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VISION & VOICE
Spring 2015 | April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month
Sheriff Greg Hamilton and SafePlace Board members Gretchen Ellis, Felicia
Hester, and Matt Womack hold the Start by Believing pledge, which reads “My
name is _______________ and when someone tells me they’ve been sexually
assaulted, I start by believing.”
START BY BELIEVING
SafePlace teams up with Travis County Sheriff, Austin Police on public
awareness campaign about sexual assault
You might notice some billboards with a provocative message about rape as you drive around Austin this month.
SafePlace has teamed up with the Travis County Sheriff’s Office and the Austin Police Department to bring the
national Start By Believing campaign to Austin.
The message of the campaign is simple: if a friend or loved one tells you he or she has been sexually assaulted,
it is important for everyone – friends, family, police, prosecutors, media, medical personnel – to start by believing
them.
“People who are victims of crime ordinarily experience support, sympathy, and comfort,” says SafePlace
Community Education Director Sandra Molinari. “But too often, when a person reports that he or she has been the
victim of a sexual assault, the response can be disbelief, suspicion, even blame. And unfortunately, that’s often
true even when they confide in a close friend.”
The national Start By Believing campaign challenges all of us to bring the same support and acceptance to
survivors of sexual assault that we would to any other crime.
“The only way to change a culture in which 98 percent of rapists never spend a day in jail is to believe survivors
when they speak out,” says SafePlace Executive Director Julia Spann. “This exciting campaign has the potential
to change the way we do things in Austin, and I’m grateful to all our law enforcement partners and our generous
supporters for making this large-scale education possible.”
PREVENTING VIOLENCE, ONE DAY AT A TIME
Your Support Helps Austin Teens Build Healthy Relationships
Ehrmann. Each table at the event will be hosted by a
facilitator, who will moderate a conversation helping
the students reflect on what they heard and how it
applies to their lives on and off the field.
Judge Orlinda Naranjo and Expect Respect team up each year to bring the
teen dating violence mock trial to Austin teens
There’s never a bad place or time to talk to teens
about how they can prevent violence in their own lives,
and the SafePlace’s Expect Respect team is always
looking for new opportunities to make their messages
engaging and fun.
A group of 280 student athletes and coaches from
local high schools will gather for the Evening of
Champions in April. This very special evening,
sponsored by the Travis County Sheriff’s Office and
Expect Respect, will feature a keynote address from
former NFL player and motivational speaker Joe
Also in April, students from SafePlace, Kealing Middle
School and the Ann Richards School will participate
in the 3rd annual Travis County Teen Dating Violence
Mock Trial, in Judge Orlinda Naranjo’s courtroom.
Expect Respect will partner with Judge Naranjo to
educate young people on the signs and definitions
of dating violence while also being introduced to our
judicial system.
The month culminates in A Day to Shine, the afternoon
fashion show and dessert for teens, followed by a gala
for adults in the evening. This fun series of events
raises critical funds for Expect Respect programs.
Thanks to your support, kids in Austin and surrounding
school districts are getting help avoiding abusive
relationships and making healthy choices.
FIVE QUESTIONS
TO HELP START A CONVERSATION WITH
YOUR TEEN ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS:
A Fashion Show Benefiting
Expect Respect, A Program of SafePlace
April 11, 2015 • Westin Domain, Austin
safeplace.org/adaytoshine
1 What do you want
2 What makes a relationship fun
How do you want to be treated
3
or expect from
someone you’re dating or going out with?
and healthy vs. hurtful or abusive?
in a relationship? What behaviors would be
unacceptable to you?
4 What could you do
If you had a friend who was
5
if you knew
someone who was being hurt or threatened?
abusive to you or someone else, how could
you let that person know how you felt?
2
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month
ILLUMINATE AUSTIN A “BRILLIANT” EVENT
Crowd gathers to celebrate survivors, remember victims, and bring hope to
the community
More than $116,000 was raised through the 2nd Annual Illuminate Austin Walk for Safe Families. Crowds gathered
at Mueller Lake Park and Hangar the evening of February 21 to celebrate survivors, remember victims and bring
hope and awareness to the entire community. Participants were awed by the luminaria-lit path, games, food
vendors, and the sounds of Riders Against the Storm and DJ Chorizo Funk.
Thank you to all our BRILLIANT donors, sponsors, and teams. We’ll see you next year!
HOW AUSTIN HAS CHANGED
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safeplace.org/o
SafePlace.org
SafePlace was honored to host a visit from staff
members of the US. Dept. of Justice Office of
Violence Against Women earlier this year. The visit
was part of the commemoration of 20 years of the
Violence Against Women Act, which has brought
more than $180 million in funding to Austin, and
changed our community’s response to domestic
violence as a result. This is the poster we developed
to celebrate the 20-year milestone.
3
Nonprofit
Organization
U.S. Postage
PAID
Austin, Texas
Permit No. 634
P.O. Box 19454
Austin, Texas 78760
Did You Know?
People with disabilities are twice as likely to
be victims of domestic and sexual violence.
SafePlace offers services specifically designed
for people with disabilities.
MANY THANKS
to the very generous sponsors of Illuminate Austin!
Luci Baines Johnson & Ian Turpin • H-E-B • Emerson Process Management
Linda & Glen Neland
Personal Administrators
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, LLP
HealthTronics, Inc.
Neighbors Emergency Center
Boone Almanza
Shawn Ball
Ann Benolken
Laura Bosworth
Cindy Brouillette
Cameron Brown
Noel Busch-Armendariz
Gerardo Castillo
Jade Chang Sheppard
RetailMeNot
SmileWorks Orthodontists
Janet and Tim Heher
Henna Chevrolet
Julia Spann & Paul Carapetyan
McGinnis Lochridge
ShadyGrove Restaurant
Tel-Tokyo Electron
Umbel
Pence Properties
SAFEPLACE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Maria Lourdes De Hoyos
Brian DeRoeck
Gretchen Ellis
Lori Freedman
Theresa Garza
Sandy Griffin
Janet Heher
Felicia Hester
Chris Huston
Shannon Hutcheson
Trennis Jones
Christopher Kennedy
Greg Kozmetsky
Bob May
Mark Mouritsen
Dana Nelson
MariBen Ramsey
Kelly Rodgers
Celina Romero
Jason Sabo
Chance Sampson
Cindy Sexton
Randi Shade
Michael Simons
Stuart Smith
Andrea Sparks
Tom Stevenson
Kathy Terry
Mark Trinske
Upali Weerasooriya
Irene Williams
Matt Womack
Rachael Wyatt
Diana Young
Lisa Youngblood
SafePlace is ending sexual and domestic violence through safety, healing, prevention and social change.
24-hour Hotline: 512.267.SAFE (7233) • For Deaf/HH/Deaf-Blind community, please use relay/VRS • safeplace.org
SafePlace is proud to partner with:
Vision & Voice is published by SafePlace, P.O. Box 19454, Austin Texas 78760. Bulk rate nonprofit postage paid in Austin, Texas.