Letter to pope Francis by Laura Collins.

Your holiness, 

I am writing to you on behalf of my nan, Angela Collins. She was made to enter the Irish magdalene laundries, she work 27 years and died under the care of the Catholic Church. She had all three of her daughters taken from her, one of her daughters Teresa Collins, was adopted. The other daughter named Angela Collins entered the magdalene laundries and sadly committed suicide. Her youngest daughter, my mother, Mary. Was made to enter a abusive children's home.

My mother has been fighting for justice on behalf of her mother and family for many years. We have done everything in our power to get an apology on behalf of what happen to Angela Collins but because she lays in mass grave with 72 other women and the plot of land she placed in is owned by the Catholic Church. We are powerless to at least give Angela back some dignity as the Irish government had chosen not to included the women that had their life's taken in their apology. 

As a family we have made many requests to the Catholic Church within Ireland to remove Angela Collins from the grave where she was placed by those that cause her harm and took her freedom. We would like to give Angela her freedom back and take her back to rest her in her homeland in county, mayo, cork, Ireland. But we cannot do that, as the church has ignored our requests in writing and also in person. 

Your holiness, I write to you in need of your support, the Catholic Church had taken a lot from my mother and my family. My mother was abused as a child by the nuns who was meant to be caring for her. They neglected my nan because if she was given the medical treatment she needed, she could still be with us today. 

Angela deserves to be given her freedom back by the people that in slaved her and took her children from her when social reports stated all her children where healthy and well kept, so children was taken from good homes to be exposed to abuse. My mother would also have to enter the magdalene laundries from her Indrustial school at just a tender age of 7. She had to experience her mother drugged by the nuns to keep calm, she would also experience abuse while in the laundries as she would be kicked under the table by the nuns who would bring her to the magdalene laundry to visit her mum.

My family haven't got justice on behalf of what happened to my nan and mother and family, but what we wish for the most is to give Angela Collins back her simple human rights and that is to be buried with dignity by her family. 

We can not start to do this because although we have permission from cork, county, council to remove her from the grave. We need permission by those that own the land, which is the church but they ignore all our requests, which does make me wonder what they are hiding as surely they should be willing to do the right thing, unless their is another scandal under the wood works which they do not wish for people to find out. I can not begin to image their reasons for ignoring a request to do right. 

As a young girl I was brought up with the Roman Catholic religion, my mother also believes in her religion but with all the lies and abusive cases towards children and women that the church do not wish to resolves makes me honestly question my religion. Which is sad as I don't think that would be the case if the church could repent and say sorry for their sins towards children and women. Yet they refuse to do right. 

I'm asking you as someone that is a big influence in the Catholic Church to please support my family and give Angela back the freedom she had taken from her. 

Thank you, your holiness. 

Blessed regards,

Miss, Laura Angela Collins.