Violence UnSilenced on Momocrats, plus a VU refresher
October is National Domestic Violence Awareness month, and I’m thrilled to tell you there are several news outlets that have asked to highlight Violence UnSilenced. What you are all doing here is so important, and more and more people take notice each day. I’m so proud of you all.
Editor and writer Julie Pippert featured Violence UnSilenced today on Momocrats. It’s a lovely article and I encourage you to check it out.
I thought this might be a good time to offer a quick refresher on the Violence UnSilenced project. Please pass this post on; it is highly likely you know someone who needs it, whether you realize it or not. Domestic violence and sexual abuse/assault impact all of our lives.
* Violence UnSilenced features two survivor stories each week, on Monday and Thursday at noon central time. At this point in time I don’t want to run them more frequently, because I want each survivor to have sufficient time to garner support from the community.
* Anyone can have his or her story posted on Violence UnSilenced. You don’t have to be a “writer”, you don’t have to be a blogger, you don’t have to go through an approval process.
* This site is not just for survivors. Perhaps just as importantly it’s for non-survivors to listen to and support the brave people willing to speak out. Each comment is so important. You can also show your support and help spread the word about VU by “taking the pledge,” wherein you paste this badge on your website and I add your blog to the blogroll.
* Violence UnSilenced is not a forum. It is not a space for debate, or free and open discussion. This is a safe space, and only supportive comments are tolerated.
* If you would like to submit your story, email it to me at maggie [at] violenceunsilenced [dot] com and I will add it to the queue. Please try to keep your post between 700-900 words. Due to the number of submissions it may take me a day or two to respond. If you do not hear from me within three days please resubmit.
* PLEASE DO NOT POST YOUR VIOLENCE UNSILENCED STORY ON YOUR OWN BLOG. We can work together on supplmentary posts, but fresh material here is appreciated.
* I will never run your story without contacting you first. You will always have some warning, and the opportunity to make additional changes to your piece.
* Since Violence UnSilenced launched in February 2009, we’ve had a several month wait list. Submissions, with some exceptions, are run in the order in which I receive them.
* We have added a Wednesday Q&A feature. If there is something you would like to know about domestic violence and/or sexual assault, please email our volunteer expert Carrie K. at carrie [at] violence unsilenced [dot] com.
Thank you again to every single one of you for making this site possible. Thank you, Mojo, not only for the badges and your insightful comments and relentless promotion of VU, but for dealing with every single technical issue that arises. Thank you, Samantha, for your mad design skills and donated hosting fees, not to mention the barage of there’s-no-such-thing-as-a-stupid-question emails you get from me. Thank you, Carrie, for stepping up and running the Wednesday Q&A on your own, your only payment a whole bunch of grins from me. Thank you to every single one of you who has taken the pledge, who has left a supportive comment, who has shared and retweeted posts.
Most of all, thank you to the brave survivors. If you were not willing to speak out, there would be no Violence UnSilenced. I’m eternally grateful for your bravery.
As I said in the Momcrats interview, I firmly believe in the power of speaking out, in calling domestic violence what it is. I truly believe each one of us has a mandate to empower survivors by stripping abusers of their favorite weapons: secrecy and shame. I believe we can do this by talking about it constantly. Normalizing it. Really listening to and supporting those who speak out.
Thank you all for being the change.
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For a reminder of what else you can do to honor National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, read this recent Q&A.
5 Responses to “Violence UnSilenced on Momocrats, plus a VU refresher”
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Thank you so much for all the hard work that goes into building VU. I am very glad that I found this site. I am always overwhelmed by society’s lack of understanding and care for the victims of domestic violence. You have a tough job but it is worth it! I hope and pray that much more light is shed on domestic violence and that many more victims will be set free because of the work you do!
Thanks
And since you can’t very well thank yourself, let me add my thanks to you sis. Without your vision, without your dedication… hell, just without you VU would not exist. Someone else might have eventually come up with the idea, but it would not be what it is. It would not be Violence UnSilenced.
And I am damned proud to be associated with it, even if it’s only peripherally.
thank you, maggie, for…well, for being you and bringing it here.
Thank YOU, Maggie.
Thanks for giving survivors a voice.