Goler clan
Encyclopedia
The Golers were a clan
of poor, rural families from Nova Scotia
known for inter-generational poverty and the conviction of a large number of family members for sexual abuse and incest
.
In 1984, the details of a long history of torture and abuse (physical, sexual, and psychological), were revealed to a school official by a 14 year old girl. According to further details uncovered by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
, this abuse and forced incestual relationships had been taking place for multiple generations.
A number of Goler children were victims of sexual abuse at the hands of fathers, mothers, uncles, aunts, sisters, brothers, cousins, and each other. During interrogation by police, several of the adults openly admitted to engaging in many forms of sexual activity, up to and including full intercourse, multiple times with the children. They often went into graphic detail, claiming that the children themselves had initiated the activity.
Donna Goler, one of the abused children who was removed from the Goler household (when she was 11), has become an outspoken activist for stricter child abuse laws, and for stronger protection of children from convicted child molesters. A year after the book On South Mountain was published, she began a long fight to revise the Criminal Code, saying that it failed to protect the young relatives of convicted child molesters.
Clan
A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clan members may be organized around a founding member or apical ancestor. The kinship-based bonds may be symbolical, whereby the clan shares a "stipulated" common ancestor that is a...
of poor, rural families from Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
known for inter-generational poverty and the conviction of a large number of family members for sexual abuse and incest
Incest
Incest is sexual intercourse between close relatives that is usually illegal in the jurisdiction where it takes place and/or is conventionally considered a taboo. The term may apply to sexual activities between: individuals of close "blood relationship"; members of the same household; step...
.
In 1984, the details of a long history of torture and abuse (physical, sexual, and psychological), were revealed to a school official by a 14 year old girl. According to further details uncovered by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
, this abuse and forced incestual relationships had been taking place for multiple generations.
A number of Goler children were victims of sexual abuse at the hands of fathers, mothers, uncles, aunts, sisters, brothers, cousins, and each other. During interrogation by police, several of the adults openly admitted to engaging in many forms of sexual activity, up to and including full intercourse, multiple times with the children. They often went into graphic detail, claiming that the children themselves had initiated the activity.
The trial
Eventually, sixteen adults (both men and women) were charged with hundreds of allegations of incest and sexual abuse of children as young as five. The lives of the Goler clan were further explored in the 1998 book On South Mountain: The Dark Secrets of the Goler Clan by Canadian journalists David Cruise and Alison Griffiths.Donna Goler, one of the abused children who was removed from the Goler household (when she was 11), has become an outspoken activist for stricter child abuse laws, and for stronger protection of children from convicted child molesters. A year after the book On South Mountain was published, she began a long fight to revise the Criminal Code, saying that it failed to protect the young relatives of convicted child molesters.