Message from the Executive Director

Dear Friend, 

With 2021 underway, and February already flying by, I hope that you are experiencing a hopeful beginning of the new year. 

February is Black History Month, a time to recognize and celebrate the achievements of Black people in US history. It is also Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, a time we raise awareness of dating violence and amplify our voices to promote safe, healthy relationships. At Resilience, we take time to honor these seemingly diverging truths because we know that the sexual assault advocacy movement would not be where we are now if not for the courageous Black women who paved the way from the beginning and still lead many amazing organizations in Chicago and beyond.  

Here at Resilience, we are gearing up and looking forward to many events, celebrations, and opportunities in the near future. Sexual Assault Awareness Month is just around the corner in April. I want to extend a thank you to you, our supporters, for continuing to make all of these events and programs possible. Your unwavering support allows our work to thrive even in these unpredictable times. Throughout this pandemic, we haven’t stopped advocating for a world free from sexual violence. Keep an eye out for more details about trainings, support groups, and events in the coming months. We look forward to seeing you (virtually) this year! 

Stay safe and take care. 

Erin

Thanks to your generosity, Resilience made over $40,000 during our annual giving campaign.  Your incredible outpouring of support could not come at a more critical time for our organization and our survivors, and it is thanks to you that we are able to continue providing our free services to survivors in need.

It isn't too late to give a gift to support survivors!  

Meet Kyra Jones

Kyra Jones is a former Resilience volunteer, filmmaker, artist, advocate, and educator. Resilience spoke with Kyra about her career in sexual violence prevention, the upcoming film she is writing, directing, and producing, and how she combines her passions for filmmaking and sexual assault advocacy. Read the entire interview here.

Action Alert! Opportunity to Get Involved with #RepealPNA

In Illinois, we have a limitation on abortion access for people under the age of 18. The Parental Notification Act is a harmful policy that prevents young people from accessing abortion care without the notification of a parent or guardian. The current version of the PNA provides access to abortions for survivors by allowing an exception to parental notification for youth under 18 who were harmed by an adult family member. While aimed to be survivor-centered, this provision does not go far enough. Not only does it leave out youth that were harmed by non-family members or peers, it also forces disclosure of personal violence in order to access healthcare. Repealing the PNA means trusting all young people to have autonomy over their bodies and never putting them in the position to justify why they deserve expedient and private healthcare. This is what survivor-centered policy looks like. Click here for more info.

If you’d like to sign up to be involved in a virtual meeting with your state representative or state senator about the need for Parental Notification to be repealed, fill out this form. You can follow this link to automate a letter to your state reps. https://repealpna.org/take-action/

If you sign up to meet with a representative, you will be reached out to by organizers from the #RepealPNA Coalition and offered training on talking points. We as sexual assault advocates can bring a really important perspective to the table: parents are not always safe adults and young people need to have autonomy over their own bodies.

If you have questions about what it might look like to get involved with contacting your legislator, you can email Mattia at malysen@ourresilience.org

Thank you, Swedish Hospital!

Swedish Hospital generously extended COVID-19 vaccinations to 40 Resilience staff members and volunteers. As a result, we are able to resume providing in-person, medical advocacy to survivors in hospitals! Our volunteers and staff are so grateful to be able to get back to safely advocating for survivors in these spaces. We are also so grateful to Swedish Hospital for their recent generous donation. Their support and partnership mean so much to us.

Thank you for the vaccinations, Swedish Hospital, and thank you for all your hard work, volunteers! We are so grateful to have in-person advocacy happening in hospitals again.

Partner of the Month: Andrea Cameron

Resilience is thrilled to announce our partner of the month, Andrea Cameron. Andrea is an ACE Group Fitness Certified, RYT 200, & TRX Qualified, and has translated her lifelong passion for movement into a side-career in fitness and yoga. Andrea has led three virtual workout classes for Resilience, raising over $1,000 to help further our mission. Andrea currently teaches 8 weekly classes online with a female-owned Oakland, California-based gym, Truve, where she has been teaching for nearly 5 years. She also leads a weekly vinyasa yoga class with Black female-owned Oakland, CA studio Hot Spot Yoga Oakland.  Additionally, Andrea teaches a weekly Zoom pay-what-you-can yoga class, a corporate Zoom class, and virtual private classes. To get on her Zoom email list or inquire about private classes, events, or corporate classes, connect with her on Instagram and send a message. You can also visit her website. We are so grateful for the classes that Andrea generously volunteered to teach on behalf of Resilience. Thank you, Andrea, for being Resilience’s Partner of the Month! 

Women's Support Group

Mondays from 5:30 – 7:00 pm (CT)
February 8 – March 22

This virtual support group is for female survivors of sexual violence and will be facilitated by Renee Miranda-Beristain LCPC and Erin MacIntyre.

Queer Survivors Support Group

Mondays from 5:30 – 7:00 pm (CT)
February 22 – April 26

This virtual support group is for queer survivors of sexual assault.  All genders are welcome.  18+.

Visual Journaling Art Therapy Group

Fridays from 2:30 – 4:00 pm (CT)
March 12 – April 30

Connect with other survivors of sexual violence while using visual journaling as a reflective process to explore concepts, ideas, and thoughts in order to deepen personal meaning. Open to adult survivors, all genders welcome.

Drop-In Support Group for SANE Nurses

Ongoing, dates and times flexible

Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners continue to care for survivors of sexual assault while also battling the COVID-19 public health crisis on the front lines. Beginning January 11, 2021, the Resilience trauma therapy team will be facilitating a space for SANE nurses to seek out support from one another and from our specially trained staff about these experiences in the ER. These sessions are open to all sexual assault nurses working in Illinois hospitals impacted by COVID-19.

SAAM Events

• SAAM Day of Action! Wear teal to show your support of survivors on Tuesday, April 6th.
• Celebrating Resilience Speaker Series featuring Brenda Tracy on Thursday, April 15th, 12-1 PM CT. Register for this free event here.
• Standing Silent Witness on Friday, April 30th.

Virtual 40-Hour Sexual Assault Crisis Intervention Training

March 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, 17, 18
1:00 pm – 5:00 pm

Resilience is conducting a training in which participants will obtain foundational knowledge on sexual violence and rape culture. This training will examine in-depth sexual violence’s impact on individuals, communities, and broader society.

Sheltering in an Unsafe Place

10:30 am – 1:30 pm (CT)
Friday, March 12

Since the city was ordered to shelter in place, rape crisis and domestic violence centers have seen an influx of calls for support. This workshop will guide participants through several scenarios to help them understand how the trauma response shows up in the virtual classroom. More importantly, participants will leave with resources to help young people in need find a path to safety.

Preventing Sexual Violence in Higher Education Trainings

March 26, 2021 10:00 am – 2:30 pm
May 21, 2021 10:00 am – 2:30 pm

This Zoom training will provide an in-depth look at identifying and understanding sexual and intimate partner violence, stalking, and domestic violence. Participants will explore the impact of trauma and trauma responses, as well as legal and medical options for survivors.

Moving Through Sexual Trauma

10:00 am – 1:30 pm (CT)
Friday, April 9

While sexual trauma can significantly impact one’s relationship to the body, therapeutic movement practices can offer pathways towards restoration and healing. Join Resilience trainers for an experiential exploration of trauma-informed approaches to yoga, breath-work, meditation, and dance/movement therapy.

Making Spaces Safe

Thursday, March 25

Making Spaces Safe is a training that Our Music My Body hosting in collaboration with Shawna Potter of the band War on Women. Mark your calendars for an Instagram live on March 18th where Shawna and Maggie Arthur, Resilience's Northside Prevention Educator and OurMusicMyBody Campaign Coordinator, will talk about her band and her work to promote safer music scenes. Details can be found on the OurMusicMyBody website.