you are probably inundated with emails and phone calls related to the controversy involving the Covington Catholic High School students, so I will try and keep this message short. As a fellow Catholic, I have been appalled at how your Diocese has failed to support your youth - those precious souls who you are charged with protecting, grooming, and leading. Your Diocese fell for a media trap of "Fake News" to thrust these youth up for public condemnation and shaming for behavior that upon reflection appears they did not even engage in. These young men and their families count on you to help shepherd them through a chaotic world, and instead of speaking to them, garnering their side of the story and giving them the benefit of the doubt, you instead threw them to the wolves, casting them overboard as 'chum' to a media shark-filled frenzy. You know what saddens me most? These young men were targeted because they are pro-life, Catholic, and supporters of our American president. That these virtues would serve as excuses to demonize and terrorize them and their families is shameless. Can I offer to you the point that exposes why the conduct of the Diocese has been woefully inappropriate? Within hours of the attacks from the biased media the Diocese put out a statement criticizing and threatening the Covington students. Only after new videos revealed that the initial smear campaign was a canard did the Diocese issue a new statement, indicating you would be conducting an investigation. Why on earth would that have not been your initial response BEFORE condemning your own youth? Shame on you. These students and their parents, and the greater Catholic and pro-life community deserve so much better. I hope you make right by these young men, apologize to them and their families, and stand by their side! Sincerely Yours, - Joe Wierzbicki | |