Phil Saviano | |
|---|---|
 Saviano in 1997 | |
| Born | Phillip James Saviano June 23, 1952 Worcester, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | November 28, 2021 (aged 69) Douglas, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Massachusetts, Amherst Boston University |
Phillip James Saviano (June 23, 1952 – November 28, 2021) was an American advocate for survivors of Catholic church sexual abuse. As a youth, Saviano was abused by a priest in the early 1960s. Thirty years later, after reading about the priest abusing other youths in another state, Saviano went public, becoming one of the earliest survivors of church sexual abuse to do so. He brought a lawsuit against his local diocese, uncovering evidence of additional abuse. Eventually, his investigation led to The Boston Globe publishing a Pulitzer Prize-winning series of articles exposing the Catholic Archdiocese of Boston sex abuse scandal, which was dramatized in the 2015 Academy Award-winning film Spotlight.
After university, Saviano worked in public relations for hospitals, before shifting to a career in concert promotions, working with Judy Collins, Ella Fitzgerald, Mel Torme, and others. He was the founder of the New England chapter of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. After going public in 1992, he spent the remainder of his life investigating child abuse within the Catholic church and advocating for survivors, until his death in Douglas, Massachusetts at age 69.