Blog - Day One

Women’s History Month: The Women Who Came Before #MeToo And #TimesUp

Throughout history, women’s voices have been silenced. Many powerful activists for women’s rights have paved a way for more women to speak out. Recent movements like #TimesUp and #MeToo provide platforms for all people who identify as women and all those who have been abused and harassed to step forward and share their stories. During Women’s History Month, Day One recognizes and celebrates women that began the fight and encouraged each other to stand together against sexual violence and inequality.

Why It Was So Hard For Me To #Tellthemnow

When I was in my bad romance in high school (the one my new young adult novel, Bad Romance, is based on), it was hard for me to be honest with my friends and family about what was really going down in my relationship. For one, when your partner is a master of manipulation, it can be hard to know what exactly is going on in the first place. I can’t tell you how many arguments began with me accusing my boyfriend of something, only to end with me apologizing to him. Teen Dating Violence isn’t just physical or sexual abuse: it is often mental, verbal, and emotional.

Get Out Of Your Bad Romance: 10 Steps Toward Saying Boy (Or Girl) ‘Bye

Here’s a scary thing: one in three teens are affected by dating violence. One in three. I don’t know why this surprises me, since nearly every girl I talk to admits that she’s had an abusive boyfriend or knows someone who was in a bad romance. Maybe she’s with him now, or maybe they broke up ages ago after too much shouting and crying and hurting. Maybe he was emotionally or physically abusive. Maybe he was verbally abusive. Maybe he was just plain mean. Some of my guy friends have had abusive boyfriends or girlfriends, too. It’s kind of ridiculous, how much heartbreak so many of us are willing to put up with just so that we don’t have to be alone.

Holding Space So Youth Can #TellThemNow

As a young adult author, my goal when I sit down to write a story from a teen protagonist’s point of view is to present their experiences as authentically as possible, to try to get in the skin of this character and see the world the way she would in 2018. The vast majority of us who write for teens do so because our teen years still resonate deeply with us. Sadly, in many cases this is because we had particularly tough experiences growing up including, in my case, teen dating violence. I reached out to Day One after learning about the amazing work they do to educate both youth and the adults who serve them, immediately seeing that they would be an ally in my own efforts to bring the realities of teen dating violence to light. My most recent novel, Bad Romance, is a semi-autobiographical journey through one girl’s experience of abuse by her boyfriend. In it, I show how a teen might find themselves in this situation, and what factors—such as a less-than-ideal home life, manipulation, and emotional abuse—make it so hard to get out.

February Is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month (TDVAM)

Gibney Dance will hold a special Hands are for Holding assembly in partnership with the Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic Violence on Thursday, February 15 at 10:00 AM at 280 Broadway (entrance at 53A Chambers Street). Presented during Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, students, elected officials, and business leaders from across New York City are invited to attend to learn more about the program and how it promotes healthy relationships.

Healing In The Form Of Revolution

In my first year of college, I read a lot of Hannah Arendt. She, a 20th century woman political theorist, impressed me greatly, and is sort of the unofficial mascot of my college (she’s even buried in our campus cemetery, alongside her husband Heinrich Blucher). In Constitutional Law, we read her book On Revolution, in which she describes both the American and French revolutions, claiming the former to be successful and the latter to be unsuccessful. As described in the quote which prefaces this post, Arendt believed the French Revolution to have failed in that it was grounded in rebellion against the monarchy, and not in the authentic experience of revolution. As Arendt says, the most crucial element of revolution is experiencing the ‘exhilarating awareness of the human capacity of beginning.’

Safety Planning For The Holidays

The holiday season is stressful for many people, but getting through the holidays while experiencing abuse, encountering a past abuser, or witnessing a loved one suffer from abuse can feel extremely overwhelming. Spending time with family and friends, dealing with financial stress, and traveling can make safety planning a challenge. In addition, family and friends of survivors may struggle to find ways to help or be supportive which, as a result, could cause increased anxiety and isolation. In order to get through the holidays without danger, it is important to prepare accordingly and have a safety plan in place. Although the holidays can be overwhelming and stressful, there are tips and techniques that you can read about and implement into your plan in order to create a less anxiety-ridden holiday.

Crowdfunding Guide

#GivingTuesday: n. global day of giving, celebrated on Tuesday, November 28th after Thanksgiving and the widely recognized shopping events Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
Day One is kicking off the charitable giving season with a peer-to-peer fundraising campaign centered around #GivingTuesday. Here’s where you come in.

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