Category: BF NEWS

Kathleen Huang is an undergraduate student at Georgetown University majoring in Government and minoring in Theology. She is from California and has a strong interest in women’s issues. Learn more about Kathleen here. As a undergraduate at Georgetown University majoring in Government and minoring in Theology, women’s issues and domestic violence haven’t been my focus. Since these issues are important to me, I have decided to gain knowledge through outside the classroom experiences in the form of internships and volunteering. What sparked my interest in domestic violence and dating violence was the increasing amount of negative publicity college campuses started to get after their poor handling of dating violence cases last year.

Those events prompted me to develop an interest in the field of women’s health. As a result, I ended up interning for Break the Cycle, a non-profit that focuses on issues of dating violence and providing resources for providers. As I became more knowledgable about the issues of domestic and dating violence, I became more vocal and more determined to help survivors and leave a positive impact. After finishing a semester long internship at Break the Cycle, I continued my advocacy through working as a Youth Advisory Board Member for Loveisrespect in combating dating violence. As a board member I work with other like minded youth throughout the nation in promoting awareness for the issues of dating violence and domestic abuse.

Currently I am volunteering at Becky’s Fund and my projects include domestic violence research and working on presentation material. I am excited to be working with a non-profit so dedicated to helping survivors and spreading awareness about the dangers and prevalence of domestic violence. I hope to continue to broaden my knowledge of domestic violence issues and support methods so that I may find better ways to communicate with survivors and help my own community.

This year’s Super Bowl was one to remember, not because of what happened on the field but rather in the commercials. This year for the first time in the history of the Super Bowl the NFL took a firm stance against domestic violence by airing a 60 second PSA on the issue during the Super Bowl. Domestic violence advocates have for decades been trying to link the Super Bowl to the physical assault of women. Advocates say that Super Bowl Sunday is one of the most dangerous days of the year for women and claim that there is a correlation between the outcome of a televised football game and rates at which women are admitted to the emergency room after the game.

However this statistic has long been disproven. If this is the case then why did the NFL air this PSA? This PSA is a direct response from the NFL to the Ray Rice incident in early 2014. But why Ray Rice? Despite there being domestic violence cases in the NFL both before and after the Ray Rice incident no case in recent history has gotten the amount of attention that the Ray Rice case has. This is because Ray Rice was caught in the act assaulting his wife by an elevator camera in the casino which he and his wife were visiting. The release of the elevator footage by TMZ sparked national outcry and put the NFL under a microscope when it came to issues of domestic violence involving their players.
In the aftermath of the Ray Rice case the NFL made it so that any player charged domestic violence would receive a six-game suspension without pay upon their first offense and be immediately banished from the league upon their second offense. While the NFL’s new position on domestic violence is admirable it is also reactionary. These changes were made as clear reactions to the mishandling of the Ray Rice case by the NFL in an effort to preserve their image.
Nonetheless they did take a firm stance on the issue, which is more than they have done for other social issues related to the game of football. One major issue which has yet to be publicly address by the NFL is the rise in sex trafficking activity correlated with the Super Bowl. Sex trafficking advocates say that Super Bowl weekend represents the peak in sex trafficking activity in the U.S. Data from previous Super Bowls has shown that prostitution activity has doubled and in some cases even tripled during the Super Bowl weekend.
This year was no exception, approximately 570 “johns” and 23 sex traffickers were arrested in part of a two week sex trafficking sting operation which culminated on Super Bowl Sunday. The operation also lead to the rescue of 54 adult and 17 juvenile sex trafficking victims. While there are those who deny the connection between the Super Bowl and sex trafficking the facts of Super Bowl weekend are undeniable. With nearly 600 “johns” arrested and 71 individuals rescued it is hard to deny that there is some connection between sex trafficking and the Super Bowl.
The NFL was also touched by prostitution scandal over the Super Bowl weekend. NFL sports analyst and hall of famer Warren Sapp was also arrested over the Super Bowl weekend on one count of soliciting a prostitute and two counts of assault against a woman. Though the NFL has fired Sapp for his involvement in the solicitation and assault of prostitutes they fail to address the issue which may have brought the prostitutes there in the first place. Even when they did take measures to reduce the occurrence of sex trafficking during the Super Bowl the NFL only mentions their efforts briefly in the FAQ section of the Arizona NFL Super Bowl page. Outside of the sting operation Arizona State has recently passed a series of laws meant to address issues related to sex trafficking including laws which increase maximum sentences for sex traffickers and give victims of sex trafficking more protection from prosecution on prostitution charges. The Department of Homeland Security has also partnered with the Arizona Human Trafficking Council in order to create measures to identify and report suspected sex trafficking.
Several local and national agencies have also joined in the fight to prevent sex trafficking over Super Bowl weekend. Airline Ambassadors, a national organization which trains flight attendants to recognize signs of individuals being trafficked on planes has begun training Arizona flight attendants on what types of behavior they should look out for in anticipation of the big game. Safe Action Project manager Kimberly Klein has also been working with Valley hotels and motels in order to train their staff to recognize and report signs of sex trafficking.
Although it is a huge issue, sex trafficking is only one of the issues which surrounds Super Bowl Sunday. Another issue which has been getting a lot of attention from feminist scholars and now increasingly the general public is the representation of women in advertising, specifically the limited portrayal of women as sex objects and the lack of diversity casting for these ads. Women have been misrepresented in ads as sexual objects for decades and Super Bowl ads have been no exception.
Web hosting and domain registrar site Godaddy.com has been one of the most notorious Super Bowl offenders with a long history of objectifying women in their Super Bowl ads. It came as a surprise to see them take a different route in advertising this year even after their original Super Bowl ad got pulled from the air. The Super Bowl ads this year seemed to be very tame in comparison to recent years. There was a greater focus on family, happiness and more kid friendly ads in general. The Super Bowl ad which sparked the most discussion this year was actually an ad by NationWide Insurance which brought many viewers to the verge of tears when they discovered the boy in the commercial had died because of a preventable accident.
Whether this was a conscious move by advertisers to change their selling tactics to reflect social change or a reaction to the Ray Rice incident and an unwillingness to attract negative Super Bowl press we will never know. The reality of advertising is the objectification of women in advertising is nothing new. Jean Killbourne has been documenting the objectification of women in advertising for decades through her documentary film series Killing Us Softly. In her film series she discusses how through advertisements women’s bodies have been reduced to parts and objects designated for the use of others. And that once someone becomes reduced in such a way it becomes easier to commit acts of violence against them because they are no longer people but things to be used and discarded at the whim of those doing the objectifying.
Unlike domestic violence or sex trafficking the objectification of women at the Super Bowl is a much harder problem to solve. A clear stance that denounces domestic violence and sex trafficking should be taken by the NFL because it is in agreement with general public that both those activities are morally wrong, the NFL and its affiliates only stand to gain popularity from taking firm stances on these issues. However the objectification of women is an issue which is pervasive and permeates our society at many levels. Women are objectified to sell everything from cars to fast food. To publicly denounce the objectification of women would mean denouncing the advertising industry as a whole. Which when considering the profit networks make from advertising dollars seems very unlikely.
So then what can be done to stop the objectification of women in advertising and by extension the Super Bowl? We need to educate individuals on how the systematic objectification of women makes it easier for us to inflict harm upon them, and we need to teach them how to identify the objectification of women in advertising. Only then will there be a shift in the ways in which consumers believe it is acceptable for them to be marketed to and thus changing the ways in which advertisers market.

Sources

Avila, Jim. “Super Bowl Is Largest Weekend in US Prostitution, Advocates Say” January 29, 2014

Bellare, kim. “Hundreds Of Johns Arrested In Sex-Trafficking Sting That Culminated On Super Bowl Sunday” The Huffington Post. February 3, 2015

Brand, Natalie. “Phoenix’s plan to fight sex trafficking ahead of Super Bowl” www.azfamily.com June 19, 2014

Crouch, Ian.“The N.F.L.’s New Domestic-Violence Rule”, The New Yorker, August 28, 2014

Endsextrafficking.gov.az. “Recent Laws”. http://endsextrafficking.az.gov. Accessed February 3, 2015

Goldberg, Eleanor. “Super Bowl Is Single Largest Human Trafficking Incident In U.S.: Attorney General” The Huffington Post. February 3, 2013

Kelly, Caitlin. “No More Excuses” The New Yorker, February 1, 2015

NFL.com, “Sapp fired from job at NFL Network following Phoenix arrest” ww.nfl.com February 2, 2015

Red, Christian. “Warren Sapp fired by NFL Network following arrest for soliciting prostitutes, assault” The Daily News, February 2, 2015

My name is Tori Ortiz, I am from San Antonio, TX but am currently a senior at the University of Maryland studying Psychology and Sociology. I became interested in working with Becky’s Fund after taking a course that explained domestic violence and the effects on victims and their families. During this course students were chosen to go to a nearby shelter and work with the children there educating them on healthy lifestyle choices such as ways to deal with anger, healthy food choices and much more. After my time in the course I realized that working with survivors of domestic violence was something I wished to pursue further.

Becky’s Fund appealed to me given the work done with students in the area. I have a strong belief that educating youth is an essential step in preventing domestic violence. So to be a part of a program that was actively reaching out to the youth community was important to me.

I look forward to interning this semester here at Becky’s Fund. I hope to learn more about the daily proceedings of a non profit and gain experience that I can take with me to graduate school.

Hello, my name is Helen Conway and I am the Programs and Communications Intern with Becky’s Fund for Spring 2015. I am a senior at Georgetown University, studying Psychology and Women’s and Gender Studies.Originally from DC, I grew up in rural Maine on the water. I come to Becky’s Fund with experience in education and community mental health. While I have always been engaged with women’s health issues, I became keenly aware of domestic violence issues following a class last semester. Through my internship with Becky’s Fund, I look forward to learning more about the cultural, political and economic systems that lead to domestic violence while also supporting and empowering survivors. I am particularly excited to help with the development of educational programming that empowers young people to be leaders in the movement to end interpersonal violence.

Upon graduation from Georgetown, I plan to pursue a career in social work, working with the most underserved populations to empower them through quality mental health care. In my free time, I love singing with the Georgetown University Concert Choir, improving my cooking skills, practicing yoga and reading.

Over the past four months at Becky’s Fund I have learned many valuable lessons about nonprofit work, domestic violence issues, and about myself. When I first began working with Becky’s Fund I knew that domestic violence was an important, under-discussed issue in our society. After spending time researching current issues, working directly with several survivors, and getting involved with the educational programs Becky’s Fund offers, I understand that domestic violence is one of the most complex, emotional, frightening experiences an individual can go through. The most important thing I have come to understand, though, is that domestic violence is preventable and that it will take more than just a few passionate individuals at a nonprofit to stop it.

This is the reason I have so thoroughly enjoyed my experience at Becky’s Fund. Although some days were emotional or tiring when working with survivors, it was extremely rewarding to know that I was one part of an incredible force of good. Of course, the work Becky’s Fund does with survivors is amazing. I was able to see several women make great progress over several months through finding their own new homes, coming out of homelessness, becoming financially independent, and gaining the confidence to say that they were no longer a victim, but a true survivor. This aspect of my role at Becky’s Fund truly warmed my heart. But I believe that the most important way that this organization makes an impact is through the educational programs that help to shake our society’s old standards and attitudes.

By working with the Men of Code program, in particular, I was able to see success and progress from two important perspectives. Seeing the Men of Code students in their art workshop, opening up to their peers and mentors about their deepest feelings and expressing themselves through creating art was inspiring. Working with Becky’s Fund has changed the way those boys think about themselves, their peers, relationships, and respecting women. Additionally, the Men of Code Mentorship Program showed me that there are men of all backgrounds, ages, and interests who are willing to spend time investing in the lives of these young men. When I saw these two groups come together, it made me hopeful that people do care and are ready and willing to make a difference.

I believe that Becky’s Fund has touched the lives of many people, from the participants in the educational programs, to the attendees of fundraisers and events that promote awareness, the staff and volunteers, and the survivors themselves. The most important thing I learned here is that the more people we can get involved through talking and thinking about this issue, the greater our chances are of achieving the goal of seeing a world free from domestic violence. I am so fortunate to have had this eye opening experience and will continue to be an advocate for this issue in my daily life.

My name is Christina Covello, my interest in women’s issues was sparked during my college experience when I minored in Gender Studies. I have always wanted to pursue a career in which I could advocate for social issues I feel passionate about. I wanted to intern for Becky’s Fund because of the Fund’s approach to combating Domestic violence. Becky’s Fund is working not only with victims but with young men to instill the importance of positive relationships and respect for women. This is a unique and I believe extremely productive approach to combat domestic violence.  I also believe that the program that Becky’s Fund implements in colleges around the country is vital to combating domestic violence as well as sexual violence. Women in high school and college are particularly vulnerable to falling into violent and unhealthy relationships, if more awareness is brought to students and people in this age group I believe that domestic violence can be stopped.

What I want to gain from my experience is an inside look into how non-profits work. I also want to better understand the issues surrounding domestic violence and domestic violence advocacy. The beauty of Becky’s Fund is that the Fund is involved with many different aspects of domestic violence prevention so it is rich learning environment where I am trying to absorb everything.  In the future I am interested in applying to law school and pursuing a career advocating for women’s issues.

Hi, my name is Patrick Noel and I am a senior at American University in Washington DC. I am double majoring in Public Health and Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies (WGSS) and I was born in the Caribbean island of St.Lucia. For as long as I have ever seriously considered a career I knew I wanted to work in the health field. I chose public health because the area is broad yet somewhat defined at the same time. Nutrition, epidemiology, mental health, all those things fit under the public health umbrella.

It wasn’t until halfway through my college career that I realized the intersection of sex, sexuality and sexual victimization on the public health sphere. Suddenly there was completely new way to examine the profession I chose, new challenges, new goals and new destination. After this realization I took on a minor, which turned into another major in Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies (WGSS). I wanted to combine my knowledge of public health with the ideas and theories of WGSS in order to fully understand the stigma certain marginalized groups face when dealing with the health care system.

I chose to intern at Becky’s Fund because of their Men of Code Program. Through my coursework I became very interested in the idea of reforming the current state of masculinity into a force for progressive social change. I saw the ways in which negative portrayals and enactments of masculinity adversely affect the health outcomes of both women and men. I think Beck’s Fund saw this as well and their Men of Code program was a way of responding to that. I hope to use my knowledge to further their the Men of Code program in order to help create a generation of men with healthy, positive outlooks on their masculinity.

I hope to use the knowledge and experience I gain at Becky’s Fund to continue developing programs for young men so they can come to understand themselves as men and decipher what really means. To teach them that their status as men does not depend upon the subordination of anyone else and that they can use their power for positive change across the board. Other than that I do see an MPH in my future.

My name is Chelsea Davignon and I am here in Washington DC for the semester with The Washington Center. I started my internship at The William Kellibrew Foundation but started working for Becky’s Fund when they needed another intern. My last 6 weeks here at Becky’s Fund has been a life-changing experience. Everyday that I spent at Becky’s Fund was different from the last. I started here the same week as Walk This Way and I was able to just dive right in. Walk This Way was the most extravagant event I have ever been to and I learned so much from this experience. The event was a very fast paced and stressful environment but I was able to handle it. Throughout the night I was so inspired by how gracefully Becky dealt with the stress. I was able to use that as an example for how I should deal with the stress. Walk This Way allowed me to get a first hand experience on how to run a large-scale fundraiser.

After Walk This Way I was able to continue learning from Becky about everything from program building to grant writing. Another important part of Becky’s fund is working with domestic violence survivors. I think having this hands-on experience with survivors will be very transferable to any future career path I decide to take. My favorite program of Becky’s Fund is Men of Code. Men and boys are the future to ending domestic violence and having this program brings awareness of domestic violence to the young men of Friendship High School.

I will be leaving this experience with a solid foundation on the inner workings of a non-profit. Throughout my internship at Becky’s Fund, I have learned a lot professionally but I have also learned a lot about myself. Before this internship I did not know how passionate I am about domestic violence and women’s issues. When I came to DC I had no idea what I wanted to do with my future career. Now, I can confidently say that I want to continue working in nonprofits. I also want my future career to include my passions, which are women’s rights and children. The real life experience I was able to gain through my internship has allowed me to develop a greater understanding of myself and what I want out of life.

Becky’s Fund has also allowed me to concentrate on improving some of my weaknesses. Before this experience I was very anxious and shy. I doubted my abilities and myself. Through support from Becky’s Fund, I am much more confident and proud of what I can bring to the table. I have been able to work on my writing and public speaking skills. Over the last six weeks I have been researching and writing up reports on current issues in the world of domestic violence. I was also able to present about domestic violence at American University. This presentation forced me to step out of my comfort zone and present to an audience. These are skills that can only come with practice and constructive criticism, which is exactly what I was able to get from my internship with Becky’s Fund.

Another important part of Becky’s Fund was working with Becky Lee herself. Becky is an incredibly inspirational woman and I consider her a role model. My contact with strong successful women has been limited throughout my life and I believe I am lucky to have met Becky. Becky has proven to me that I can do anything that I want in this world. Becky’s confidence and drive is contagious and is a motivation to me to follow my dreams. Every time I have doubted myself Becky has convinced me not to. A perfect example of this is when Becky, my fellow intern, and I took a class at a Trapeze school. We took the class as an end of the semester bonding experience for the three of us because none of us had ever taken a trapeze class before. I was absolutely terrified to climb up the ladder. I took the first few steps and then I walked right back down because I was afraid. Becky took the class by storm and to the rest of us it looked like she wasn’t afraid at all. But when I was scared she encouraged me until I was able to get up there. I will never forget this experience. In conclusion, working with Becky and Becky’s Fund has helped me grow both as a professional and a person.

The past two and a half months here at Becky’s Fund have been filled with many wonderful experiences. When I first arrived to DC, I was a little bit skeptical about working for an organization that deals with domestic violence because I did not feel I was prepared enough to handle the seriousness of the issue, emotionally and practically. The only other experience I had in relation to domestic violence is doing research and writing papers in college on Violence Against Women Act, which is a little bit different than dealing directly with clients and providing them with life-changing assistance. However, throughout my internship, I became more confident in my ability to serve the vulnerable and provide help to the survivors.
While at Becky’s Fund, I acquired and utilized a variety set of skills, from critical thinking to client-centered practice to research and event planning, which provided me with a foundation to do well on my assignments. Although doing research is not necessarily an exciting activity, it was helpful in assisting me to comprehend the different facets of domestic violence. Not in a million years would I have guessed that there is a correlation between domestic violence victims and cancer, yet the link is real and because I was asked to do research on this issue I have grown as a future professional. Not only did I expand on my knowledge, but I would not have been able to acquire this piece of information if it was not for Becky’s Fund, simply because I would never have researched this particular topic on my own. Also, I was able to attend a Congressional Briefing on the correlation between domestic violence and international abduction laws. This event was the highlight of my internship with Becky’s Fund because I learned so much in just two hours and I became motivated to continue to learn about the Hague Convention, especially since I am interested in international work.
Beyond the enhancement of my research skills, I was also exposed to variety of other opportunities that contributed to my development as a future social worker. Having the chance to work directly with the survivors made me realize the importance of organizations such as Becky’s Fund and gave me the experience of doing intake and direct intervention. Because domestic violence issue is so sensitive, it is vital to have a detailed intake, yet show sensitivity towards the survivors; therefore, knowing how to work with clients is an important skill that Becky’s Fund allowed me to develop further.
In addition to all the wonderful experiences that I received, I was able to participate in the Men of Code Program, which focused on the mentorship of a high school football team by teaching them about leadership, manhood, and habits of healthy relationships in order to prevent domestic violence in the future. One of the main reasons why I enjoyed being part of this program is because of its proactive approach to ending domestic violence. It was truly interesting to sit in on one of the lessons and hear the enthusiastic discussions that the students had regarding topics such as social media, HipHop, and masculinity in relation to domestic violence. Being able to witness their eager participation and learn from them was a growing experience.
Becky’s Fund allowed me to be part of a team that strives to prevent domestic violence as well as intervene in the moment of distress. Working side-by-side with a team filled with dedication to the cause and a desire to make a difference in their community made this summer that much more impactful. Becky Lee constantly challenged us as well as treated us as crucial members of the team, which made the time with the organization that much more productive and fulfilling. The lessons that I learned and the personal growth that I experienced will be a constant reminder of the wonderful people I had the pleasure of working with at Becky’s Fund!

Watch out it could be your best friend, your boss, your neighbor, even your brother. El Salvador has faced many hard decades in the last 50 years, ridden by civil war, foreign exploitation and racial genocide. Today one of the largest threats to its citizens is the major gang problem, and the countries in ability to put an end to this constant threat. Women as one can imagine do not fare so well in such an environment.

According to Non-governmental organization Salvadoran Women for Peace (Organizacion de Mujeres Salvadoreñas por la Paz – ORMUSA), which tracks violence against women, there were a record 628 such killings in 2011, higher than any year since the organization began to track the issue in 1999. In 2012 there were 320 homicides involving women, down from 2011 628. While the numbers may have dropped significantly when compared to previous years there is still an alarming about of “femicide” related crime for such a small country. “Femicide” being the coined term used by Human rights organizations in Latin America to refer to the murder of women who are killed because of their gender.

Many times the victims know the culprits and perhaps this is the saddest part, they are people they think they can trust, a friend, a neighbor, a boyfriend, even a relative. Perhaps even more shocking is the nature of the crimes, women are often raped and then brutally murdered. Some speculate that this is directly due to gang activity and El Salvador’s geographical location, which places it directly in the middle of most drug traffic going into the United States.

It comes to no surprise that a country with such a violent nature is among one of the countries with the highest murder rates in the world, El Salvador with nearly 70 per 100,000 people. While sexualized killings make up a small portion of the violent deaths, in 2010 for example 580 out of 4,000 involved some sort of “femicide”. Like in most countries this crime is in high occurrence during the holidays and among the largest concentration of population. San Salvador makes up for nearly 40% of all domestic crime, however one has to take into consideration that it solely has the highest reporting of such crimes. San Salvador being the capital of El Salvador has resources available to it that are not accessible in more rural areas of the country and as a result we see far fewer reports from such areas.

I remember the last time I visited El Salvador was nowhere near as dangerous as it is today, even though was pretty young and naïve I felt like I was in was at times that my safety was in some way threatened. I remember one occasion specifically when I was out with one of my older female cousins that she was very worried about our safety. It was broad daylight I thought to myself what could happen. We waited for a group of friends she had to walk us home, on our way home we witnessed a smaller group across the field being harassed. Had it just been the two of us it would have been a much different situation.  I haven’t been back since the age of 13, in part because of the danger of being an American and standing out among the locals.

While all people that commit domestic violence are not part of a gang and not all people in a gang commit domestic violence. The reality is that they may all be part of the same gang that is destroying countries all over the world. While Domestic Violence is by no means a new phenomena it is something that is impacting us on a much greater scale then ever before.