Keep Quiet and Forgive

Lizzie grew up in “Amish Bluff Country” in Southern Minnesota, steeped in the traditions of her Swartzentruber Amish community. “Forgive and forget” was a frequent teaching — its innocuous message belying something darker. In Amish communities, sexual abuse is described as an “open secret.” And while there are a few communities starting to support victims, many continue to mount aggressive campaigns to silence those who speak out, pressuring victims to forgive their abusers in church and discouraging them from making police reports in favor of dealing with abuse internally. Lizzie sets out to change that.

Thirty years after being raped by an Amish farmer and ostracized by her community, Lizzie steps forward to report her sexual assault. Based on a groundbreaking investigation by Director Sarah McClure, Keep Quiet and Forgive chronicles Lizzie’s travails as a leader among Amish and Mennonite survivors — helping to raise public awareness and stand by those seeking healing and justice from a famously insular religious society.

With unprecedented access to Amish communities and survivors of sexual abuse, Keep Quiet and Forgive follows Lizzie as she works one-on-one with survivors, as they break their silence and navigate life after abuse, suicidal thoughts, family strife, and cultural excommunication. It is a journey focused more on the aftermath of assault than the assault itself. Along the way we also meet Menno, who recounts the loss of his family after escaping his Amish home in a stranger’s truck; Ruth, who feels pressured by her community to drop charges against her abuser; and Dena, who founded the Amish survivors’ support group, Voices of Hope, with Lizzie.

Together, they hope that “forgive and forget” will give way to healing, empowerment, and justice, and that Lizzie’s fight will give other survivors the strength they need to advocate for themselves.