IASH/History Documentary Series 2019

Deliver Us from Evil (2006, 101 mins)

Directed by Amy J. Berg

Deliver Us From Evil chronicles the crimes of Oliver O’Grady, an Irish Catholic priest who admitted to sexually abusing dozens of children in California from the 1970s to 1990s. By focussing on the stories of the victims and their families, this documentary highlights the ways that paedophile Catholic priests have used power, authority and trust to perpetrate abuse, often for many years. 

Contrasted with the harrowing experiences of the victims, O’Grady himself is interviewed about the abuse and subsequent cover up by Church figures. The interviews are a rare glimpse into the mind of a high-profile abuser, and in O’Grady’s case, a disconnection from his actions and victims. Against these interviews, footage from O’Grady’s trial is used to explore the Church’s response to widespread abuse in American Catholic communities. This important documentary ultimately shows how the hierarchies and structures of the Roman Catholic Church failed to adequately protect some of its most vulnerable laity, children.

This event is sponsored by HASS Student Futures. The screening will be followed by FREE DRINKS AND SNACKS and a panel discussion with Dr Lucia Pozzi (IASH) and Andrea Josipovic (IASH) – with plenty of opportunity for audience Q&A.

Please register here.

Please be aware that this documentary contains material that may distress viewers.

About IASH/History Documentary Series 2019

The IASH/History documentary series an outreach and enrichment activity for students in the Faculty. Events usually comprise the screening of a documentary film followed by a Q&A panel with experts in the field. In 2019, the series is being sponsored by HASS Student Futures.

Venue

Level 4 Forgan Smith Tower, UQ
Room: 
Seminar Room 402