Responding to Sexual Assault & Intimate Partner Violence for Indigenous Communities
Join us for Responding to Sexual Assault & Intimate Partner Violence for Indigenous Communities.
This training is a collaborative effort between Rensselaer County Sexual Assault Response Team, the Seven Dancers Coalition, New York State Coalition Against Sexual Assault and the New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
Studies indicate that violence against women—including sexual assault and domestic abuse —is higher among Native American communities. In fact a recent study funded by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ,) revealed that more than four in five Native American and Alaska Native women and men have experienced violence in their lifetime, and more than one in three experienced violence in the past year. The study, part of NIJ's research program on violence against Native women, looked at how prevalent psychological aggression and physical violence by intimate partners, stalking, and sexual violence were in Indigenous communities It also examined the perpetrators' race and the impact of the violence.
In order to understand the ways intimate partner violence and sexual assault occur in indigenous communities, we must examine the history of oppression that laid the groundwork for the rise of violence against Native women. With facilitators from the Seven Dancers Coalition as our guides, we will journey through the history of Indigenous people in this land, particularly in New York, up to the present and discuss the unique needs that service providers and responders need to be aware of in order to provide culturally responsive and appropriate services and advocacy to indigenous survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence.
From Jonel Beauvais of the Seven Dancers Coalition, “We have always been on the receiving end of violence. Our truth and consideration of future generations is what will lead us to a place of understanding what happened, taking accountability and arriving at a place where vicious cycles are broken, that healing and restoration are possible. Intergenerational trauma is alive and well in our communities but through our culture, best efforts and prayers, so is our resilience. Addressing sexual assault and all its layers in Indian Country is a task that we can not do alone, we invite you to be a part of the process in creating change, being informed and believing that we will have a better narrative to pass down to our grandchildren.”
