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Newsletter Fall 2006 Safer for Women & Children Safer for Everyone |
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Focus on Sexual Assault In this issue: Message from the President (Stephanie Dutrizac, President) Sexual violence in all its forms continues to affect a huge number of women and girls, with research estimating that one in four Canadian women experience sexual assault in their lifetimes. Despite its prevalence, and after many years of increased public education and awareness, there is still a persistent and pervasive stigma around the issue, and survivors continue to risk being shamed, dismissed, silenced, blamed, and further victimized by telling their stories. It continues to shock and anger me that unlike other forms of violence, talk of sexual violence is still so often met with denial or blame. Within this context, it is not surprising that only 6% of sexual assaults are reported, and only a fraction of those cases ever make it to court. We need to continue to examine why and to act in response to the roots of this violence. At METRAC, we often start by thinking about how inequities between people, and how power and control between people, are manifested in our society. METRAC is focusing on sexual violence with this newsletter, to remind us all about its symptoms and consequences. Women and girls most often experience this violence from men they know and it spans all social boundaries and communities. We continue to address the diversity of those who face sexual assault in our work, including street-involved youth, lesbian, bisexual, queer, and transgendered women, women living with disabilities, young women, women of colour and Aboriginal women, to name a few. We would like to acknowledge the achievements of those groups of women and survivors who fought to bring sexual assault and other forms of violence against women into the public eye. They inspire us to carry on with renewed energy. I would like to thank METRAC staff and volunteers. They are working hard through our various programs to prevent violence against women, youth, and children, including sexual violence. I would also like to thank departing Board Member, Shelanda Wilson, for her contributions, and I would like to welcome our newest Board member, Min Kaur. Finally, thank you to our many members and community partners. Dedicated people like all of you give us hope that we can work together to eliminate sexual violence in Canada, North America, and the entire world. METRAC's Mission METRAC is a not-for-profit, community-based organization that works to ensure women, youth, and children live free from all forms of violence and the threat or fear of violence. We address the distinct realities of women within and among diverse communities. METRAC's programs seek to prevent and end all individual, institutional, and systemic forms of violence. We work collaboratively with a broad range of partners to develop strategies to end violence against women and build safer communities for everyone. METRAC's Staff
METRAC's Board
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Message from the Executive Director (Wendy Komiotis, Executive Director) There is a disturbing denial of the sexual violence that pervades Canadian society. It crosses all classes, races, ages, abilities, and sexualities. Women and girls are primary targets, and young women between 14 and 18 are particularly vulnerable. There is even more silence about how sexual violence connects with HIV/AIDS. The recent AIDS Conference in Toronto offered a timely opportunity for policy makers to make the connection between sexual violence and the increase of HIV/AIDS in women. Urgency needs to be put upon creating effective solutions. Promoting abstinence, condom usage, or exclusive relationships does not help women who are assaulted or coerced. We need to think about gender equity and rights of women in relation to violence against women and HIV/AIDS. Another important issue is assault in families. It is only recently that rape in intimate family relationships has been considered a real crime. Research shows that from 16 years of age, 8% of women had experienced at least one incident of unwanted sexual contact from a spouse, and a further 12% experienced it from a date or partner. Sexual assault can result in serious health consequences, underscoring the need for immediate action. Myths that blame women and girls for sexual violence are deeply imbedded in our culture. They silence women and compound the negative impact of the violence. In a recent trial where a man was convicted of the brutal rape and murder of a Toronto woman, a particular view of the woman was presented to suggest that she 'deserved it'. But no one ever deserves to be assaulted or murdered. Serious treatment of sexual assault is rare in the legal system and sentences for some cases are comparatively lenient. There are few prevention resources to challenge social acceptance of sexual assault and a lack of support services for survivors of violence. If we intend to stop sexual violence, we must acknowledge its scope and the damage it causes. We need to create environments that respect and support each person's integrity and rights. Prevention must also include communities taking action to create a society where violence is unacceptable in homes, schools, work, sports, and media. Bringing an end to sexual violence requires vast structural and systemic change in our society. This means embracing new values of equity and non-violence for making changes to laws, public policies, the courts, the police, schools, places of faith, the media, and all other institutions and systems through which non-violence can be modeled, encouraged, and passed on from generation to generation. Observances at the International AIDS Conference (Semhar Woldseyesus, Interviewer & Andrea Gunraj) As the title Time to Deliver suggests, the recent International AIDS Conference in Toronto brought people together from around the world to discuss the need to act - to challenge institutions, attitudes, and big businesses that allow HIV/AIDS to destroy communities and target especially racialized, impoverished, and marginalized people. And the gender implications were clear in many ways; for example, Stephen Lewis' closing speech emphasized that achieving women's equality rights and ending sexual violence against women and children are essential to finally reducing the spread of HIV. Listening to diverse conference guests certainly highlighted the link between rights, HIV, and sexual violence. A worker from Stella, a Montreal-based organization that provides support and information to sex workers, explained how sex workers are barred access to basic resources that would help them be safer from HIV and sexual violence. It often springs from the criminalization of sex work itself - social stigma and the risk of getting caught up in the legal system keeps women from seeking medical help, reporting sexual violence they experience, and connecting with safer sex programming. Advocates from International Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS (ICW) shared the importance of sexual and reproductive rights for women living with HIV. They understand that these women need to have open access to treatment and support without discrimination or judgment, as well as control over their health care and bodies. What they do to prevent HIV and assist those living with it is essentially human rights work - a fact that again reveals how women's health is deeply political. Yet the political is always personal. Regan Hoffman, Editor and Chief of New York-based POZ Magazine, discussed the empowerment of women to effectively negotiate safer sex with their partners. She referred to it as "another women's movement" happening organically, something women are supporting one another to do out of sheer need to protect themselves against sexual coercion and the silencing that keep them at higher risk of contracting HIV. The links between gender equality, HIV, and sexual violence is something women's advocates, health service providers, advocates for sexual and reproductive rights, and allies must pick up and clamour about all the more if the global devastation of the pandemic is to be effectively addressed. For more information about the International AIDS Conference, visit www.aids2006.org. To learn more about Stella, visit www.chezstella.org; for information on International Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS, visit www.icw.org; for information on POZ Magazine, visit www.poz.com. New Directions for METRAC's Justice Program (Clara Ho, Legal Director) Under the direction of Pamela Cross (2006 YWCA Woman of Distinction), METRAC's Community Justice Program has done great work over the years, all with the support of our funders and community partners. Amongst other things, we worked with other women's groups to make positive strides towards addressing sexual assault in a way that would support the needs and rights of women and children. As I took over the position of Legal Director in June of 2006, we saw the completion of our new legal materials for older women and young women experiencing violence. With the assistance of a Provincial Advisory Committee, we were able to do research on and assess the legal information needs of these two disparate groups and produce materials accordingly. The materials we produced for older women (with funding from the Law Foundation of Ontario) focused on areas of law of particular relevance to this group. Some topic areas addressed in our new materials include:
The areas of concern for older women are often forgotten. For young women, our focus was of course different. Our insightful Advisory Committee Members gave us feedback in terms of what information would be helpful for young women and young mothers. We produced information kits and pamphlets on the following:
Although we are pleased with the most recent phase of our project, we understand that the work of the Community Justice Program is not done. We have recently received funding to make some structural and content updates to our Ontario Women's Justice Network website (www.owjn.org). Additionally, we are planning for our upcoming train-the-trainer sessions to help Toronto service providers understand legal issues for the women they work with. METRAC's Justice Program hopes to use a variety of means to continue increasing access to justice for women who experience violence. Contact the Community Justice Program at 416-392-3148 or legaldirector@metrac.org. In Women's Hands: Interview with Esther Tharao (Kenesha Garib, Interviewer) Esther Tharao is a health promoter at Women's Health in Women's Hands (WHIWH), a community health centre in Toronto. She shared her thoughts about her work and the communities WHIWH serves. Q: Tell us about the women and communities WHIWH serves. Q: Based on the work WHIWH does with respect to HIV/AIDS, are there any important trends? Q: Why do you feel that the connection between HIV/AIDS and sexual violence against women of colour and Aboriginal women is not well understood in the public? What can we do to raise more awareness?
... One way we can raise awareness is for all women and people to unite and work together, by confronting these great challenges and take charge of our destiny. For instance, the women's movement has not fully picked up HIV/AIDS issues, although the epidemic has become feminized. It would be fitting to say that HIV/AIDS is next on the agenda, to strategize, plan, and eventually conquer the disease, if only in terms of increasing education and awareness. Contact WHIWH at 416-593-7655 or 416-593-5835 (TTY), or visit www.whiwh.com. Sexual Assault and Public Safety (Narina Nagra, Safety Director) Sexual abuse affects all kinds of people every day. Too often, the faces of those who experience it are women. While most violence occurs between people who know each other in private spaces (women are often assaulted by men they know and trust), the impact of pervasive sexual violence on women's public safety is immense. Fear of violence makes women feel unsafe and vulnerable to sexual assault in public places. Unfortunately, these fears are often ignored, but they can affect women in a profound way - what they choose to wear, where they go, whom they go with, and how they travel. It limits women's choices, quality of life, and sadly, it is viewed as a 'normal' part of being a woman. We need tools to challenge the normalization of violence against women. METRAC's Safety Audit focuses on public violence between people on the streets or in public places because changes in the design or layout of a place can make it more accessible and reduce opportunities for assault to occur. It provides an opportunity for women and other marginalized communities to speak about their understandings of safety. This is important because how people feel will affect how they navigate their way through their communities. METRAC's Community Safety Program is currently working on projects that involve the Safety Audit, including:
Additionally, the Safety Program has been in consultation with the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) to coordinate a group of women to provide feedback for a subway train design. The goal is to respond to diverse women's safety concerns about violence in the development of these new trains. Contact the Safety Program at 416-392-3137 or safety@metrac.org. Reclaiming Our Voices: Interview with Deborah Singh (Kenesha Garib, Interviewer, & Andrea Gunraj) Audre Lorde once said, "The master's tools will never dismantle the master's house." It's with that thought that Deborah Singh at the Toronto Rape Crisis Centre/Multicultural Women Against Rape (TRCC/MWAR), encourages women to listen to each other and create safe spaces themselves where they can reclaim their voices. Deborah Singh is a recent addition to TRCC/MWAR, but she is no stranger to the field of anti-violence work. She is very mindful of offering women resources to recognize that they are their own healers. "We have to deconstruct and unlearn what society has made 'shame'," Deborah says. Although sexual violence is so widespread, "some women don't make the connection that what they've experienced is sexual assault." She offers a sobering thought on the fact that sexual violence as a problem is often denied in our society, despite the overwhelming research and evidence to the contrary: " I don't need statistics to tell me how many women are raped, one is enough for me." For several years now, TRCC/MWAR has organized Take Back the Night, an annual event that involves "every woman and child taking back their freedom, to walk the streets safely, breaking every single kind of oppression, reclaiming something, making noise, taking up space ...". Deborah explains how important it is to TRCC/MWAR that Take Back the Night happens in a variety of neighbourhoods across the city of Toronto and that diverse women within the communities are directly and meaningfully involved in planning the event. This year, the event will be held on September 17 at the Malvern Community Recreational Centre (30 Sewells Road). Contact TRCC/MWAR at 416-597-1171 or visit www.trccmwar.ca to get involved. Essential Care for Survivors: Interview with Rekha John (Kenesha Garib, Interviewer, & Andrea Gunraj) Rekha John is a Social Worker and Community Outreach Coordinator at the Women's College Hospital Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Care Centre (SA/DVCC). The centre provides emergency and follow-up services for women and Trans people over the age of 16 who have experienced sexual assault or partner abuse, including counselling and medical services. Rekha explains: "the centre works from the perspective that everyone who comes for service has well-developed skills and strengths for survival, growth, and change," and the SA/DVCC works with their clients to help them make informed decisions about their lives. When a woman who experienced sexual assault comes to the centre for care, there are many options. She may decide to get evidence of the assault collected for possible use in the legal system, should she decide to pursue criminal charges. There's no need to decide on the spot - the SA/DVCC nurse who is helping her can freeze the evidence for 3 months to give the woman some time to consider it. The woman may also want medical services and treatment, such as access to Emergency contraception (the "Morning After Pill") and medicine that can reduce the risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs). In addition to a wealth of other information to help a woman make informed choices, the SA/DVCC nurse can work with her to fill an Anonymous Third Party Report. It gives details of the assault to the police without identifying the client. Rekha told us about some of the challenges women face when they are dealing with being sexually assaulted. These include not being believed, not being listened to or validated, facing discrimination when accessing help, being judged and blamed for what happened, being pathologized for their responses, and having their experienced dismissed or minimized. SA/DVCC understands these barriers and actively seeks to address them in their services through a feminist, anti-oppression framework. In light of the International AIDS Conference, Rekha explains how the threat of HIV transmission can be used as a weapon against women, along with sexual violence. Free availability of HIV Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (HIV PEP), a treatment that can help reduce HIV transmission, is thus an extremely important part of SA/DVCC's services. Contact the Women's College Hospital Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Care Centre at 416-323-6012 or visit www.womenscollegehospital.ca. For a listing of sexual assault care centres in Ontario, visit www.satcontario.com. Public Education to Challenge Sexual Violence (Andrea Gunraj, Outreach Manager) Sexual violence needs to be unlearned by our society - individuals, communities, and institutions need to recognize it and take steps to end it. The public education work that METRAC's Community Outreach and Education Program does provides important tools to help people unlearn all forms of violence against women, youth, and children. Most recently, we have been working to update and revise written materials, geared towards Ontario youth and women, which explain different forms of sexual violence, including abuse of youth, harassment, and assault. The materials are in discreet, easy-to-carry, and easy-to-understand formats, and they also explain how someone can find help after a violent situation. They will be distributed widely across the province during Sexual Assault Prevention Month in May 2007. In addition to work we do with youth through Respect in Action (ReAct), we are in the thick of developing our RePlay Positive Gaming Project. RePlay's goal is to create 2 accessible, culturally appropriate video games to promote healthy, equal relationships amongst diverse youth aged 8 to 14. The messages in these games will break down common gender stereotypes that encourage violence against and devaluing of women - that is, the very root of sexual violence. METRAC is fortunate to be creating our RePlay video games alongside the talented developers of Darfur is Dying, a globally popular web-based game that educates its players on the terrible situation in Darfur. Susana Ruiz, lead developer of the project, continually speaks about the power of video games to educate youth about social problems and convey grave realities in a manner that challenges mainstream thinking and encourages action. As always, we continue to strive to prevent violence in diverse communities through innovative projects, media connections, internet resources, and accessible materials, as well as through opening channels for community members to get involved in METRAC's work. Contact METRAC's Outreach and Education Program at 416-392-4760 or outreach@metrac.org. Addressing Sexual Violence Against Youth (Alana Lowe, ReAct Coordinator) When it comes to sexual violence, it's often the person who experienced the assault who is forced to explain why they were raped, harassed, or assaulted. This happens while the perpetrator is usually treated like a victim, protected and barely questioned. This seems to happen all the more when the victim is young - particularly a young woman. Why do we ask questions like, "What were you wearing?", "Was it too revealing or sexy?", and "How much did you have to drink?" We blame sexual violence on being at the "wrong place at the wrong time", when sexual assault is about power and control. It's not about place or time, dress or drink. It should never be okay for someone to sexually assault or harass someone else. No one can ever 'ask' to be assaulted or harassed. Only yes should mean yes, regardless of how much a person has had to drink, what they're wearing, and how they are behaving. It's important for us to think about why less than 6% sexual assaults get reported to the police - are their actions or our responses to blame? Since society needs to undergo serious changes to deal with sexual violence against youth in a responsible way, ReAct works hard to spark action. We trained four new Peer Facilitators. We spoke about youth issues with at a meeting with the Governor General of Canada and we spoke about family violence at the launch of a report on domestic violence, hosted at Eaton's Centre by The Body Shop. Plus, we just completed a new train-the-trainer series on sexual assault and harassment, to be delivered to service providers and educators. Contact ReAct at react@metrac.org or 416-397-0258. Volunteering at METRAC (Suzanne Methot, Administrative-Volunteer Coordinator) Applying to volunteer at METRAC is easy! Simply go to www.metrac.org and fill out the online application - or print the application and fax or mail it to us. When we receive your application, we will call to schedule an interview. If it seems like we have a good fit, we'll sign you up for the next volunteer training session, and you're good to go! Volunteer training sessions usually happen twice a year, in January and June (please stay tuned for more details about training schedule). Training sessions include many important issues and topics, such as:
So what's in it for you? First and foremost, you get to take this training and your volunteer experience with you! It is accepted practice to list volunteer experience on a resume - after all, it doesn't matter if you were paid or not; you did the work and gained the skills. METRAC can also provide volunteers with reference letters and formal evaluations, which will aid in job searches and other applications. In addition, volunteers can attend workshops and other METRAC events free of charge in exchange for volunteer help at the event, which provides you with further educational, training, and networking opportunities. Finally, you get the satisfaction of knowing you have helped advance the cause of ending violence against women, youth, and children and creating a safer world for everyone. Oh yes, and another incentive: volunteers get to hang out with METRAC staff and bask in a little glory at regular volunteer appreciation events! Watch this space for our next volunteer appreciation event - we're planning something fun. Contact the Volunteer Program at 416-392-3135 or info@metrac.org. Suzanne Methot, our new Admin-Volunteer Coordinator, brings extensive experience in coordination, administration, adult education, and anti-racism training at organizations such as Native Women's Resource Centre and St. Christopher House. She also has a background in writing and editing (e.g. NOW magazine, Fireweed). Suzanne is currently a member of the Board of Directors at Karma Co-operative. Thank You for Supporting METRAC Funders:
Donors:
Volunteers and Interns: New and Departing Staff: Thank you to Green Standards for donated office furniture. Green Standards redistributes office equipment to non-profit organizations free of charge. They can also arrange for cut-rate delivery through Premiere Van Lines, a partner in the redistribution project. For more information: contact llew.chase@greenstandards.ca or 416-795-6049. For information on Green Standards, go to www.greenstandards.ca.
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