sexual assault

Safeplace – My Story on Its Origins and Early Work – By Carolyn Byerly

by

Before there was Safeplace, there were the Rape Relief and the Women’s Shelter programs at the Olympia YWCA. Each had a paid coordinator, with the work of the programs carried on by trained volunteers. That work initially involved taking calls from women who had been battered or sexually assaulted to support them through the police reporting process, hospital exams, finding shelter (if needed), and accompanying them to court. In time, an educational component evolved as both groups were called on to speak to community groups about the problems we addressed. It was cutting edge feminist work, and our community was among the first in the US to establish these programs. 

Women Against Violence Against Women (WAVAW) – By Carolyn Byerly

by

My media activism began in 1977 through a group called Women Against Violence Against Women. WAVAW began in Los Angeles when feminists rebelled against a promotional campaign for the Rolling Stones album Black and Blue . . . The visuals featured . . . a stylized photo of a woman bearing bruises and a gag in her mouth that was captioned “I’m black and blue by the Rolling Stones and I love it!” Feminists were known to scrawl their own messages across these promotionals.