PASCI project

WAVAW: Women Against Violence Against Women

october 2003, Vancouver BC
by Johanne Pelletier and Francis Murchison

In the early eighties, a group of Vancouver women reacted to a situation of exclusion and created WAVAW in order to provide services for all women who are the survivors of sexual assault. Previous services didn’t include sex trade workers, bisexual women, lesbians, or trans-gender women who receive higher rates of sexual assault than other women. The founding mothers believed that all women who survive a sexual assault need to be supported.

Warmth and Support

An anonymous west-Vancouver location is where it all takes place. In a welcoming and reassuring atmosphere, more than thirty women volunteer in the backbone of the organization’s services, a 24hr crisis line for all victims of sexual assault be they men, women, or children. Three to four hundred calls are received every month. All calls from children and males are referred to the appropriate support services, in direct cooperation with other centers.

According to the needs of each survivor, a specialized victim services program gives women access to a legal liaison who guides survivors of sexual assault through any legal procedures. These services include accompaniment in any contact with the police, as well as in court.

Another service available for those who need it is medical liaison to facilitate communication with the ‘sexual assault service’, a group of specialized doctors and nurses. This team can perform a medical exam, evaluate any internal injury, and advise the victim about issues such as pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. Using what is called a ‘rape kit’, they collect all forensic evidence and document all injury in case women decide to press charges.

WAVAW also provides a one-on-one counseling service and runs emotional support groups to help women get over the trauma that follows a sexual assault.

Feminist and Anti-Oppression

WAVAW functions within an anti-oppression feminist framework. As feminists, they see sexual assault as a power imbalance. Their approach works to give the control and power back to a person who has had it taken away. According to this approach, the first step in the healing process is to let the survivor make the decisions about what she needs. To this end they find that it important not to tell the survivor what she needs to do and to support her choices without letting their own opinions interfere.

The anti-oppression analysis is based on power dynamics. Following this concept, the less power a person has in society, the more likely she is to experience sexual assault. Certain groups of people are clearly more targeted for sexual assault than others: women rather than men, women with disabilities rather than women without disabilities, and aboriginal rather than white women. A person’s identity affects response to experience. Some communities are less supportive than others to women who are assaulted sexually. For example, a woman may be stigmatized if her community doesn’t want its image to be affected by a sexual assault. A WAVAW coordinator confided that on one occasion a women that she was accompanying to make a police statement received racist treatment at the station, the last thing that this survivor needed in order to take her power back and transcend her trauma.

Demystifying Rape

One of the missions of the women of WAVAW is to bring light to rape myths. Previously, the law defined rape very narrowly; this definition helped bring about widespread false stereotypes about rape. This is one of the reasons WAVAW uses the larger term sexual assault in order to include a wider spectrum of experiences. Seeing through rape myths is important in understanding the effects of sexual assault. Often survivors will blame themselves for their assault because they have internalized rape myths. The mythology includes the idea that certain women bring rape upon themselves because of the way they dress or act. Men, on the other hand, will often think that they can’t be sexually assaulted, especially not by women. When a person is the victim of a sexual assault her or his whole identity is affected, particularly trust and well-being. Rape myths tend to negatively contribute to these effects.

With the aim of diminishing the effects of rape myths, WAVAW has started Young Women’s Project at the University of British Columbia with the help of 20 volunteers. They work principally on outreach and awareness about sexual assault issues among women between the ages of 14 and 25, the most susceptible age group. The focus groups at the Young Women’s Center inform women about what sexual assault is, what their rights are, and educate them about consent issues particularly in situations involving drugs and alcohol. Counseling is adapted to the needs of younger women and issues that often concern them, such as the involvement of their parents or peers.

To make sexual assault support more available to Vancouver’s sex trade workers, an organization called WISH was founded in the downtown area. This is a drop-in center whose staff was trained on sexual assault by the workers at WAVAW in order to get the new initiative off the ground.

Cutting that Hurts

WAVAW is financially supported by individual donors, the BC Women’s Hospital, student contribution at UBC, and by independent fundraising. With the intention of breaking what they call a ‘cycle of dependence’ the Liberal government of Gordon Campbell has cut 40% of WAVAW’s funding, and by 2004 the organization will cease to receive any government funding. At present, this money is used mainly for the 24hr crisis line, an essential service. As our friend at WAVAW said, “Nobody wants to be sexually assaulted”. Nonetheless, just under half of the women in BC will be sexually assaulted during their lifetime.

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WAVAW: Women Against Violence Against Women october 2003, Vancouver BC by Johanne Pelletier and Francis Murchison In the early eighties, a group of Vancouver women reacted to a situation of exclusion and created WAVAW in order to provide services for all women who are the survivors of sexual assault. Previous services didn’t include sex trade workers, bisexual women, lesbians, or trans-gender women who receive higher rates of sexual assault than other women. The founding mothers believed that all women who survive a sexual assault need to be supported. Warmth and Support An anonymous west-Vancouver location is where it all takes place. In a welcoming and reassuring atmosphere, more than thirty women volunteer in the backbone of the organization’s services, a 24hr crisis line for all victims of sexual assault be they men, women, or children. Three to four hundred calls are received every month. All calls from children and males are referred to the appropriate support services, in direct cooperation with other centers. According to the needs of each survivor, a specialized victim services program gives women access to a legal liaison who guides survivors of sexual assault through any legal procedures. These services include accompaniment in any contact with the police, as well as in court. Another service available for those who need it is medical liaison to facilitate communication with the ‘sexual assault service’, a group of specialized doctors and nurses. This team can perform a medical exam, evaluate any internal injury, and advise the victim about issues such as pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. Using what is called a ‘rape kit’, they collect all forensic evidence and document all injury in case women decide to press charges. WAVAW also provides a one-on-one counseling service and runs emotional support groups to help women get over the trauma that follows a sexual assault. Feminist and Anti-Oppression WAVAW functions within an anti-oppression feminist framework. As feminists, they see sexual assault as a power imbalance. Their approach works to give the control and power back to a person who has had it taken away. According to this approach, the first step in the healing process is to let the survivor make the decisions about what she needs. To this end they find that it important not to tell the survivor what she needs to do and to support her choices without letting their own opinions interfere. The anti-oppression analysis is based on power dynamics. Following this concept, the less power a person has in society, the more likely she is to experience sexual assault. Certain groups of people are clearly more targeted for sexual assault than others: women rather than men, women with disabilities rather than women without disabilities, and aboriginal rather than white women. A person’s identity affects response to experience. Some communities are less supportive than others to women who are assaulted sexually. For example, a woman may be stigmatized if her community doesn’t want its image to be affected by a sexual assault. A WAVAW coordinator confided that on one occasion a women that she was accompanying to make a police statement received racist treatment at the station, the last thing that this survivor needed in order to take her power back and transcend her trauma. Demystifying Rape One of the missions of the women of WAVAW is to bring light to rape myths. Previously, the law defined rape very narrowly; this definition helped bring about widespread false stereotypes about rape. This is one of the reasons WAVAW uses the larger term sexual assault in order to include a wider spectrum of experiences. Seeing through rape myths is important in understanding the effects of sexual assault. Often survivors will blame themselves for their assault because they have internalized rape myths. The mythology includes the idea that certain women bring rape upon themselves because of the way they dress or act. Men, on the other hand, will often think that they can’t be sexually assaulted, especially not by women. When a person is the victim of a sexual assault her or his whole identity is affected, particularly trust and well-being. Rape myths tend to negatively contribute to these effects. With the aim of diminishing the effects of rape myths, WAVAW has started Young Women’s Project at the University of British Columbia with the help of 20 volunteers. They work principally on outreach and awareness about sexual assault issues among women between the ages of 14 and 25, the most susceptible age group. The focus groups at the Young Women’s Center inform women about what sexual assault is, what their rights are, and educate them about consent issues particularly in situations involving drugs and alcohol. Counseling is adapted to the needs of younger women and issues that often concern them, such as the involvement of their parents or peers. To make sexual assault support more available to Vancouver’s sex trade workers, an organization called WISH was founded in the downtown area. This is a drop-in center whose staff was trained on sexual assault by the workers at WAVAW in order to get the new initiative off the ground. Cutting that Hurts WAVAW is financially supported by individual donors, the BC Women’s Hospital, student contribution at UBC, and by independent fundraising. With the intention of breaking what they call a ‘cycle of dependence’ the Liberal government of Gordon Campbell has cut 40% of WAVAW’s funding, and by 2004 the organization will cease to receive any government funding. At present, this money is used mainly for the 24hr crisis line, an essential service. As our friend at WAVAW said, “Nobody wants to be sexually assaulted”. Nonetheless, just under half of the women in BC will be sexually assaulted during their lifetime. --end