October Safe Space Initiative Community Forum Featuring Kylie Cheung

Self-Reclaimed’s Safe Space Initiative (SSI) is part of a two-pronged theory of change model that serves as a bridge between survivors, allies, community partners, and professionals in the field of sexual assault (SA) and domestic violence (DV). By engaging in values-driven, candid conversations, the community identifies the necessary education, resources, skills, and advocacy work that seeks to change the culture and systems that allow SA + DV to exist. Over time, the SSI will shift and grow to meet the evolving needs of the community.

FAQ BELOW: 

In 2023, the SSI will host 4 forums over the course of the year with the following goals in mind:

• Increase knowledge about the cultures and systems that maintain SA & DV, while simultaneously creating a community that is actively shifting these cultures and systems
• Learn and develop proficiency in trauma-informed, survivor centered communication and safe spaces
• Navigate candid conversations using SR values and community agreements as a compass to approach challenging topics and repair communication breakdowns
• Individual members contribute to the direction of Self-Reclaimed and future offerings of the SSI
• Develop proficiency in allyship practices and advocacy

Who should join? Community members and organizations who share Self-Reclaimed’s values and want to have an active role in changing the culture and systems that allow SA and DV to exist.

• The Community/Community Members: survivors, allies, community partners (aligned organizations and businesses), and professionals in the field of SA and DV.
• Survivors: individuals who have been impacted directly or indirectly by SA and DV. We recognize that not all individuals who have been impacted, identify as a survivor, and therefore provide this larger context of what we mean by "survivor." 
• Allies: individuals who do not identify as survivors, but have a strong commitment to the mission.
• Organizations: representatives and members of organizations that align with this initiative and may want to receive future trainings from Self-Reclaimed.

Participation Fee: 

Each forum is $5 to participate to help offset the costs of the program.

Survivors who want to participate but cannot afford the fee, please contact us at the email below. 

Community Agreements: Just like all of Self-Reclaimed's programs and events, there will be specific community agreements to ensure the safest environment possible for all who are participating in the forum. These will be provided as we get closer to the forum. 

October's forum: We’re honored to welcome Kylie Cheung as our guest speaker for our LAST FORUM of 2023! 

Join Self-Reclaimed and Kylie Cheung as we dive into her extensive, timely, and urgent work. “She shatters the harmful and self-serving narrative that abuse is a private matter perpetrated by individual bad actors - and situates popular understandings of DV in an indictment of the racism, misogyny, and carcerality baked into US culture and politics” (Book Survivor Injustice).Through Community Agreements, small and large group candid conversations & discussions, presentations, and skill building, members will leave the forum with a greater understanding of how SA & DV are upheld by cultural systems, feeling a sense of community with others who care deeply about this work, and enhanced skills to sustain individual wellness.

ABOUT KYLIE: Kylie Cheung is a journalist reporting on gender-based violence, reproductive justice, and gender in politics and culture. She is the author of Survivor Injustice: State-Sanctioned Abuse, Domestic Violence, and the Fight for Bodily, which received starred reviews in Publishers Weekly and Kirkus, and two other books about gender and politics. Cheung is a staff writer at Jezebel and formerly worked on the culture desk at Salon.

WHEN: Thursday October 26, 2023 @ 6:30-8:30 PM CT Virtual, Zoom

WHO IS THIS FOR? Anyone who has been directly or indirectly impacted by SA and/or DV, which includes those who identify as a victim, survivor, ally, advocate, or professional in the field.

WHAT TO EXPECT: The Safe Space Initiative bridges together survivors, allies, advocates, and professionals in the field of SA and DV work. In 2023, the SSI launched its virtual Safe Space Forums that are modeled after traditional healing circles, where members from across the United States come together to hear from speakers versed in educational topics, engage in related skill building, and build community through small and large group discussions.

Questions? Contact us at ssi@selfreclaimed.org