Overreach Weekly: What We’re Taking Away from the U.S.’s “Peace” Talks with Iran

In this edition:

• New York’s Clergy Abuse Settlement Proposal Comes with a Hint of Catholic Guilt

• What the U.S.’s Violence in Iran Reminds Us About the Struggle for Justice

In the Archdiocese of New York, a settlement proposal offers victims $800 million — but not without a generous serving of Catholic guilt.

As shown in a 2019 Al Jazeera documentary, Cardinal Dolan, former leader of the Archdiocese of New York, once snapped at a reporter on the issue, quipping, “Are you willing to hang a priest because of a press conference?” and telling her to “Drop it.”

We’re picking it back up.

This settlement comes after years of legal battles between the church, plaintiffs, and the archdiocese’s longtime insurer, Chubb, which thus far refuses to cover payout expenses and argues that the archdiocese is liable after allegedly covering up and failing to prevent abuse.

As a result, this settlement would come directly from the archdiocese, which began selling its assets in 2025 to build a fund to compensate victims. The archdiocese’s lawyers have since claimed that more litigation or a counteroffer beyond what’s been gathered for the victims would likely lead them to file for bankruptcy. The Archdiocese of New York is reportedly one of New York City’s largest landowners, previously holding billions of dollars in real estate.

For the settlement proposal to be approved, all 1,300 plaintiffs must agree to the terms. But the threat of bankruptcy, along with previous layoffs and budget cuts, seems less like the absolute last resort and more like what one victim described as “a negotiating tactic used to force plaintiffs into accepting a deal.”

To the Archdiocese of New York and its new Archbishop Hicks: Are you insinuating that victims of clerical abuse are to blame for your financial woes, rather than a consequence of the alleged leadership failures to prevent such harm?

Should a settlement be reached, victims like Jim Clemente hope that it would set a precedent that “they’re willing to admit that they did something wrong, and hopefully… that they’re not going to ever do it again.”

The Catholic church has a long way to go when it comes to addressing sexual abuse by clergy. Pope Leo recently approved changes that strengthen policies to protect minors in the church, which is a hopeful stride — but “trust cannot be rebuilt by words alone,” and survivors deserve more compassion and action from our faith leaders as they navigate the aftermath of sexual harm.

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The United States and Iran’s Memorandum of Understanding will supposedly end military strikes in Tehran and the surrounding region. But these negotiations have been rife with petulant conflict as President Trump threatened to resume bombings if “they don’t behave.”

While our so-called Commander-in-Chief was having yet another ego clash, the Iranian soccer team carried children’s backpacks into their World Cup match, honoring the over 165 Iranians, most of whom were young girls, killed in the U.S.’s February air strike on an elementary school.

Peace negotiations are an urgent necessity, but let’s not forget the damage that has already been done. As of June 10, more than 53,000 people have been killed or injured in this war.

Did the end justify the means? Along with calling the just war theory outdated, Pope Leo had stated “there is no just war [in Iran].” These deaths — across religions, nationalities, old and young ­— did they lead to the Trump administration’s supposed goal of stopping Iran from having nuclear weapons?

As these negotiations go back and forth over money and diplomacy, let’s not ignore the immeasurable cost of human life. This conflict may end, but the Trump administration’s domestic assaults on migrants, healthcare, and LGBTQIA+ people continue, uninterrupted.

Juneteenth is tomorrow, commemorating the day enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, first heard of the Emancipation Proclamation — and serving as an annual recognition of Black resilience. With it, we remember not only how far the U.S. has come but how much more must be done.

In the wake of the U.S.’s senseless violence in Iran and the continued racial violence like that of the enslavement of Black Americans, remember the words of civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer: “Nobody’s free until everybody’s free.” Regardless of race, gender, sexuality, or immigration status, we all deserve the freedom to choose how we care for our bodies.

• Being a Queer Immigrant in a Time of White Christian Nationalism: Tausif Sanzum offers a vulnerable commentary that pulls back the veil on the “American Dream,” unconscious bias, and homophobia fueled by rising white Christian nationalism.

• Juneteenth Is The Counter-Narrative to America 250: Jemar Tisby offers a history lesson and a critical lens on the 4^th of July.

• Remember when Trump called himself the “father of IVF?” Well, here’s Abortion, Every Day’s explanation of his latest scheme for “embryo adoption” and how he plans to discriminate against LGBTQIA+ people.

• Irish parliament votes to remove waiting period for abortion care: May this win for abortion access in a largely Catholic country remind us that pro-choice Catholicism is alive and well — and that the fight for reproductive freedom is global and ongoing.