ABSTRACT
The establishment of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse followed years of lobbying by survivor groups, damning findings from previous inquiries, and increasing societal recognition of the often lifelong and intergenerational damage caused by child sexual assault. Through extensive media coverage, the Royal Commission brought into public view the reality that the sexual assault of children was widespread, and its recommendations prompted organisational, policy, and legislative reform. This chapter explores the background to the Royal Commission, situating it within the history of previous inquiries and growing community outrage at the failure of institutions to adequately protect children and respond appropriately when abuse occurs. It explores the ways in which the Royal Commission, more so than previous inquiries, brought child sexual assault into public discourse. The chapter also reflects on the aftermath of the Royal Commission and reforms it has initiated. Finally, it serves as an introduction to this edited volume. The chapters in this book illustrate how the Royal Commission has fostered new scholarship as researchers across disciplines engage with complex issues related to institutional child sexual assault, its history, causes, impacts, and the role of public inquiries in confronting, investigating, redressing, and preventing it.
