January is National Stalking Awareness Month. For those who haven’t experienced it firsthand, stalking behavior might be something you associate with a crime show on tv—a shadowy stranger in a dark alley follows an unsuspecting person from home to school to sports practice.
As a Chicana, the occasion of Day One’s 15th anniversary puts me in mind of the quinceañera celebrations of my youth. I remember the excitement and the truly overwhelming sense of importance – not at having become a young woman (we had been that for some time by the age of 15) – but at the fact that the world was now ready to recognize us. Just like me and my fellow Latinas at that age, Day One isn’t just now coming into its own power. It has already been a powerful contributor to movement work to end violence against women, girls, transgender and gender-nonconforming people. This is an opportunity for all of us to congratulate and celebrate Day One for all its years of work, and to recognize all the dedicated staff, program participants, board members, and community partners who contributed to its growth. Personally, I have a lot of thanks owed to the organization for my own growth.
As we catch our collective breath after witnessing the nightmare that was the Kavanaugh hearings, it’s become clear that while the #metoo movement has found solid ground on which to grow, we’re up against a problem that is undeniably systemic.
On October 21, the New York Times reported that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is aiming to change the definition of gender. They assert that gender is determined “on a biological basis that is clear, grounded in science, objective and administrable.”
Twenty years ago, my high school boyfriend turned violent for the first time. During an intense argument, he shoved me to the ground and drove off.
At the time, I felt like the push came out of nowhere. But now, after volunteering with Day One and attending their workshops, I know the classic warning signs were there.
June is Pride Month, a time to celebrate and take pride in the LGBTQ+ community. It is a time to embrace the diverse orientations and identities that exist in our world and honor the people who struggled throughout history to get us here. And as we commemorate “love is love,” we must also acknowledge the difference between healthy and unhealthy love.
May is Mental Health Awareness Month. About 1 in 5 adults experiences some type of mental illness in a given year in the U.S. Sexual assault survivors are included in those numbers and often feel the mental health effects years after an assault. Although a survivor can eventually come to terms with their past and sometimes even receive legal justice, little can protect these men and women from the negative effects on their mental health.
During Sexual Assault Awareness Month it is important, to not only spread the word of the alarming prevalence of sexual assault, but to listen to the voices of survivors as well. Many use their voices to stand up against rape culture and to empower those recovering from similar situations. We encourage survivors to use their Voices Against Violence!
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