Tag: bystander

What is a Green Dot?

“Green Dot, etc.” is a five year strategy designed to engage ALL community members in the effort to decrease violence. It uses awareness, education and skill-practice to encourage proactive behaviors that establish intolerance of norms that support violence. The goal is for individuals and groups to engage in a basic education program that will equip them to integrate moments of prevention and intervention within their existing relationships and daily activities. It reinforces the community members that they CAN make a difference. Perhaps more importantly, it engages them actively in norm changing behavior that ultimately will lay the groundwork for a culture within our community that does not tolerate violence. The “Green Dot, etc.” does not require that a group or individual has any understanding of domestic, sexual or dating violence. It does not require a particular perspective or a point of view. It allows us to meet people where they are and engage every member of our community in the work to end violence.
So, what is a green dot? A green dot is an individual action, activity or statement that communicates to someone else that violence is not okay. Often a green dot happens when someone sees something that indicates that violence is possible, is imminent or has already happened. It might be a dangerous situation, something you know is wrong or something that just makes you uncomfortable. A green dot can be as simple as a check in: “Are you okay?” or “Do you need some help?” A green dot can also happen without the presence of violence. You can just tell a friend a cool story of when someone kept someone else safe or put a poster in the window at your workplace or business, or wear a green dot pin. The idea is that small changes add up to cultural change. We all just need to say or do something that lets others know that violence is not okay with us and we are willing to do our part to stop it.
Seems so simple! Unfortunately, sometimes obstacles get in the way of us doing our green dots. We might be shy, worried about what others will say, think it’s none of our business, don’t want to get involved, afraid of retaliation or just don’t know what to do. “Green Dot, etc.” teaches us to be aware of our obstacles and to come up with new and creative ways to initiate a green dot that feels comfortable given those obstacles. It doesn’t matter what you do. It just matters that you do something! Enough green dots and we WILL change the culture that supports violence in our community.
The “Green Dot, etc.” does not ask you to change who you are or what you believe. We have just recently begun implementation of a five year “Green Dot, etc.” strategy locally. We can come to your organization, place of business, agency, community group or church and give a green dot presentation. It is free and we can customize the presentation to the types of issues your particular group sees or hears about. If you would like us to give a presentation to your group, give Marcy a call at 541-592-5332. We can do a very brief presentation (5-15 minutes) to a large group and/or or a more extended and interactive presentation to those who are interested in the brief overview. The presentation provides a framework to engage the broader community and creates a common language. We are very excited about the program and we believe that this strategy could make a REAL difference in our community. Follow us on twitter @ivgreendot.
P.S. Calling and asking about a presentation is a green dot!

It’s Not Just a Woman’s Issue

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The Walk

I walk “The Walk” so she never has to.
When we opened our doors for services in 2002, we knew there were compelling reasons to have services based in Cave Junction. These community-based services have saved lives and provided crisis and long-term support to over 6,000 survivors. Over the course of the twelve years we’ve worked hard to educate our community, our partners and funders that survivors need accessible services. We’ve made progress, but there is still work to be done.
Alliance staff and some close friends and family plan to walk the 30 miles into Grants Pass to get the word out, we all need to walk the walk if we want to end the violence against women. We’ve never done this sort of event before, so we’re beta-testing it ourselves with the hope it becomes an annual event.
A survivor that we worked with early on once said, “It might as well have been to the moon,” when we talked about her reaching out for support in Grants Pass and being told she would need to get to Grants Pass if she wanted to access help. That happened before we opened our doors, but it remains a common theme when we sit down the first time with survivors.
The Alliance approaches ending violence against women from three different perspectives: intervention, prevention and community engagement. This walk will raise funds for the intervention and prevention work, but the walk itself is another effort to engage the community in our work.
You’ll have an opportunity to sponsor walkers with a donation by the mile or a set amount. We’re in the process of designing a t-shirt for the walkers, but we’ll have extra t-shirts and grocery bags with the walk logo on them if you’d like to purchase them. You can call the office at 541.592.2515 for more information on how to sponsor a walker or to order a t-shirt or a grocery bag. Walkers will also be walking door to door to get sponsors. They’ll be wearing the t-shirt and have badges so you can be assured they are from the Alliance.
By the time the walk comes around we’ll each have walked between 100 to 300 miles to prepare for this event! We are proud to walk “The Walk,” so she never has to.

Training Opportunity

On March 31, 2014, the Alliance will be offering a three hour training for volunteers, community partners and anyone interested in improving their response to victims of abuse. The topics to be covered will be:

  • The Batterer as Parent – including how a batterer interacts with his children and the other parent as a victim.
  • Domestic Violence and Children- what happens to a child when exposed to domestic violence?
  • Sexual Assault- an overview including statistics, effect on the victim, drug facilitated rape.
  • Drugs, Alcohol and Domestic Violence– does drinking cause violence? How victims cope and how it increases lethality.

The training will begin at 9:00am and end at 12:00pm and refreshments will be served. All attendees will receive a certificate of completion.

This training includes part of the basic components for the required Department of Human Services employees’ training.