This May is Sexual Violence Prevention Month. Let’s act now to create a world free from gender-based violence and oppression!

Why it's Time to Ignite Change: A Message From our Executive Director.

Waterloo Region, we're at a turning point. 
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​Five years ago, the #MeToo movement began to spread across the globe. It wasn't long before this movement reached our community, helping to strengthen survivors' voices so they could courageously tell their stories. Local survivors began reaching out for support from SASC in record numbers. Our team responded by showing up for survivors in court, hospital rooms and police stations - and by holding space in our counselling offices and on our 24 Hour Support Line. 

And yet, our waitlist grew as more and more survivors reached out.

Back in 2017, we considered 40 survivors on our waitlist a crisis. Years have passed, and we've now faced a global pandemic, which has caused a further increase in calls for support.  Through the generosity of our community, we have been able to grow our counselling program. But today, the demand continues to outpace our capacity; 200 survivors now wait for one-on-one support at our Centre.  The survivors on our waitlist are more than just a number; they are people in our community who are parents, friends, partners, and children. We also know that sexual violence disproportionately impacts women and girls, 2SLGTBQIA+ folks, and Black, Indigenous, and racialized people. These members of our community deserve timely care.

There's more to this story. During these challenges, financial support from our Provincial government for our basic services has not increased. In fact, funds promised to our Centre in advance of the last Provincial election were clawed back, a provincial commitment unfulfilled due to a shift in power. These funds would have secured two additional counsellors and a court support worker at our Centre; what's more - they would have created a safe space for survivors' stories to be set free and for healing journeys to begin.

We believe it's time to ignite change as we face another provincial election. Therefore, we are issuing three clear calls to action for everyday folks to commit to throughout Sexual Violence Prevention Month (May):

• Let's show care for the 200 survivors who are waiting to access our services by making a donation, funds will support our Counselling Program. An anonymous donor will help you grow your impact by matching up to $5000 in one-time donations made during Sexual Violence Prevention Month. Every dollar counts.
• Let's utilize our voices and platforms to centre the issue of adequate support for survivors. Ask political candidates how they will prioritize care for survivors in the times ahead. This May, visit our website for tools and templates to help you advocate for making sexual assault support services essential. 
• Finally, let's create social change by learning about sexual violence prevention. We envision a world free from gender-based violence and oppression. Join us for a virtual conference on Wednesday, May 18th, Ignite Change: Community Responses to Sexual Violence Prevention. We'll explore decolonizing anti-violence interventions, bystander intervention, male allyship and self-care.

You can learn more about our calls to action by scrolling below. This Sexual Violence Prevention Month, join us in igniting change and putting #SurvivorsFirst.

​- Sara Casselman, Executive Director

Pledge to take these three calls to action to ignite change in our community:

Action 1:
Support Survivors.  Donate to build community care for survivors. 
Donate between May 1st and May 31st, and your gift will be doubled! An anonymous donor will match up to $5000 in one-time donations made during Sexual Violence Prevention Month. 

Click Here for a Donation Form

During Sexual Violence Prevention Month (May 1 - 31), an anonymous donor will generously match up to $5000 in one-time donations! Your gift can make a huge difference. Please consider making a gift this May - your impact will be doubled!

If you want to get us kicked off with a donation before our donor match program begins, please fill out the form below. Automatic tax receipts are sent via e-mail for donations $20 and up.

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 Action 2:
​Advocate for Change.  Utilize your voice and platform to make a difference.
On May 1st, access our Advocacy Toolkit for infographics, tools and templates you can use on social media, and in emails or snail mail, to raise awareness and demand change in advance of the June Provincial Election!  
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On May 6th, wear purple to show your commitment to ending sexual violence. Post your selfie and a message of support using the hashtags #IgniteChangeWR, #SurvivorsFirst and/or #NoOneAsksForIt. We’ll be re-tweeting and sharing your posts all day on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter (@sascwr).

T-shirts are available for purchase, keep scrolling to check out our Shop!

Click Here for our Advocacy Toolkit (Available Now!)

Will you help advocate for survivors this Provincial election?

At the Sexual Assault Support Centre of Waterloo Region, we wrap survivors of sexual violence in community care. We walk beside them on their journey. Our support is free and doesn’t come with time limits.  

But today, there is a challenge we are facing.​ 

Survivors of sexual violence in our community have been reaching out in record numbers. Just prior to the 2018 Ontario election, our Centre was responding to a new increase in demand for our services, as the #MeToo movement spread across the globe and reached our community.  Back then, 40 survivors on our waitlist was a crisis. Today, we have 200 survivors on that list. Requests for counselling have risen 58 per cent over the last two years; an impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The demand for our services is up significantly across every one of our program areas.

During these challenges, financial support from our Provincial government for our basic services has not increased. In fact, funds promised to our Centre in advance of the last Provincial election were clawed back, a provincial commitment unfulfilled due to a shift in power. These funds would have secured two additional counsellors and a court support worker at our Centre; what's more - they would have created a safe space for survivors' stories to be set free and for healing journeys to begin.

We are calling on leaders and candidates to:

• ​Point out that current allocations to respond to local survivors are simply not meeting the existing service demands.
•  Agree that no survivor of violence should face a wait for services or to meet with a counsellor.
• Ask the Ontario government to reinstate the funding increase that was cut in 2018 (an approximate 30% increase to community-based sexual assault centres in Ontario).

Will you join us?

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Here is what you can do:

Write Your MPP

The Ontario Coalition of Rape Crisis Centres has prepared letter templates that you can customize and send to your MPP. Download them below!

Template for Individuals

Find Your MPP

Template for Organizations

If you don't know your MPP, please click the link below, scroll down to Find My MPP, and enter your information.

Find My MPP

Ask Candidates in the Upcoming Ontario Election These Questions:

1. After the 2018 provincial election, a promised funding for Sexual Assault Support Centres was significantly clawed back.  200 survivors are now currently waiting for counselling at our local Centre. If elected, would you fight to reinstate this funding to Sexual Assault Support Centres?

2. As gender inequality and sexual harassment continue to be significant issues in provincial politics, will you commit to providing your staff and volunteers with anti-sexual harassment and bystander intervention training?

3. Many survivors of gender-based violence face significant barriers to accessing justice through the criminal and family court systems. This is due to long wait times, underfunded court support programs, and biases rooted in rape culture. Will you advocate for changes to our court systems that support survivors of sexual and gender-based violence?

Share on social media:

Help us spread the word about our Advocacy Toolkit! Below are some social media graphics you can share with your networks. Simply click to download each image, save to your camera roll or folder, and share!

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 Action 3:
​​Prevent Sexual Violence. Attend our conference to learn community approaches to prevention.
Prevention is key! Join us for a one-day, virtual conference on Wednesday, May 18th, Ignite Change: Community Approaches to Sexual Violence Prevention. This conference is for community members, educators, community service providers, students, workplace leaders, and all those who see the benefit of these conversations.

​Individually and collectively, we can learn, act, and mentor others in efforts to end gender-based violence and oppression. Through sessions focused on decolonization, male allyship, bystander intervention and self-care, this conference aspires to ignite change, action, and possibilities in those who attend.   

Click Here for Conference Details or to Register

Wednesday, May 18, 2022
9:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Session and registration information below.

 SASC’s Public Education Program presents a full day virtual conference on intersectional approaches to sexual violence prevention. This conference is for community members, educators, community service providers, students, workplace leaders, and all those who see the benefit these conversations.

​Individually and collectively we can learn, act, and mentor others in efforts to end gender-based violence and oppression. Through sessions focused on decolonization, male allyship, bystander intervention and self-care, this conference aspires to ignite change, action, and possibilities in those who attend.   

Conference Registration

Registration is FREE and includes full day access to the conference, recording of the sessions, a copy of the slides and handouts.   

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Schedule

• 9:30 - 9:45: Opening Ceremony
• 9:45 - 10:15: Introduction
• 10:15 - 11:15: Talking to Youth: Cultivating Consent (Sarah Wiley)
• 11:15 - 11:30: BREAK
• 11:30 - 12:30: Male Allyship: Action, Engagement and Mentoring (Jacob Pries and Mitchell Mervyn)
• 12:30 - 1:00: Virtual Lunch Gathering and Networking
• 1:00 - 2:15: Keynote: Decolonizing Anti-Violence Interventions and Cultivating Cultures of Repair (Carol Bilson)
• 2:15 - 2:30: BREAK
• 2:30 - 3:30: Be Part of the Solution (Adjei Scott and Rod Molina)
• 3:30 - 4:00: Q+A (Sarah Wiley)
• 4:00 - 4:30: Closing Ceremony
  
• 4:45 - 5:30: Self Care and Yoga (Adjei Scott)​

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Keynote

Decolonizing Anti-Violence Interventions and Cultivating Cultures of Repair 
Presenter: Carol Bilson, MA

As Canada engages in a national conversation and is made cognizant of its ongoing colonial realities through the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action, the anti-violence sector must also acknowledge how colonization has informed our society’s gender expectations, and ability to ask for and give consent, and to repair relationships when sexualized harms have occurred. These beginnings would allow us to better understand how this violence impacts diverse communities, identities, and bodies while continuing to shed light on what is needed to address the roots of this malignant social harm. Supporting survivors in this era, means implementing system-wide trauma-informed, anti-oppressive approaches that center decolonial practices, male allyship, and recognition that active consensual bystanders have the power and privilege to intervene when gender-based violence occurs in our communities, institutions, and personal lives.

Presenter Bio:
Carol Bilson M.A. - Latina/x (Mapuche, Spanish, German) from Wallmapu, Chile; pronouns are She/Her/Ella, currently a Ph.D. student in the program Social Dimensions of Health in the School of Public Health and Social Policy at the University of Victoria. She also holds the position of Alt-Justice Coordinator at Victoria Sexual Assault Centre (VSAC) and Education Coordinator at the Victoria Women’s Transition House Society (VWTH) where she trains staff, volunteers, and fellow service providers on the issues of Intimate Partner Violence and Trauma-Informed Practices. Carol further facilitates cultural safety workshops (Co-Creating Decolonial Futures) supporting organizations to work in more collaborative and relationally accountable ways with Indigenous peoples. Carol has over 12 years of experience in community education and has developed multiple community workshops on De-colonization, Anti-Racism, Consent, Men's Wellness, Healthy Masculinities, and prevention of Gender-Based Violence for boys and male youth. 

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Workshop Descriptions:

​Talking to Youth: Cultivating Consent
Presenter: Sarah Wiley, MA
Building a culture of consent in our classrooms, homes, and communities requires us to be able to have conversations with youth about complex concepts. Talking to teens and preteens in our lives about consent, healthy relationships, and sexual violence from an inclusive and trauma informed place requires us to be dedicated to our own learning, open to having difficult conversations, and listening to youth. SASC’s Violence Prevention Educator will discuss tips and strategies for engaging youth in dialogue about these topics in an age appropriate and empowering manner.

Male Allyship: Action, Engagement and Mentoring
Presenter: Jacob Pries and Mitchell Mervyn
Aspiring male allyship is an ongoing process. Encouraging, mentoring, and engaging men and boys in the prevention of gender-based violence can be a complex concept to navigate in your personal life, families and workplaces. In collaboration SASC’s Male Allies Educator and #RaisetheBar Workplace Equity Educator will discuss the concept of male allyship, practical applications, and possible impacts of increased safety, support, and compassion for self and community.

Virtual Lunch Gathering and Networking
Presenter: Sarah Wiley
Support and networking and are beneficial in preventing gender-based violence and oppression. Knowing who is in your community doing this work, resources available, and support offered can make being part of a solution possible. Together we will build a network of community connections to assist in working together to prevent gender-based violence and oppression.

Be Part of the Solution
Presenter: Adjei Scott and Rod Molina
Taking action to prevent gender-based violence is essential in being part of the solution. The most common reason people report not stepping in to prevent sexual violence is because they are not sure if they should do something, what they should do, or what the impact will be. Member’s of SASC’s Male Allies Program will engage participants in a session that will address barrier to intervention and practical steps for supporting and preventing gender-based violence in their personal and professional lives.

Question and Answer
Presenter: Sarah Wiley, MA
In wrapping up the conference, participants will be invited to a connection question and answer session to offer options, share successes, address barriers, and share resources. Together we will build a network of community connections to assist in working together to prevent gender-based violence and oppression.

Self Care and Yoga
Presenter: Adjei Scott
After a full day of unpacking, unlearning, and aspiring towards something greater, taking care of ourselves is key. SASC’s Male Allies Educator will offer a interactive virtual yoga session to unwind, restore, and appreciate participants for their investment in ending gender-based violence and oppression.

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download our campaign poster!

Shop

On the first Friday of every May, folks across our province wear purple to stand in solidarity with survivors.  Purchase a purple shirt today to take a stand against sexual violence. 

Please note: our t-shirts ship from a non-local warehouse. Therefore, we ask folks to order early to have their shirts in time for May 6th. 

No One Asks For It Tee | Free Shipping | Additional Colour Options

CA$40.00

We know the notion that survivors somehow ask for it by what they were wearing, what they were drinking, etc., is wrong. Start a conversation and say no to victim-blaming with this No One Asks For It tee. The tri-blend fabric creates a vintage, fitted look. And extreme durability makes this t-shirt withstand repeated washings and still remain super comfortable.

• 50% polyester, 25% combed ring-spun cotton, 25% rayon
• Fabric weight: 3.4 oz/yd² (115.3 g/m²)
• Pre-shrunk for extra durability
• 40 singles
• Regular fit
• Side-seamed construction
• Blank product sourced from Guatemala, Nicaragua, Mexico, Honduras, or the US

Shop

Believe Survivors Tee | Free Shipping | Additional Colour Options

CA$40.00

Make a statement with this Believe Survivors tee. The tri-blend fabric creates a vintage, fitted look. And extreme durability makes this t-shirt withstand repeated washings and still remain super comfortable.

• 50% polyester, 25% combed ring-spun cotton, 25% rayon
• Fabric weight: 3.4 oz/yd² (115.3 g/m²)
• Pre-shrunk for extra durability
• 40 singles
• Regular fit
• Side-seamed construction
• Blank product sourced from Guatemala, Nicaragua, Mexico, Honduras, or the US

Shop

Hope, Healing and Resilience Tee | Free Shipping | Additional Colour Options

CA$40.00

A community that surrounds survivors with the possibilities of healing, hope and resilience means that good things can bloom in the place of trauma. The tri-blend fabric creates a vintage, fitted look. And extreme durability makes this t-shirt withstand repeated washings and still remain super comfortable.

• 50% polyester, 25% combed ring-spun cotton, 25% rayon
• Fabric weight: 3.4 oz/yd² (115.3 g/m²)
• Pre-shrunk for extra durability
• 40 singles
• Regular fit
• Side-seamed construction
• Blank product sourced from Guatemala, Nicaragua, Mexico, Honduras, or the US

Shop

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Yes, I Pledge to Take Action This May!

 If you're interested in committing to one (or all) of our calls to action for Sexual Violence Prevention Month, sign up for our Centre's newsletter below for reminders and updates! You can unsubscribe at any time.

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Important Dates

Click to the right for a downloadable calendar, or take note of the following dates:

Ignite Change Calendar

All Month Long in May: Make a donation to have it matched, and utilize our Advocacy Toolkit!
Friday, May 6, 2022: Wear purple in support of survivors
Wednesday, May 18, 2022: Attend Ignite Change: Community Approaches to Sexual Violence Prevention