April 2017 Community Education E-bulletin

4/3/2017

Welcome to the April 2017 edition of Hope House's Community Education E-bulletin!

TABLE OF CONTENTS:
1. Sexual Assault Awareness Month & Child Abuse Prevention Month
2. Denim Day
3. Stewards of Children Training
4. Hope House Donation Needs
5. Sexual Assault
6. Domestic Violence

7. Children & Youth
8. Miscellaneous News
9. Local News
10. Parents' & Youth Service Providers' Section
11. Faith Communities' Section
12. Resources

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) & Child Abuse Prevention Month
Please see the list below for a few upcoming events; for a complete list click here. Interested in getting involved and doing a project or putting up prevention posters at your business, church, school, library, or organization? Please call us at 608-356-9123 or email us here.

Month-Long Activities:

Be sure to tune into 99.7 in the Baraboo area, 106.1 in the Adams area, and 92.1 in the Mauston area for Sexual Assault Awareness Month radio PSAs.
Check your local newspaper for Hope House's SAAM letters to the editor.
Look for Hope House's SAAM displays throughout the month of April in the West Square Building in Baraboo, the Adams County Community Center, and the courthouses in Portage, Montello, and Mauston. A SAAM display will also be at Divine Savior Hospital in Portage during the week of April 24-28.
Thanks to the Wisconsin Leadership Seminars teen volunteers, Hope House has a Child Abuse Prevention Month pinwheel display in our front yard. Each blue pinwheel, an awareness symbol for the month, contains a quote card from Darkness to Light. If you are in the area, feel free to stop by and take a pinwheel home with you to place in your yard or attach to your mailbox or bring it to work.
The Adams County Coordinated Community Response Team, in partnership with Hope House, will be putting up a SAAM display at the courthouse, a newspaper article, and radio PSAs.

Denim Day is April 26
Hope House is once again encouraging businesses, organizations, schools, and churches to participate in Denim Day. Denim Day is in honor of a young woman who was raped by her driving instructor. He was convicted, but he appealed, and the judges overturned the conviction. The judges decided that "...because the victim wore very, very tight jeans, she had to help him remove them, and by removing the jeans it was no longer rape, but consensual sex." Denim Day was created as a message in protest of victim-blaming and to promote what consent really looks like. We need to start by believing survivors and not blame them for the sexual assault that someone else committed against them.

Please consider asking employees to wear jeans on April 26 in exchange for making a donation to Hope House. If you’d like Denim Day buttons or flyers, please email us the amount you'd like here. We encourage businesses wearing jeans to take photos and send them to us so we can promote them on our Facebook page and in our e-bulletin. NEW THIS YEAR: Please also consider challenging other similar businesses or other businesses in your community to see who can get the most employees wearing jeans on Denim Day or raise the most funds for Hope House. Some ideas for how you can do this include sending this information to them or posting information about it in your local newspaper or Chamber of Commerce. If your business plans to participate in Denim Day, please let us know at 608-356-9123 or email here. Thank you!

Free Stewards of Children Training in Endeavor and Baraboo
Hope House is facilitating two free Stewards of Children sexual abuse prevention trainings for adults. Darkness to Light's Stewards of Children is the only evidence-based child sexual abuse prevention training proven effective in educating adults to prevent, recognize, and react responsibly to child sexual abuse. This training utilizes a video, workbook, and group discussion. Light refreshments will be provided, and participants are welcome to bring their own food as well.

Monday, April 24 from 4:30-7pm at the Endeavor Village Hall, 400 S. Church Street, in Endeavor. RSVPs greatly appreciated: Jess at Hope House, 608-356-9123 or email JessicaR@HopeHouseSCW.org.
Saturday, April 29 from 9:30am-noon at the Boys & Girls Club, 124 2nd Street, in Baraboo. RSVPs greatly appreciated: Nola at Hope House, 608-356-9123 or email PreventCoord@HopeHouseSCW.org.

Hope House Donation Needs
Monetary donations are most needed. Individuals have the option of donating online. Please note that a portion of your online donation will go towards PayPal fees. Donations can be mailed to Hope House, P.O. Box 557, Baraboo, WI 53913. We also appreciate gas cards, gift cards (Walmart, Kwik Trip, Walgreens, Kohl’s), taxi vouchers from Baraboo Taxi, and used cell phones, iPods and iPads. Please note that we are not accepting stuffed animals/plush toys, used toys, clothes (except for new sweatshirts and sweatpants), shoes, used books, furniture, TVs, bar soap, hats, scarves or travel-size bottles of shampoo, conditioner, or body wash. Current needs include the following:

Kitchen: Silverware, Non Perishable Food Items, Fresh Produce, Juice, Sippy Cups, Milk, Coffee, Sugar, Creamer, Food Storage Containers, Kitchen Sponges, Dishwasher Soap
Cleaning supplies: Lysol Spray and Wipes, Mop, Broom and Dustpan Combos, Windex, Floor Cleaner, All Purpose Cleaner, Swiffer Floor Dry Sheets, Vacuum Cleaner, Magic Eraser
School Supplies: Notebooks, Colored Pencils, and Backpacks
Miscellaneous: Women's Tennis Shoes, especially size 8 and up, Nail Clippers, New Underwear and Bras, First Aid Kits, Zippered Mattress Protector, Copy Paper, Journals, Pocket Calendars, 10-Gallon Storage Totes, Women and Children Sweatpants, Sweatshirts, Pajamas, Towels, Wash Cloths, Small Lamps

Special Note about Travel-Size Items: We encourage those looking to donate travel-size items to donate them to the Backpack Project. The Backpack Project strives to provide Baraboo School District students who are financially challenged to enter the school doors on the first day ‘just like everyone else’ and to show these children the community supports and encourages them to learn and do their best. If interested in donating towards this project, please contact Becky Hovde at 608-963-8230 or hivebiz@centurytel.net.

News
Sexual Assault

It’s On Us Calls on College Students to Re-examine How They Talk About Sexual Assault in Bold New Ad: “‘Autocorrect’ is told entirely through a texting conversation between two presumably college-age men. It uses the autocorrect feature on smartphones to highlight the difference between what we say and what we mean when we talk about rape. In this case, one is a perpetrator and one is a bystander who fails to intervene, and they talk about the incident later via text. The campaign urges college students to change the way they discuss rape and recognize what is, and what is not, consent”…Read more and watch the video (or watch below)
Activists Are Launching A National Effort To Stop Rape Kits From Going In The Trash: “A nationwide effort is kicking off Thursday to fix a patchwork of state laws that allow many cities to destroy rape kits before they’re tested, sometimes in a matter of weeks. The national campaign is led by a nonpartisan victims rights group called Rise, which gained acclaim by getting an historic survivors bill of rights signed into federal law last year. Its goal now is to replicate that federal statute on the state level by pushing state legislatures to reform laws on the collection and storage of rape kits”…Read more
Alec Cook Found Responsible for Crime of Violence in University Hearing, Expelled: “Alec Cook—a former UW-Madison student who will soon face trial on 21 criminal charges including sexual assault, stalking and strangulation—has been found responsible for a 'crime of violence' in a university hearing and expelled from UW-Madison, according to university officials”…Read more
325 Sexual Assaults Reported at UW-Madison Last Year, a Jump of Over 100: “Following this, Schmidt said she believes many students felt more comfortable coming forward once they knew what resources existed, rights afforded to them and how the reporting process works. This includes knowing that a student won’t get in trouble for underage drinking if they report a sexual assault”…Read more
Minority Students at Greater Risk of Sexual Assault: “Not only are racial, sexual and gender minority groups more likely to be victims of sexual assault, students who consider their colleges inclusive and tolerant are less likely to be victims, two new complementary studies found”…Read more

Group of Men Sexually Assault 15-Year-Old Chicago Girl on Facebook Live, Officials Say: “A 15-year-old Chicago girl was apparently sexually assaulted by five or six men or boys on Facebook Live, and none of the roughly 40 people who watched the live video reported the attack to police”…Read more
Reports of Sexual Assault Increase at Two Military Academies: “At West Point, there were 26 reports of sexual assault in the 2015-16 academic year, up from 17 the year before. At the Naval Academy, the number rose to 28 reports from 25. By comparison, reports dropped steeply to 32 from 49 at the Air Force Academy…The Defense Department did try to put a positive spin on the latest numbers, saying that more people were feeling emboldened to report sexual abuse”…Read more
Runner Takes Down Attacker: “The 36-year-old marathoner-in-training was four miles into her run in Seattle’s Golden Gardens Park last week when she stopped to use a public restroom. Police say Gary Steiner, 40, a registered sex offender in Arizona, was hiding in the bathroom and attacked her. Herron had taken a self-defense workshop three weeks before the incident…Herron described being attacked while training as ‘her biggest running nightmare,’ a sentiment many women who exercise alone can relate to. A recent survey by Runner’s World found that 43 percent of women sometimes experience harassment while running, compared to 4 percent of men”…Read more
White Women Are Less Likely to Protect Black Women From Sexual Assault, Study Finds: “‘We found that although white students correctly perceived that black women were at risk in a pre-assault situation, they tended not to feel as personally involved in the situation,’ researchers Jennifer Katz and Christine Merrilees of the State University of New York at Geneseo told PsyPost. ‘In broader terms, it seems as if bystanders need to psychologically identify with the potential victim in order to feel they have an obligation to become involved, and racial/ethnic differences impede this identification’”…Read more

Domestic Violence

When Domestic Violence Becomes a Public Risk: “The shooting spree started at Marathon Savings Bank, where employees Dianne M. Look, 67, and Karen L. Barclay, 62, were fatally shot. Sara H. Quirt Sann, 43, who was representing the alleged shooter’s wife in divorce proceedings, was killed at a law office in Schofield, where Quirt Sann rented an office. And Everest Metro Police Detective Jason Weiland, 40, was killed as he set up a perimeter during a standoff at the Aspen Street Apartments in Weston, where suspect Nengmy Vang had barricaded himself. The case painfully demonstrates the way ‘domestic’ violence can become a very public concern. ‘This is an example of domestic violence being a community problem,’”…Read more
Milwaukee Police Urged to Adopt Model Policy on Officer-Involved Domestic Abuse: “Last Saturday, Officer Leon Davis fatally shot his wife, Sherida Davis, before killing himself...Because incidents involving police officers present ‘exceptional obstacles’ for victims, the International Association of Chiefs of Police in 2003 released revised guidelines for how departments should investigate their own. In 2009, the Wisconsin Department of Justice created a model policy closely based on that one and offered it to agencies statewide”…Read more
The Invisible Way Guns Are Used To Keep Women In Abusive Relationships: “Working with the police department in Philadelphia, Sorenson examined 35,000 domestic violence incidents that occurred in the city in 2013...69 percent of the time, it was used to threaten or coerce the intimate partner...Guns were only fired 10 percent of the time. ‘I was interested in this topic because so much is focused on women’s deaths, I thought it was important to look at guns in women’s lives,’…Though victims who had a gun used against them were less likely to have visible injuries compared to victims who reported the use of other weapons, like knives or bats, she said, they were far more likely to experience high levels of fear”…Read more

The Abuse Excuse: Dismissing Domestic Violence and Its Effects in the Criminal Court System: “For decades, domestic violence survivors have been criminalized, prosecuted, and imprisoned for acts carried out by their abusive partners. Often, these were actions that they either knew nothing about or were powerless to stop. But at trial, their experiences of abuse are often downplayed or outright dismissed”…Read more
Law Was Meant to Let American Indians Prosecute Violence; Is It Working?: “The statute grants tribes jurisdiction over non-Indians in instances of domestic violence, dating violence or violations of protection orders that occur within Indian Country if the victim identifies as American Indian and the non-Indian perpetrator works, lives or has an intimate relationship on tribal lands…The slow adoption rate can be attributed in part to regulations, such as providing court appointed council to defendants who cannot afford it at the tribe’s expense, a challenge for tribes with little money…Tribes must also have juries that are selected from a ‘fair cross-section’ of the public, meaning they cannot exclude non-Indians. While this was practiced by some tribes even prior to the VAWA reauthorization, for others it means changing tribal law”…Read more
Russia Decriminalized Domestic Violence. What Happened Next Is Wrenching

Children & Youth

Teens Protested Their High School's Sexist Prom Dress Code And Won: “Three of the flyers showed prom dresses with low backs, plunging necklines, and a leg slit. They said, ‘Going to Stanton Prom? NO YOU'RE NOT.’ A fourth poster shows a sleeveless gown, accompanied with text: ‘Going to Stanton Prom? YES YOU ARE. GOOD GIRL’…‘I feel like that’s just demeaning — not just to women, but to men as well. They’re not animals, they can handle themselves!’…Since it was Spirit Week, the student body was supposed to dress up on Tuesday for ‘Tourist Day.’ On Monday evening, student government president Anthony Paul announced on Twitter that Tuesday's theme was changed to Women's Day”…Read more

Bystander Intervention Helps Prevent Sexual Assault in High Schools, Study Shows: “Green Dot provides an annual training session to students, then identifies 'popular opinion leaders,' who receive additional training that they then pass on to their peers. Students are taught the ‘three Ds’ of bystander intervention: direct, delegate, and distract…In the largest and longest study of its kind, researchers studied 26 Kentucky high schools over five years. Half of the schools used the Green Dot program, and half did not offer any bystander intervention training. They found that by years three and four of the study, victimization rates were about 12% lower in schools that offered the Green Dot program than in those that did not”…Read more

Miscellaneous News

Fearless Girl’ Statue Stares Down Bronze Wall Street Bull: “Move over bronze bull, there’s a new statue drawing attention on Wall Street in time for International Women’s Day. On Tuesday, New Yorkers and tourists in lower Manhattan found themselves staring at a bronze little girl, with hands on her hips, staring down her famed Bovine counterpart. Installed by State Street Global Advisors, a branch of Boston-based State Street Corp., the 'Fearless Girl' statue was placed in the financial heart of NYC as a call for more women to serve on corporate boards…A plaque at her feet says: ‘Know the power of women in leadership. SHE makes a difference’”…Read more…Read related article: This Dude Humping the ‘Fearless Girl’ Statue Is the Actual Worst
Sharing Of Nude Photos Of Female Marines Online Prompts Pentagon Investigation: “Hundreds of Marines are reportedly under investigation by the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, after a trove of photographs were shared online that show female service members and veterans in the nude. The images were spread via a closed Facebook group with thousands of members. When the photos were shared via Marines United — a Facebook group that's intended for male Marines and Marine veterans only — they drew bawdy and obscene comments…many of the photos on the Marines United page included personal information about the female service members, from their name, rank and duty station to the names of their social media accounts. The Facebook page also included links to a Google Drive with even more images — and an invitation to any members to contribute photos. The images were obtained in a variety of ways, Brennan reports, from sharing by former partners to stalking and, potentially, the hacking of service members' personal accounts”…Read more

With Joyful Photos, a 19-Year-Old Artist Confronts Media Bias Against Black Male Teens: “Recently, the 19-year-old artist, Myles Loftin, was scrolling through his Twitter feed and came across a tweet that displayed the results of a Google search of the words, ‘four black teens’ and ‘four white teens.’ The search results for white teens turned up stock photos of white teenagers smiling, attending high school, and posing together. The results for their black counterparts surfaced mostly mugshots, a ‘WANTED’ sign, and photos of black teens in police custody. ‘It wasn't entirely shocking to me,’ explains Loftin to Creators, ‘I already have an understanding of the way black people are viewed in the world.’ Seeing the search results ‘really hurt’ him, he says, because he couldn't understand why those images are being used to represent him and his peers. ‘I wanted to know why I couldn't find many images of positive portrayals of black teens.’ The revelation lead Loftin to create HOODED, a photo and video project that deconstructs stereotypes of black teenage boys”…Read more
Hundreds Allege Sex Harassment, Discrimination at Kay and Jared Jewelry Company: “Declarations from roughly 250 women and men who worked at Sterling, filed as part of a private class-action arbitration case, allege that female employees at the company throughout the late 1990s and 2000s were routinely groped, demeaned and urged to sexually cater to their bosses to stay employed…Most of the sworn statements were written years ago, but the employees’ attorneys were only granted permission to release them publicly Sunday evening”…Read more

Local News

Susan Bird-Winbun, of Baraboo, who’s twins were murdered by their father, is speaking to groups and organizations about domestic violence prevention, she also is writing a book about her experiences…Read more
Loyal Stowers, 33, of Portage, faces felony drug and misdemeanor domestic abuse charges…Read more
Glenn D. Kaiser, 38, of Mauston, charged with strangulation and suffocation, including two additional charges, after an incident in the town of Necedah…Read more
Aneta Zapotoczny, 44, of Dell Prairie, charged with attempted homicide, disorderly conduct (domestic abuse) and resisting an officer…Read more
Justin Blanchard, 31, of Portage, faces a possible fifth conviction for a violent domestic offense in less than two years…Read more
Robert Haar, 42, of Endeavor, faces extradition to Florida on suspicion of involvement in the gang rape of a 14-year-old girl nearly two decades ago…Read more
Robert Harvey, 28, of Portage, found not guilty of inappropriately touching his girlfriend’s 5-year-old daughter in November 2015…Read more
Matthew J. Sweatt, 35, of Elroy, faces three charges, including strangulation and suffocation, domestic abuse repeater…Read more

Parents' and Youth Service Providers' Section

Wisconsin PATCH Program’s Parent Resources: “As a parent, guardian, or other trusted adult your support can really help teens get the care they need and deserve. All resources are gathered from credible sources and contain medically accurate information that can improve how you work with the teens you care for”…Read more
Wisconsin Office of Children’s Mental Health Collective Impact Resilience Workgroup: The Resilience Workgroup has four focus areas: “1. Defining & Promoting Resilience Culture & Language 2. Building Resiliency in Individuals, Families, and Schools Across the Life Span 3. Building a Professional Culture of Resilience 4. Resiliency: Measuring our Progress.” Check out their resilience resources
High School Students Start Club To Make Sure No One Sits Alone At Lunch: “A club called We Dine Together at Boca Raton Community High School in Boca Raton, Florida, consists of students who roam their school’s courtyard during lunch looking for students who are eating alone. They then introduce themselves and get to know the students”…Read more
Hidden Consequences: The Impact of Incarceration on Dependent Children: “This article summarizes the range of risk factors facing children of incarcerated parents. It also cautions against universal policy solutions that seek to address these risk factors but do not take into account the child's unique needs, the child's relationship with the incarcerated parent, and alternative support systems”…Read more

Faith Communities' Section
Engaging Faith Leaders for Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM): The National Sexual Violence Resource Center has designated the 2017 SAAM campaign, Engaging New Voices. One of the groups they are providing resources to is faith communities. Faith communities can be an important place for healing, connection, and growth. You can help ensure that your local church has the tools to prevent sexual violence and support survivors by checking out the resources in the Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault's SAAM Toolkit, especially page 12.

Break the Silence Sunday is April 23: Join churches from across the state in recognizing Break the Silence Sunday, which has been designated as April 23 but could be done anytime of year. Break the Silence Sunday is an effort to open up a conversation within churches about the reality of sexual assault, to support survivors, and to commit to the work of preventing sexual assault. To learn more, visit breakthesilencesunday.org/2017-materials-resources. Please let us know if your church will be participating and if Hope House can help in any way. It's also a great opportunity to recognize Denim Day at your church (please see above). You can suggest congregants wear jeans to church or suggest an alternate option, such as congregants wearing a Denim Day button, which Hope House can provide, or using denim hymnal bookmarks. Churches also have the option of designating their offering for the day to Hope House. Please let us know if you have questions or if you plan to participate at 608-356-9123 or email us here.

Resources

New Domestic Violence Hotline for Native Americans: “StrongHearts is a culturally-appropriate, anonymous, confidential service dedicated to serving Native American survivors of domestic violence and concerned family members and friends. By dialing 1-844-7NATIVE (1-844-762-8483) Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. CST, callers can connect at no cost one-on-one with knowledgeable StrongHearts advocates who can provide lifesaving tools and immediate support to enable survivors to find safety and live lives free of abuse”…Learn more
How to Detect and Respond to Elder Abuse
Resource Guide to Trauma-Informed Human Services: “This guide provides human services leaders at the local, State, Tribal, and Territorial levels with information and resources on recent advances in our understanding of trauma, toxic stress, and executive functioning. It especially highlights what these advances mean for program design and service delivery. The guide helps professionals learn about trauma-informed care and helps those currently engaged in trauma-informed work to improve their practice. These resources provide an overview of key concepts related to trauma and a guide to resources from a range of HHS federal agencies and respected sources outside government. These materials are both a ‘front door’ to the topic of trauma and a ‘road map’ to relevant resources”…Read more
NNEDV’s 10 Tips to Have an Informed Conversation about Domestic Violence: Check out this 5-page guide on talking to others about domestic violence
Ten Ways to Fight Hate: A Community Response Guide: Check out this guide from the Southern Poverty Law Center

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April 2017 Community Education E-bulletin

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