🚨IMMEDIATE RELEASE🚨 - I Am Being Threatened For Protecting Children...

[00:00:00] I need to talk to you about something [00:00:01] serious. Last week, I received a demand [00:00:04] letter from lawyers representing [00:00:06] Canakook Ministries, a Christian summer [00:00:09] camp in Missouri. They're threatening to [00:00:12] sue me for defamation because of [00:00:14] something I said on my podcast with [00:00:16] Congressman Roana. Here's what I said. I [00:00:20] brought Elizabeth Phillips on my show [00:00:22] and she talked about how Canook [00:00:24] employees have been molesting thousands [00:00:27] of kids for years and putting them under [00:00:31] NDAs after settlements so they can never [00:00:34] come out and talk about their sexual [00:00:36] abuse and trauma. Canook's lawyers are [00:00:40] demanding I take down that portion of [00:00:42] the interview, issue a public apology, [00:00:44] and stop talking about this. They gave [00:00:47] me 10 days. That deadline has passed. [00:00:51] Here's my response. No, I don't [00:00:54] negotiate with pedophiles or the people [00:00:58] who defend them. I'm not taking anything [00:01:00] down. I'm not apologizing. And I'm damn [00:01:04] sure not going to stop talking about [00:01:06] child sexual abuse in a Christian camp [00:01:09] that continues to operate on the same [00:01:12] grounds where horrific abuse took place. [00:01:15] Let me be crystal clear about the facts. [00:01:18] Facts that Canakook's own lawyers [00:01:21] admitted in their letter. One, Pete [00:01:25] Newman, a senior Canakook employee and [00:01:29] camp director, sexually abused children [00:01:33] at Canakook for multiple years in the [00:01:35] early 2000s. He's now serving life [00:01:39] sentences. Two, between 20 and 30 civil [00:01:43] lawsuits were filed against Canakook. [00:01:46] Three, multiple confidential settlement [00:01:49] agreements were executed with victims, [00:01:52] NDAs that prevented these kids from [00:01:55] speaking publicly about what happened to [00:01:57] them. Can prove the number is less than [00:02:00] thousands. And given their own admission [00:02:02] of a cover up, the true number is [00:02:05] unknowable. But here's what really [00:02:07] pisses me the off. Canook is still [00:02:11] operating a camp at the very location [00:02:13] where countless children suffered [00:02:16] horrific abuse. They're still running [00:02:19] programs. They're still bringing kids to [00:02:22] the exact same place. And now they want [00:02:25] to silence me for talking about it. This [00:02:28] isn't about protecting their reputation. [00:02:30] This is about protecting children. And I [00:02:33] will not be silenced. My attorney has [00:02:36] sent Canook's lawyers a response. We've [00:02:38] made it clear. If they want to sue me, [00:02:41] bring it on. We welcome discovery. We [00:02:44] welcome depositions of Canakook [00:02:46] leadership about what they knew when [00:02:49] they knew it, and what they did or [00:02:51] didn't do to protect children. We [00:02:54] welcome full disclosure of every abuse [00:02:56] allegation, every settlement, every [00:02:59] internal investigation, and every [00:03:01] financial record showing whether [00:03:03] Canakook actually suffered any harm from [00:03:06] my statement or whether this is just an [00:03:09] attempt to intimidate people into [00:03:12] silence. Under Tennessee law, Canakook [00:03:16] will have to prove I'm lying. They'll [00:03:18] have to prove actual malice. that I knew [00:03:21] my statements were false or that I had [00:03:24] serious doubts about its truth. They [00:03:27] can't do that because I relied on [00:03:29] Elizabeth Phillips, whose brother was a [00:03:32] victim. I relied on public court [00:03:34] records, relied on widespread media [00:03:37] coverage of Pete Newman's prosecution, [00:03:40] and most importantly, they admit the [00:03:43] core of what I said is true. Canook [00:03:46] employees sexually abused children. [00:03:49] victims were silenced by confidentiality [00:03:52] agreements. That's not defamation. [00:03:55] That's the truth. I want to say [00:03:57] something directly to survivors. I see [00:04:00] you. I believe you. And I will not stop [00:04:03] fighting for you. Sexual abuse at youth [00:04:06] camps, especially Christian camps that [00:04:09] are supposed to be safe places, is a [00:04:12] matter of urgent public concern. Parents [00:04:16] have a right to know. Kids have a right [00:04:19] to be protected and survivors have a [00:04:22] right to speak. Canook's attempt to use [00:04:25] legal threats to silence reporting on [00:04:28] child sexual abuse in itself is [00:04:32] newsworthy and I'm going to keep [00:04:34] reporting on it. To Canakook, you want [00:04:37] to talk about callous and malicious [00:04:39] disregard for the truth. Let's talk [00:04:42] about operating a camp where a predator [00:04:45] had access to thousands of children for [00:04:47] years. Let's talk about confidentiality [00:04:50] agreements that silenced traumatized [00:04:53] kids. Let's talk about continuing to [00:04:56] operate on a crime scene. You're not the [00:04:59] victim here. The children you failed to [00:05:02] protect are the victims. I stand by [00:05:05] every word I said. I will not retract. I [00:05:08] will not apologize. And if you want to [00:05:11] sue me, my lawyers are ready. To [00:05:13] everyone watching, this is why I do this [00:05:16] show. This is why we tell real stories [00:05:20] about real people. Because the truth [00:05:23] matters, because kids matter, and [00:05:26] because some things are more important [00:05:28] than money or reputation. If you want to [00:05:32] support survivors of institutional child [00:05:35] sexual abuse, check out No More Victims. [00:05:39] the organization Elizabeth Phillips [00:05:41] founded. They're passing laws to protect [00:05:44] kids and hold institutions like Canakook [00:05:48] accountable. And if you're a survivor, [00:05:51] please know it's not your fault. You [00:05:54] deserve justice and there are people [00:05:56] fighting for you. I'll keep you updated [00:05:58] as this develops, but I'm not going to [00:06:01] be backing down. [00:06:08] Hey Jeremy, what's the name of that law [00:06:09] firm? Hush Blackwell. Hush Blackwell. I [00:06:13] wonder how many pedophiles they've [00:06:15] defended. That'd be an interesting [00:06:18] piece of information to know.