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Featuring a blog post by Corey Seldon – Structured Education Coordinator with Hope Alliance, in Round Rock,TX.

Volunteers play a vital role in the survival and function of any non- profit agency. Training volunteers is always a challenge. The amount of information to cover, how much is too much or too little, will the information prepare for the volunteer for the challenges ahead? The list of potential content is exhausting and the decision on what to include is never easy. The issue of cultural awareness, although recognized by agencies as very important, very seldom makes the cut. Hope Alliance in Round Rock, Texas incorporated a diversity portion to their volunteer training and has experienced great feedback from the volunteer to be.
Check out Blogging for Hope featuring “Cultural Competency? Really?”

Emiliano is a Primary Prevention Specialist with TAASA
As kids, we said that “sticks and stones may break our bones, but words will never hurt us.” As adults, we know better. Words can shake us to our very core. One word in particular – SLUT – has shaken people across our country into action.

Since January 2011, SlutWalks have been organized internationally, each one garnering both praise and criticism, forcing men and women alike to engage in a difficult dialogue in order to confront the rape-culture that has permeated our communities. Regardless of people’s views of the use of the word “slut,” most can agree that SlutWalks have been effective in bringing attention to the issue of sexual violence. The organizers of each walk have been able to mobilize hundreds and, in some cases, thousands to take to the streets to demand an end to victim-blaming.

Similar to many of the other walks, SlutWalk Austin began as a buzz in social networks and culminated with a diverse group of people joining together to let their voices be heard, their presence be felt, and their demands be known. On Saturday, June 11, 2011 SlutWalk Austin got off to a shaky start with a few technical difficulties, but the message of each speaker remained clear – a woman’s clothing does NOT determine her worth and does NOT justify an attack. Victim-blaming will not be tolerated in the state of Texas, and in order to bring this message to others, the hundreds of participants from around Central Texas who had gathered marched down Congress with their signs and protest clothing, reclaiming their bodies and their streets.

SlutWalk Austin, like those before it, continues to peak interest and spark both conversation and action. A SlutWalk is scheduled for next month in Houston and more are being organized globally in small and large communities alike. Do you want to help put an end to victim-blaming? Think about joining this movement and organizing a SlutWalk in your community.
Check out video footage from the Slut Walk event in Austin:

http://www.youtube.com/embed/p0eWDtkG-i4

It is the morning of the Texas Peace Project and I am already inspired. The Texas Peace Project is a project of the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault to engage youth as agents of change through peer education. This year’s summit will take place this weekend (June 10-12) at Trinity University in San Antonio. Youth from across the state of Texas will attend. Youth leaders (titled Youth Advisory Board members) have partnered with adult facilitators in creating the workshops featured at this year’s summit. The overarching premise throughout the weekend is Racism, Adultism, Homophobia and Sexism. The aim is to address the underlying sources enabling violence inhibiting equality. If the discussions out of workshop preparations are an indicator of success, this weekend’s summit is sure to inspire peer-led social change in the state of Texas. Today is registration, welcome address and talent showcase. Workshops begin tomorrow morning. Let the learning begin!!!

In recent months, SlutWalks held in various locations have garnered national attention. Recently called the “most successful feminist action of the past 20 years”, they started in early April 2011 and are still happening all across the country. As a result, your agency may see an increase in calls and media activity. In response to that, we have prepared the attached talking points to help you and your staff not only know a bit more about the event, but also have a consistent message to share in support of both survivors and sexual assault activists.
History
On January 4, 2011 a member of Toronto’s law enforcement commented on a sexual assault incident with the following quote “women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized”.
In response to the comment, enraged community members organized an event titled “slut walk” to highlight the term that both enraged and inspired them to join together with a message that victims are never to blame for their sexual assault.
Currently
TAASA works on behalf of sexual assault victims in many capacities. The blatant comment by the officer is a stark reminder of the societal views most often associated with victims of sexual assault . Confronting victim blaming statements is a vital component of TAASA’s mission.
SLUT Walk has taken the world by storm. Since the initial walk in Toronto other walks have occurred across the globe including here in Texas.
Consequences and Benefits
The term “slut” carries with it many negative connotations and may incite judgment and/or anger from an unassuming community member. Connecting the message to its original intent may proactively neutralize reactions.
SLUT Walk can be used as an opportunity to engage the public, create new local partnerships and create awareness about rape myths ubiquitous in our communities. The enthusiasm behind the movement has successfully activated communities around the world to unite in support of sexual assault victims while challenging the negative stereotypes that hinder justice for victims of sexual assault here in Texas and around the world.
SLUT walks are working to draw attention to societal norms about women and about sexuality that create an environment where sexual violence is more likely to occur. By bringing awareness to these norms and starting community conversations around them, we can all work to change these same norms and ultimately prevent violence from happening in the first place.

It has been a couple of weeks since our annual conference, but one speaker’s words in particular have stayed with me. On Tuesday, our lunch speaker was Dr. Terri Pease, and her presentation was titled Cultural Trauma, History and Trauma – Their Impact on African-American Survivors. I was so wrapped up in the presentation that I didn’t take very good notes, so I apologize to everyone, particularly Dr. Pease, if I don’t capture the spirit of her presentation well.

I was particularly struck by Dr. Pease’s points regarding the concept of “cultural trauma.” As I understand the concept at its most reduced, cultural trauma occurs when an entire group of people experience a massive trauma that is so profound that it impacts every member of the group in some way for generations and generations. The cause of the trauma may have passed from existence, and an individual member of the group may not have personally experienced the trauma, but the impact exists nonetheless. In the case of Black people in the United States, slavery is a clear example of a cause of cultural trauma.

Regardless of the fact that slavery has been illegal for over a century, Jim Crow laws stricken from the law books and the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the impact of massive displacement – erasing cultural and family history – and legalized racism continues to impact Black people in the U.S. today. Dr. Pease talked about effects ranging from physical to emotional. As a result, any act of racism today, whether deemed insignificant or isolated by those in our society who believe we live in a post-racial U.S., is in many ways an act of re-victimization – a reminder of the violence committed by a nation against a people, and a threat of more violence.

As I sat listening to Dr. Pease speak, I couldn’t help but think about women in the U.S., and really any other patriarchal society. Could the concept of cultural trauma be relevant to the experience of women in our society? There are some significant differences for sure, and speaking of a collective experience of women in the U.S. is problematic considering the spectrum of experiences of women based on other aspects of their identity, such as race, economic-status and sexual orientation. However, there are some similarities. Women have been systematically targeted for violence in many forms, including sexual violence.

I know that we all know these statistics, but lets think about them again. One in five Texas women have been sexually abused or assaulted. That doesn’t even speak to the reality of the full spectrum of sexual violence. One in five cannot be explained by individual and unrelated acts of violence, but rather speaks to a societal targeting for violence of women, or at least sanctioning of violence against them. How can this not impact all women, regardless of whether or not they have personally experienced sexual violence? Read more

There are a lot of discussions and disagreements on the best way to bring more men into the movement to end men’s violence against women, children and other men. While I believe that it will take a number of different approaches and strategies to accomplish this, there is one approach that I’ve seen now in a few articles and heard in several conversations that troubles me.

Some people have suggested that we can bring men into the movement as bystanders who can intervene in violence by playing into the traditionally masculine roles of savior and protector. I believe that this approach can be dangerous and runs counter to our long-term goals to end violence.

To be fair, most strong proponents of this approach acknowledge that once men are engaged, they must be challenged to begin understanding the power and privilege, and therefore oppression, injustice and violence, that traditional masculinity is built upon. However, suggesting that we can bring men into the movement by appealing to their traditionally defined sense of masculinity is unfair and dangerous for all women, and particularly for our female colleagues within the movement.

Men brought into the work with this approach are likely to hold beliefs about male superiority and entitlement that often lead to negative interactions with women they work with. These interactions might range from men assuming and demanding leadership roles to continuing to demean and minimize the contributions and leadership of women and even to committing various forms of violence – be it emotional, physical or sexual.

Additionally, if we truly believe, as I do, that a vast majority, if not all the violence in our society is preventable, and that replacing some of our current norms with those based on equity is the only way to achieve this goal, then inviting people who are encouraged to hold onto and embrace the very attitudes and beliefs we hope to replace seems self-defeating.

In the long-term, if people don’t challenge sexism, male superiority and male entitlement, we will continue to have the same level of violent acts. A man who is brought in to intervene in acts of violence without ever being asked to recognize, understand and interrupt sexism and male privilege is not likely to intervene when norms supportive of sexual violence are expressed or acted upon. They may act to interrupt an attempted rape (which is important), but they are unlikely to intervene when they hear a sexist joke or when there is gender discrimination going on at work.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on engaging men in the movement and how we can accomplish that goal without jeopardizing our long-term success.

On more than one occasion TAASA has received feedback that our social change/social justice focus is part of the “left-wing liberal agenda” and trust me when I say this was not meant as a compliment.  I am generally not stung by criticism and realize it’s impossible to be all things to all people, but this somehow has an uglier edge to it. Don’t get me wrong. I have been called far worse names than “liberal” in my lifetime, but it’s the intention of the label that I find most disturbing.  It’s both insulting and inaccurate for liberals and conservatives alike, as well as the majority of us who identify somewhere in the middle of this political spectrum.

As citizens we all have a responsibility to confront injustice where we see it. This is not a “liberal” issue. This is our obligation as decent human beings. This is not the work of one segment of society. We are all negatively impacted by social ills such as sexual violence, racism, poverty and the list goes on. Many social scientists, activists, educators, researchers and just plain folks with common sense and common experiences have come to the conclusion that many of these issues are linked in both simple and complex ways. 

Wanting to change our society for the better is a value that seems to be shared by virtually all political parties in our country. Granted we may not all agree on the scope of the issues or with the remedies to our problems, but make no mistake, giving a damn is not restricted to left-wing liberals. I believe moderates and conservatives may take issue with the assumption that only liberals promote social change and work to right injustices.

It is my desire that we can all stop using labels as both a weapon and an excuse for inaction. There is too much work to be done for us to be negative or complacent for the weakest of reasons: it wasn’t my idea  or you are using words that are sounding too much like the other guys. I would hope we could see where we share a common vision and truly listen and learn from one another. Labeling folks tends to shut down communication, not foster it. I for one do not intend to let others define me or the work.

 I would argue that we may be allowing a very small, self-selected group of individuals who are living on the extreme fringes decide what the real issues are and then demonize those of us who do or say anything that challenges their version of reality. I do not believe that common sense, decency,  compassion, and cooperation are dead, but they certainly seem to be on life support at times. Let’s stop working so hard to magnify our differences and being paranoid over the intentions of others and realize this work is too important to leave anyone out, silence one voice, or reject the contributions of others. Social change/social justice should indeed be part of the left-wing liberal agenda and on everyone else’s agenda as well.

 

In a surprising yet poignant move, talk show host Ellen Degeneres spoke out against the murder of 15 year old Lawrence King. King was murdered because of his sexual orientation (he identified as gay) and gender expression (he wore makeup and/or jewelry to school). He had apparently asked the 14-year old who would become his murderer to be his valentine.

Of particular note is the way Ellen addresses this tragedy – she points to the pivotal role of our culture and the messages sent to young children that suggest being gay is a crime worthy of death.

In Ellen’s words:

And, somewhere along the line the killer, Brandon, got the message that it’s so threatening, so awful and so horrific that Larry would want to be his Valentine — that killing Larry seemed to be the right thing to do. And when the message out there is so horrible that to be gay, you can get killed for it, we need to change the message. Larry was not a second-class citizen. I am not a second-class citizen. It’s ok if you’re gay. Read more

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