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Frontline: To a Safer Place

NCJ Number
116265
Date Published
1988
Length
33 pages
Annotation
This film manuscript relates the personal story of Shirly Turcotte who was repeatedly sexually abused by her father from the time she was a toddler until she ran away from home at age 14.
Abstract
It details her confrontation with her mother and other adults who failed to protect her and her reunion with her brothers and sister, who were also brutally abused. In first-person narrative and dialogue, the film recounts how despite the abuse and an eventual court case, the abusive father denied the allegations and was never imprisoned or treated for the abuse. It depicts the eventual confrontation between Shirley and her mother and a brother who was repeatedly imprisoned on drug and assault charges. Dialogue with former next door neighbors describes their impressions of the abused children and the reasons for their inaction despite evidence of ongoing abuse. Shirley also discusses her later difficulties in finding acceptance as an adolescent and in dealing with interpersonal relationships. Also elucidated are her eventual realization that her mother also was a victim, and that, like other former victims of childhood abuse in her therapy group, her experiences were shared with others; and she, too, was a survivor. Production information and ordering directions are provided.