Ruby Rose has opened up about her late father and the devastating years of abuse she suffered in numerous orphanages and children’s homes while growing up.
The Australian actress’ candid comments came after she revealed that her father, Peter, had died just days before Christmas.
‘RIP dad. you leave me Only. With so many complex emotions,” he wrote in a caption shared on his Instagram Stories.
The 38-year-old shared photos of her late father with her followers on Christmas while detailing the difficult relationship they had shared over the year.
“RIP and Merry Christmas Dad,” Rose wrote.
“I’m glad we reconnected a few years ago, not because you’ve changed a lot, not because it brought me so much joy, it’s actually been very difficult. You know that.
‘You were very hard. I interrupted you twice in that time lol. Once for a year. But our last emails were right before you died. Mine was a kind email and I’m glad.’
Rose revealed that her father had endured a tumultuous childhood and suffered abuse while at St Augustine’s Children’s Orphanage and other children’s homes in Melbourne.
Ruby Rose has revealed that her father, who died just two days before Christmas, had suffered abuse in orphanages and children’s homes as a child.
Rose did not reveal the cause of her father Peter’s (pictured) death but hinted that the couple had a difficult relationship.
He also heavily criticized former Christian Brother William Houston, who is currently behind bars after being found guilty of sexually assaulting two boys at St Augustine’s.
“It was very difficult for me to find out what happened to you when you were a child,” he wrote.
‘What happened to all your siblings at the hands of St Augustine’s and other orphanages and children’s homes in Melbourne? Brother Houston, I hope you rot in jail.
In 2021, Houston was sentenced to seven years in prison for sodomy and three counts of indecent assault for abusing two boys, who were wards of the state, in their beds when he was a dormitory supervisor at St Augustine’s in Highton in the 1990s. 1960.
The 86-year-old was already serving a prison sentence after he was convicted in 2016 of abusing six other children at the orphanage in the 1960s.
Rose did not reveal the cause of her father’s death, but she did hint at their difficult relationship.
She explained that learning about her father’s abuse helped her understand it better, but did not excuse the suffering she endured at his hands.
“None of this undoes the abuse I suffered later, but it helped me understand you,” Rose wrote.
‘Trying to understand you was to love you. RIP dad, I’m so sorry no one protected you. I’m so sorry that life wasn’t much more.
‘I’m really devastated. You’re probably shocked by how sad I am. if you can see me.’
Rose explained that learning about her father’s abuse helped her understand it better, but did not excuse the abuse she suffered at his hands (pictured, Ruby and her father).
Rose ended her post by stating that she had forgiven her father even though he never apologized for the abuse he faced.
‘I don’t think you’ve ever apologized. Not precisely. You didn’t know where to start, but I forgave you. And I still do,” he wrote.
The former video jockey grew up in rural Victoria on a farm with her mother Katia and father Peter, who was a racehorse breeder.
Her parents separated when Rose was just one year old and she grew up as a “gypsy girl” and “moved around a lot” between Churchill, Gippsland, Surfers Paradise and Melbourne.
Social media followers praised Rose for the emotional post, with many wishing her strength on her path to forgiveness.
‘Thank you for the vulnerability of sharing this. It’s hard to understand when we are adults and our parents don’t change. Your approach is inspiring, thank you,” one person wrote.
‘Curse. This is hard. Breaking that cycle is the most impactful thing you can do,” commented a second.
A third added: “Sorry for what you’ve endured, I could only imagine how painful it was.” “Nothing can take away the pain, but I hope you have found some peace and forgiveness for both you and Dad.”