Postwar abuse
The week's news at a glance.
Berlin
At least a half-million children were neglected and abused in church-run children’s homes after World War II, a historical account published last week claims. Peter Wensierski’s Beaten in God’s Name is based on dozens of interviews with former charges in Protestant and Catholic facilities who are now in their 60s. “Many are so ashamed that they have not even been able to tell their own children or spouses about what happened to them,” Wensierski said. “Being interviewed for the book was simply a release.” In one typical story, a teenager in a home run by the Catholic Sisters of Mercy was forced to work silently in the laundry for 10 hours a day. The nuns beat her with broomsticks if she spoke.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
10 things you need to know today: December 3, 2023
Daily Briefing Gaza residents flee as Israel continues bombardment, Trump tells supporters to 'guard the vote' in Democratic cities, and more
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
5 X-plosive cartoons about Elon Musk
Cartoons Artists take on his proposed clean-up of X, his views on advertisers, and more
By The Week US Published
-
2023: the year of superhero fatigue
The Explainer The year may represent the end of an era for Hollywood
By Brendan Morrow, The Week US Published