I <3 Community Support

Today I was on the phone with a new bank I'm thinking about switching to, and the customer service representative asked where I worked. When I told her I work for PWCL, she said, "I'm so grateful for people who do that work that you do. I hope you and everyone you work with know how important it is."

I love how much support we have in our community. Awesome way to start a holiday weekend, if I do say so myself.

Have a great and, more importantly, safe holiday weekend you lovely people out there.

Welcome to 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 24, 2009

Contact: Michael Cox (503) 986-1904

House Votes Unanimously for Justice for Rape Victims

HB 2343 affirms that rape is never the victim’s fault

The Oregon House unanimously passed a bill to improve protection for rape victims by removing consideration of a victim’s behavior leading up to a sexual assault from charging decisions. HB 2343, sponsored by Rep. Sara Gelser (D-Corvallis), clarifies that nonconsensual sex can be charged as rape, regardless of whether a victim became mentally incapacitated due to voluntary or involuntary actions.

“Oregon is one of only a handful of states whose sexual assault statute contains an explicit reference to a victim’s behavior prior to a sexual assault,” said Gelser. “Rape is never the victim’s fault. Our law should reflect that.”

House Democratic Majority Mary Nolan, commenting on passage of HB 2343, said clearly, “It is time.”

The current definition of “mental incapacitation” covers only a narrow set of circumstances. For example, if someone slips a drug into a victim’s drink and then the victim is sexually assaulted that can be charged as rape. However, if the victim was in the same state of incapacitation due to voluntarily consuming alcohol or another substance, it would be charged as a lesser offense.

“Any woman in Oregon should be able to enjoy a drink or a party without being raped,” said Rep. Jeff Barker (D-Aloha) who chairs the House Judiciary Committee. “This bill makes it clear that a rapist cannot escape responsibility for a crime by blaming the victim.”

If HB 2343 becomes law, the prosecution will still bear the burden of proving that rape occurred. This means that the prosecution must prove that the defendant knew that consent had not been given. A defendant could still argue that his own level of intoxication prevented the recognition of a victims’ incapacity to consent, or the defendant could argue that the victim gave consent. To obtain a conviction, the state must still prove that rape occurred beyond a reasonable doubt.

“Rape remains under reported and extremely difficult to prosecute due to the nature of the crime and cultural attitudes towards it,” said Gelser. “However, I am pleased my colleagues were willing to tackle this issue and unanimously voted to ensure our laws reflect that no one ever deserves to be raped.”

The bill was introduced at the request of former Attorney General Hardy Myers and the Attorney General’s Sexual Assault Task Force.

HB 2343 now moves to the Senate for final consideration.

New Report Shows High Incidence of Prison Rape

Today, the National Prison Rape Elimination Commission (NPREC) released a report that stated that about 60,000 inmates are raped or sexually assaulted each year. The US Attorney General, Eric Holder, now has a year to make recommendations to states, and then they have a year to make sure they're meeting these recommendations.

The topic of prison rape is incredibly complex... When you stop to think about it, how many times have you heard jokes in movies and television like "don't drop the soap" or someone "being your bitch?" Or how many times have prison scenes been sexualized (I'm thinking "L Word" right about now) when the under text was definitely sexual violence? When I really started paying attention to how often these things happen, I was shocked to realize that society thinks that it's okay to treat people in prison as less than human. Shocked, but not surprised.

Check out the story that MSN is running about the NPREC's report. It states that prisoners are more likely to be assaulted by staff than by another inmate and suggests "better staff training" as one way to reduce these acts of violence. Excuse me? Are we supposed to expect that staff don't know that it's not okay to rape inmates and some simple training will clue them in? Instead, let's take the time to create an entire paradigm shift in the criminal justice system that demands that are people are treated with dignity and respect. Something tells me that would go a lot farther to end sexual violence in and outside of our prison systems.

I was also concerned at the suggestion that another strategy should be "improved screening to identify prisoners vulnerable to abuse." Guess who these folks are? People who are short, young, gay, or female -- I guess things aren't too different inside the walls of a prison... To me, this puts all of the focus and blame on the survivors of prison rape (again, shocked but not surprised) rather than the people who are committing the crime. As though rounding up all the young, short, gay and female inmates and separating them from their peers would make all the difference. But wait! It wouldn't because somehow they need to be separated from prison staff who are more likely to assault them! Well, now I'm really stumped...

I'm grateful that today's report from the NPREC will shed some light on what's really going on in prisons, as well as sexual violence in general. However, I feel pessimistic that any immediate action will truly focus on the elimination of prison rape -- again, that paradigm shift -- instead of some written policies that will be considered all of the action necessary.

What do you think?

Racism and Rape, at the workplace!

In US social movements, and especially with white folks, we have a tendency to compartmentalize issues as separate and distinct. Below, you'll find two links to different resources and stories on the connected between white supremacy and gender based violence.

The Southern Poverty Law Center published this article: "Latina Women Endure Sexual Violence, Discrimination. Key Finding: 77% of Latina Women Say Sexual Harassment is a Major Problem on the Job".

"The SPLC's research reveals two major themes: When these women arrive in the United States, many have already suffered severe trauma and are victims of serious crimes, often as a result of violence that occurred during migration to the United States. And the criminal justice system too often fails to protect them when they are victimized in the United States."

This isn't surprising to me. Most women of color, especially women who are undocumented, tell of experiences of being re-victimized by the state social service or crime control apparatus when they seek assistance in relation to their domestic or sexual violence experience.

It has been noted in a variety of places that immigrant women are already seen as criminal because of their documentation status. With this perception of them as criminals, when they experience interpersonal violence from an intimate partner or family member, they are more likely to not report or even disclose the violence. It has been common for the police state to deport undocumented survivors of domestic and sexual assault after they report.

Opposing Bigotry Blog recently posted about the white supremacist group Oregonians for Immigration Reform (OFIR), who recently protested outside a Wendy's fast food chain store, in Milwaulkie, Oregon. "In response to media reports of the rape of one worker at the hands of another at the restaurant, OFIR seized on the immigration status of the accused rapist as the defining factor, protesting the alleged failure of the restaurant to investigate the immigration status of their employees. Do OFIR's calls actually have anything to do with an interest in women's rights, worker safety, or justice?"

Opposing Bigotry goes on to tell us that one of OFIR's leading and most vocal organizers has been convicted of sexual assault. Interesting...

So, its no wonder that women don't want to talk about their sexual assault because they might have a crowd of riled up white supremacists demanding their deportation on the grounds that immigrant women deserve the rape they get or because "their" people are the "problem"!

We must work for racial justice in order to end violence!

Team Celebration needs your excitement!

PWCL seeks folks of all kinds to support and create PWCL’s annual gala and auction and lead Team Celebration! Last year, PWCL raised over $40,000 through community giving to support the programs that serve survivors of domestic and sexual violence and promote community dialogue on the dynamics of interpersonal violence and its relationship to other forms of violence in our society. Team members are encouraged to attend portions of PWCL’s Basic Advocacy Training to learn more about the organization.

We have a dynamite team leading this year’s endeavor. Please get in touch with Barbara Wynne, Community Organizer, for ways to plug in: Barbara@pwcl.org or 503.232.4176

Team Auction
This team is responsible for all things auction and works directly with Auction Coordinator, Meghan Milinski & PWCL Development Assistant, Kelsey Pine. This position is ideal for people who enjoy interacting with vendors in the community, who have reliable means of transportation, think creatively about pairing items together, and are available during business hours (week or weekend) to check in with vendors, and feel good talking about PWCL and the auction.

Team Outreach & Marketing

This team is responsible for promoting the event. This position is ideal for someone with connections to media of all kinds and who feels comfortable speaking about PWCL and the event. Public speaking skills, strong writing skills and professional experience with media relations are a plus, as well as an ability to work with deadlines.

Team Design

This team is responsible for the design aspect of the event, including printed material (the program and bidder sheets), the event décor and layout. Ideal for self-motivated artistic folks.

Team Logistics

This position is ideal for someone who can think on their feet, troubleshoot in the moment, take direction, and stay calm under pressure. This team is responsible for working directly with the event consultant on the day of the event. Volunteers are required to be available all day on Friday, August 28^th, 2009.

Team Sponsorship
This team is responsible for soliciting sponsorship from individuals and companies. Strong written and verbal skills are preferred. Ideally, this team has connections to companies with philanthropy committees and philanthropists who are known for contributing to social justice causes. This team will closely work with and be supported by PWCL Development staff.

www.pwcl.org

www.pwclblog.blogspot.com

www.myspace.com\pwcl

www.twitter.com\pwcl

Occupation Mentality

I saw this cartoon and felt the need to re-post it. This is a depiction of the reality of the illegal Israeli Occupation of Palestinian Land and culture, economy, ecology, and all parts of society. The Israeli government has been controlling occupying Palestine since the empire of the western states -- England, France, and the United States, carved up the middle east and made decisions on which white country would dominate which brown people. (yes, that is a very simplified version, but you can find out more at the blog Al-Falasteenyia or the Electronic Intifada.)

My point here is to create the analogy between the illegal occupation of Palestine by Israel and the dynamics of an abusive person controlling the life of another person in an intimate relationship. Abusers (or the Israeli government) determine the conditions under which their partner (the Palestinians) will live or die. The role of an abuser is both controlled and methodical in punishment and yet erratic and inconsistent in the exercise in which rules to enforce .

For example, the system of bypass roads and military checkpoints in Palestine is a very detailed and complex matrix of points at which the Israeli military restricts the movement of Palestinians, though the individual soldiers at the checkpoints often have the power to determine which citizens can move through the gates, often arbitrarily forcing closures for hours or days or granting access to those who would quack like a duck or endure strip searches or wait for days. This has the effect of stranding or humiliating the Palestinians who are forced to negotiate this system of inhumanity. Many, many Palestinians have died or given birth at checkpoints because the military guards refused access.

An abuser may use a tactic of movement restriction against his partner by usurping the financial resources or keeping the car keys in his possession, only handing them over when she must take the children to school or go to work or to the grocery store. If she takes too long -- an arbitrary time he sets -- he may use emotional manipulation saying, "You're cheating on me! I know you are!" This leaves her in a predicament where her next moves, no matter the strategy, will most likely result in increased punishment.

She (the Palestinians) may go to any room in the house while he watches, but to pass through the gate he (the Israelis) keeps, she must jump through the hoops he sets.

The analogy could be expanded to look at the feminization of the Palestinian population through the lens of a masculinized foreign policy. More on that later

OREGON FAMILY LEAVE

(will benefit survivors of domestic and sexual violence...)

Oregon Family Leave Insurance will give employees 6 weeks of paid leave for a new child or ill family member. This insurance builds on existing family leave laws that provide 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave. The insurance benefit is funded through a 2 cent per hour payroll deduction from employee salaries (about $42 per year). This modest contribution enables workers to be eligible for $300 per week, up to $1,800 per year.

Families need time to care. With an increasing number of Oregonians "sandwiched" between caring for their children and their aging parents, employees are increasingly called upon to balance their need for time-off against their need to earn a paycheck.

It is time to care for Oregon families. Tell your Legislators to keep Family Leave Insurance moving today!

Why would Family Leave Insurance help Oregon's families? Right now, families are struggling when a loved one needs care. Paid Family Leave helps families bridge the income gap caused by folks being unable to go to work because they need to care for a new baby or a sick family member. We need Paid Family Leave to help Oregon families stay out of poverty--especially in this time when so many families are already vulnerable.

Send a message to your Legislators Today!