Spaces still available: First Responder to Sexual Assault Training™ scheduled for November
First Responder to Sexual Assault Training™ program is designed for professionals and paraprofessionals who may receive a disclosure of sexual abuse/assault as a part of their work with children, youth, and adults, or vulnerable populations including new Canadians and people with disabilities. Facilitated by accredited SSAIC staff, the course explains the impacts of sexual violence throughout a lifetime, the communication skills needed to provide an effective response, and appropriate referral resources.
Learn more about the First Responder training program and upcoming dates here.
Legal News from Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF)
The Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF) is a national non-profit organization with a longstanding history dedicated to advancing the equality rights of women by focusing its work on litigation, law reform and public education. Since 1985 leaf has intervened in over 90 cases that advanced the equality of women in Canada. Here are some examples of their work related to violence against women and sexual assault
Leaf welcomes the Supreme Court of Canada’s recognition of the unique challenges raised by sexual assault trials. Read more …
LEAF celebrates Supreme Court of Canada ruling in R. v. Jarvis
In R. v. Jarvis, the Supreme Court considered whether a male high school teacher who secretly filmed his female students’ breasts with a camera pen had violated their “reasonable expectations of privacy” and was therefore guilty of voyeurism. The court ruled that the teacher was guilty of voyeurism addressing the defense arguments upheld at lower court levels that the students had no reasonable expectations of privacy as the students were filmed while there were in public areas. Read more …
Television getting it Right
If you want to see a few great examples of television making history by assisting in increasing the public understanding of the impacts of sexual assault on survivors we would highly recommend:
Grey’s Anatomy Season 15 Episode, Silent All These Years
This episode follows 3 separate story lines related to sexual assault including a patient who was brutally raped being admitted to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. The episode illustrates a sensitive and accurate portrayal of the bravery required to undergo a forensic examination preserving evidence of sexual assault. It is a powerful, survivor-centered episode.
Unbelievable
Unbelievable is a new 8 hour mini-series on Netflix that tells the story of Marie, a teenager charged with lying about having been raped before two female detectives uncover a string of assaults eerily similar to hers. It follows the detectives through these investigations.
Here is how an article in Vogue describes the series.
“Unbelievable doesn’t make for easy watching—the show opens with a trigger warning you’ll want to take seriously—but it’s one of the most complex onscreen depictions of sexual assault in recent memory. The violence isn’t gratuitous, the story’s investigative arc is female-driven, and, most importantly, the agonizing question of how to go on living in the wake of sexual violence is treated with care.”
10 New #MeToo Movement Books To Read In Fall 2019
If you are interested in reading as well, here is a fall book list for you.
Our website is full of information and each month we will highlight one article for you. Please click on this link to learn more about the role alcohol and drugs plays in sexual assault.
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Working with Victims of Sexual Violence (CPD-205) – RECORDED VERSION
