Janet Heimlich - The religious abuse of children

Religion can bring children great comfort.

It can also turn their lives into a living hell.

In a disturbing and thoroughly researched book, award-winning journalist Janet Heimlich exposes a dark side of faith that most Americans do not know exists or have ignored for a long time—religious child maltreatment.  Physical and emotional damage – and even death -- from spanking and corporal punishment in the name of God have made the news, as well as the revelations of Catholic child sex abuse scandals erupting worldwide.  But there’s more -- much of which is hidden because of Americans’ intrinsic belief that religion is good, except for a few bad people involved in the faith.

Janet Heimlich is an award-winning journalist.  Her book, Breaking Their Will: Shedding Light on Religious Child Maltreatment, is the first book to take an in-depth look at religiously motivated child abuse and neglect in the United States.

For eight years, she was a freelance reporter for National Public Radio; her work won nine journalism awards, including the regional Katie, the Houston Press Club’s “Radio Journalist of the Year,” and the Texas Bar Association’s Gavel Award. Ms. Heimlich has written many non-fiction articles for such publications as Texas Monthly, the Texas Observer, and the Austin American-Statesman. She received a B.A. in Communications from Stanford University in 1984.