Stop Child Abuse Now (SCAN) - 2468

Tonight's special guest is Muriel Rada from Omaha, Nebraska, a survivor of child abuse who's been in recovery quite a while. "My abuse by child ographers began at age three," Muriel says. It continued until 2nd grade. "I was scared and couldn't ever sleep. I hoped someone else would adopt me." Muriel didn't have any school friends until seventh grade, and then only one. In eighth grade she visited Duchesne Academy. She loved it. "It was so quiet, I knew I wanted to go to school there." But all wasn't well, "I tried to kill myself when I was 16: ironically when I called my friend, she came to get me. It was the very first time anyone ever helped me when I was in trouble." Muriel did well in academia, earning multiple degrees and eventually a doctorate. In the 60s she joined Students for a Democratic Society, silk screened hundreds of peace sign armbands and marched in demonstrations. She began teaching. "I was on my way to earning my Master's degree and an FBI file." Raped at 27, Muriel became pregnant and had an abortion. Disassociated and suicidal, she found a therapist. "I hope I can help you", he said, "I have to be as smart as you are to understand how you have made it to this place!" He was, as I knew he had to be. Some of the best years of her life followed. "I finished my Doctorate in 1990 and continued teaching full time until 2005 when I had a breakdown because my antidepressant stopped working and I started having flashbacks. No one seemed to know why teaching Women's Literature would trigger that!" A writer and artist, Muriel is a participant in the Omaha Sexual Abuse Survivors Art Show, with workshops on Saturdays in September, and Readings from the Play; 'The Never Seen Girl' at the Opening, on Sept 4 at 7pm.