Blog

RALIANCE wants to send you to Super Bowl LIII 

Blog

This is your chance to see the BIG GAME in person! Don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to attend the Super Bowl in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday, February 3, 2019 at 6:30pm.

RALIANCE is inviting you to purchase a raffle ticket for a chance drawing for two upper-level tickets valued at nearly $3,000. The raffle is limited to 10,000 tickets with proceeds benefiting RALIANCE. The drawing will take place on Tuesday, January 22, 2019.

Every day, RALIANCE makes prevention possible by advancing research, influencing policy, supporting innovative programs and helping leaders establish safe workplaces and strong communities.

Don’t miss out! Purchase your ticket today!

How airlines can help prevent in-flight sexual harassment, misconduct, and abuse

Blog, Culture, Policy, Workplace

Sexual misconduct on crowded airlines is happening more often (Los Angeles Times — Hugo Martin), and airlines – like all corporations – can do quite a bit towards preventing it.

Sexual harassment, misconduct, and abuse impact all of us. With these acts  often occurring in public places, it’s not surprising that reports of misconduct on commercial flights are on the rise.

Here are some key ways that airlines can do more to prevent sexual violence during flights:

Adopt a standard set of protocols for addressing incidents of sexual harassment, misconduct and abuse;

Offer better sexual violence prevention training for staff;

Collect better data on reports of sexual assault incidents; and

Consistently remind passengers that these behaviors are not acceptable, and that airlines are prioritizing the safety of passengers and crews.

“That proximity of an airplane makes it extra uncomfortable. […] They could start doing some consistent messaging and campaigning to let them know it’s a priority.”

From college campuses to the military, we know that raising awareness about sexual harassment, misconduct, and abuse is an important step to preventing these types of bad behaviors from happening and ensuring victims can safely report any experiences of sexual violence. Passengers deserve to feel safe and respected while traveling, and airlines must ensure that message is always communicated.

Stand Up, #DontStandBy

Blog

Uber, in collaboration with NO MORE,  has launched its Stand Up Don’t Stand By.  campaign to “spotlight the important role we all play in looking out for each other’s safety and preventing sexual assault. #DontStandBy” The campaign materials focus on actions that can be taken to contribute to stop sexual assault before it happens. There are messages for friends out on for a night on the town,  nightlife staff, and Uber drivers.

This campaign is initially focused on two nightlife hubs: Las Vegas Nevada, and Los Angeles California. Learn more about the bold moves Uber and NO MORE are making to get everyone involved in a movement to ensure respect, safety, and fun are all a part of going out.

Using innovation to help serve more in need: MOCSA

Blog, Grants

In the wake of Me Too, many sexual violence prevention organizations experienced an uptick in demand for support services and counseling. The Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault (MOCSA), a RALIANCE impact grant recipient and national leader in providing therapy for youth with problematic sexual behavior, used innovation to help serve more in need. MOCSA recently spoke with the National Sexual Violence Resource Center about their foster care project in Kansas City and the ways they overcame challenges to make a positive impact in the community for NSVRC’s Fall 2018 issue of The Resource.

At RALIANCE, we want to be the kind of funders that sees potential in challenges. Projects that see ways they can change, adapt, and pivot are critical to advancing prevention work. MOCSA’s project addressed an underserved population – in this instance foster caregivers and service professionals to better understand sexual behavior problems in children. To help manage the uptick in foster kids and caregivers who were seeking help, MOCSA adapted their program in a way that could empower caregivers and counseling professionals with the training and tools needed to serve their community.

MOCSA started by hosting a series of focus groups and listening to foster parents who are successfully helping youth in their care with these behaviors. Their hard work and innovation led to impactful deliverables: MOCSA produced two six-page Resource Guides — one for caregivers and one for professionals — and distributed 250 hard copies throughout the Kansas City metro. They also produced a series of short video clips based on the real-life experiences of foster families to help people better understand problematic sexual behaviors among youth and how to build a network of support.

“Overall, the additional outreach, training, and collaborative efforts allowed MOCSA to reach vastly more people than we originally intended.”

That’s the kind of innovation that is having real impact in our communities. Read more about this project on NSVRC’s blog.

Fresh from Denver: RALIANCE Trains U.S. National Governing Bodies and U.S. Olympic Committee 


Sport

By Brian Pinero

Earlier this month in Denver, RALIANCE Chief Public Affairs Officer Kristen Houser and RALIANCE National Project Coordinator Brian Pinero trained members of the U.S. National Governing Bodies and the U.S. Olympic Committee on how to talk about sexual harassment, misconduct and abuse and contribute to a safe and respectful culture for all in the sport community 

The training took place over the course of two days at the offices of U.S. Center for SafeSport and focused on using common values in sport combined with the six messaging components from RALIANCE’s  most recent report, that could be used to help audiences understand how prevention is possible. Constructing messages in this way provides an effective way to introduce policies, training and culture change around sexual violence. Attendees also learned how to focus on prevention messages even when met with challenges. Using pre-developed scenarios and pivot phrases, the group practiced delivering and staying on message when met with a skepticism or critics.

Members of the governing bodies were also provided with a tool kit, developed by RALIANCE and U.S. Center for SafeSport. This tool kit contained examples on how to use values, pivot points, messaging components and designed awareness materials for use messaging prevention to coaches, athletes, staff and other members of the sport community.

To learn more about how RALIANCE is partnering with the sport community to end sexual violence in one generation, check out the Sport+Prevention Center!

RALIANCE publishes 2018 progress report: Ending Sexual Violence in One Generation

Blog

RALIANCE is excited to share our latest publication: “Ending Sexual Violence in One Generation: A progress report for the United States 2018.” Every year, RALIANCE chronicles the significant themes, milestones, and events related to efforts to end sexual harassment, misconduct, and abuse nationally. This year’s 2018 report offers a look back from June 2017 through May 2018, the months before and after the #MeToo movement took the nation by storm.

We’re seeing a true public reckoning with attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs that must change. Change is happening. From the news and media to advocacy, activism, and policy, this report examines where our society has made progress in the movement to end sexual violence and where more leadership and change is needed.

Prevention is possible. Survivors’ voices are powerful. Together, we will end sexual violence.

Check out the report here: Ending Sexual Violence in One Generation: A progress report for the United States 2018!

Talking prevention strategies at the Bloomberg American Health Summit

Blog

RALIANCE joined 350 participants at the inaugural Bloomberg American Health Summit last week in Washington, DC to discuss overcoming challenges and improving health. While sexual violence is generally viewed as a public health issue, the summit demonstrated that sexual violence and other public health movements like addiction or gun violence can share similar prevention strategies.

The conversation about health outcomes is timely. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention also announced last week that the U.S. life expectancy rate declined for the third consecutive year. It is a wakeup call to the kind of conversations that need to happen and are thanks in part to the Bloomberg American Health Initiative. This $300 million endowed program at Johns Hopkins seeks to change five major health challenges: Addiction and Overdose, Environmental Challenges, Obesity and the Food System, Risks to Adolescent Health, and Violence, including sexual harassment, misconduct and abuse.

As we talked about the top three issues the CDC identified – drug overdoses, chronic liver disease, and suicide – Bloomberg Fellows and others shared community-based solutions working to change health outcomes. Arne Duncan, former U.S. Secretary of Education, spoke about his work in Chicago to reduce gun violence and noted the importance of hope and relationships in pursuing peace. Public health experts noted current efforts underway to increase hope and reduce stigma especially around addiction issues, the importance of dignity and respect for all, as well as access to healthcare and safer systems. The solutions for ending sexual violence are also rooted in all these ideas.

Catch out the entire summit online!

Championing a Culture of Safety and Respect on Campus is Needed Now More than Ever

Blog, Policy

On November 16, the U.S. Department of Education announced draft regulations on Title IX that will make it harder for campus sexual assault victims to seek justice. In a new Medium post, Terri Poore, Policy Director for RALIANCE, argues that in the face of neglect from the Department, colleges and universities still have a responsibility to their students to uphold strong protections against sexual violence.

She wrote, “Even as the Department of Education turns its back on Title IX, the law remains unequivocal: educational institutions have a responsibility to prevent the things that create hostile environments, including sexual violence. This is why it’s important that our schools continue to treat campus sexual assault with the seriousness it deserves.”

Read the full post on Medium here.

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