Bringing the Voices of Survivors to the Forefront

MECASA is organized to end sexual violence in Maine, and survivor perspectives are necessary to meet that goal. While most of our staff have experienced sexual violence, we know that we are not alone—so we created the Survivor Alliance to amplify the voices of survivors, and parents/guardians of minor survivors who have navigated response systems on their child’s behalf, who are not employed in this work.

Survivors in Maine who are ready to help in this way are invited to join the Survivor Alliance to share their experiences of sexual violence to create systems of change and inform programming.

Members will have an opportunity to:	These offerings could include:
Receive training and support in sharing their experiences effectively and in ways that support their healing journeys.	Training on: ·       Public policy advocacy ·       Storytelling ·       Speaking to the press
Engage in culture and systems change through the legislative process and through public storytelling at events and in the media.	Being invited to speak at/with: ·       Legislative hearings ·       Take Back the Night Events ·       Reporters ·       NAESV Advocacy Days (resource permitting)
Inform future sexual violence prevention and response programming.	Being invited to: ·       Take surveys about the direction of future programming ·       Join a focus group ·       Provide feedback on outreach materials

 

What’s the commitment from members?

​Alliance members will be added to a Google Group Listserv where they’ll receive regular communication from MECASA about:
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1. Training,
2. Events or opportunities to share their experiences, and
3. Opportunities to inform MECASA programming.

​The Alliance won’t have regular meetings. Attendance at any training or event is completely optional. 

​We hope that members will...

• Have supports in place, such as advocacy services, counseling/therapy, group support, or peer support services, or have previously engaged in efforts to process experiences of sexual violence and the impacts of trauma.  
• Be ready to, and desire to, share about what happened to them (even if anonymously) 
• Feel prepared to sometimes hear stories about sexual violence that happened to other people and see the phrase “sexual assault” appear regularly in their inbox. 
• Have regular access to the internet and email. 
• Collectively represent a diverse range of sexual violence experiences—child sexual assault, campus sexual assault, military sexual assault, parents/caregivers of child sexual assault, and more.* 
• Collectively represent a diverse range of identities and life experiences.*
• Not be current staff of MECASA, a sexual assault support center, or CAC. 

*We are hoping to have representation of a range of experiences and identities because our work is expansive. Considering legislative advocacy as an example, in just one session we may testify on bills related to human trafficking, workplace sexual harassment, military sexual assault, child sexual abuse, civil legal options for adults under guardianship, reproductive healthcare access for transgender teenagers, service access for people who are incarcerated, etc. We strive to advocate for policies that are informed by lived experience, so we seek diverse perspectives.

​What’s the process for members to join?

1. Potential members can send an email to [email protected] to express interest.
2. We’ll send you back a welcome email that includes a survey for them to complete about themselves.
3. After we receive the survey response we will set up a time for an individual 15-minute phone call to say hello!
4. If everyone agrees that the potential member is a good fit, they will be invited to a longer group welcome call that happens monthly to orient them to the group.
5. Finally, members will be asked to sign a confidentiality agreement and acknowledgment before being added to the group email list.
6. Once in the group, members will be invited to (at least) quarterly training and other public speaking opportunities.