Discussion List for campus-based and allied personnel working to end gender-based violence on campus.

["Janine Cavicchia" <>]

We just had our 17th annual TBTN, and this was the first time we didn't
have any students or other community members participate in our
"Survivor Speak Out," which has always been a 2-3 minute per person
forum in which we've usually had 2-5 students participate each year.
However, it's never been an OPEN forum. We've always advertised it that
anyone who would like to participate in it MUST contact the Women's
Center director at least a week before the event, and preferably much
sooner, so we can connect them with one of our Counseling Center staff
members who meets individually with them and then meets with all 2-5
speakers as a group once before the event. Most of our speak-out
participants have, in fact, actually come from survivor support groups
either at our University Counseling Center or our local Victim Services
agency, and they're at a point where they and their counselors feel that
they're ready. 

For each of the last three years (including this year), we have had two
students speak at the event for 10 minutes each, and they have been very
powerful, motivating, and inspiring speakers.  Most have come to talk to
me about doing the speak-out portion, but after talking with them I've
been convinced that 2-3 minutes isn't enough to tell their stories and
do them justice (10 minutes really isn't either--most of them could do
an hour presentation by themselves!), so we've given them more time and
included them as "featured speakers" with a bio in our program booklet.
(To give you an idea, you can visit our Web site at www.wc.wiu.edu and
click on the TBTN logo at the top of our Homepage, then click on the
TBTN 2006 program booklet and scroll down to the bios page for this
year; then for last year go back to our home page, click on
"Programming," scroll down to the TBTN 2005 logo and look up last year's
speaker bios in that program booklet.)
 
So, I agree with our counseling center staff and others who discourage
having an open speak-out or testimonial portion at the event. We've
always had great success with having students and others come forward
ahead of time and work with us to make sure they're ready and prepared
for what they're going to say, how they might feel, how others might
react, etc. so they have a good support system in place.
 
Janine
 
Janine Cavicchia, Director
Women's Center
Western Illinois University
320 Seal Hall
1 University Circle
Macomb, IL  61455
(309) 298-2242
(309) 298-2433 (FAX)

 
www.wc.wiu.edu 

"Men their rights and nothing more; women their rights and nothing
less."
--Susan B. Anthony

>>> <>
>>>  10/25/2006 12:03 PM >>>
I am the director of a small women's center at a four-year 
private liberal arts college in central Pennsylvania. We 
have been sponsoring a Take Back the Night program for 14 
years, and it is a very popular event on campus. Our 
counseling and health services staff members have recently 
expressed concern, however, about the testimonials portion 
of  the program. They feel it is too depressing and may 
even be harmful to sexual assault and abuse victims who 
have not disclosed their experiences before or who are not 
well into the healing process.

I would appreciate getting information on how other 
schools handle the testimonials or open-mic portion of 
TBTN. We currently ask students to check in at a table 
staffed by counselors before they speak, and our 
counseling services people also have open hours the week 
prior to the event to talk with students who are 
considering speaking(very few student take advantage of 
this opportunity, however). Is there something else you do 
at your school that you have found helpful in making the 
testimonials portion of the program empowering for both 
speakers and the audience?

Thanks for any advice you can offer.

Regards,

Judy Pehrson




Judy Pehrson
Director
The Women's Center
Franklin & Marshall College
P.O. Box 3003
Lancaster, PA 17604-3003
717-291-3956