I am a survivor of sexual trauma. If you’re reading this, you probably are too — 1 in 3 women are (and those are just the women who report, meaning the actual number is much higher).
While the work I do to help women create healthy relationships is SO IMPORTANT, it’s just one piece of the puzzle…when a woman reaches out to me, her trauma is usually in the past, and she’s ready to find her partner (and do any healing needed to get there).
But what about people who have just recently gone through sexual abuse or exploitation?
CAASE (Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation) is an organization that helps with advocacy and legislation to help survivors get the justice and counsel they need. CAASE also supports survivors in their healing, and even does prevention-based classes on consent in high schools and other places.
I am passionate about ending the suffering of sexual abuse — and I am partnering with CAASE to support their efforts with a matching campaign this week leading up to my birthday.
This means any donation you make to CAASE now through August 17th not only will help survivors and prevent future sexual exploitation, but I will match all the donations made dollar for dollar and CAASE will match it too.
So your donation will have THREE TIMES the impact — all you have to do is decide how much to give (any amount, from $25 to $250 or more). Just put in the comments my name (Violet Lange) to help us track your generous contribution to ending sexual abuse and exploitation Give here now.
The greatest gift I could receive for my birthday this year is knowing that we collectively are ending sexual abuse and exploitation. Knowing that my daughter-to-be Ruby will live in a different world than I did — a world that’s safer, with swifter justice and more support. To live in a world where consent is the norm and healthy sexual expression is valued.
I recently did a podcast episode with the Executive Director of CAASE, Kaethe Morris Hoffer, which goes live today in iTunes (just search Violet Lange’s The Pleasure Path to listen and subscribe).
You can learn a little more about her below and by listening to our recording — and by getting involved with CAASE by volunteering or donating (all donations will be matched by me and CAASE, tripling your impact).
Kaethe is a powerhouse in changing our society. Kaethe has been working against sexual inequality and sex-based violence for more than twenty years, engaging in feminist advocacy and litigation in many venues. Examples of Kaethe’s past work include the following: Internationally, she represented Equality Now in United Nations proceedings that created the international law against sex trafficking, and served as project manager for a precedent-setting civil lawsuit led by Catharine MacKinnon on behalf of survivors of Bosnian-Serb rape death camps. At the state level, Kaethe served on Governor George Ryan’s Commission on the Status of Women in Illinois, through which she co-authored the Gender Violence Act, and assisted in the development and passage of the Civil No Contact Order Act and the Victims’ Employment Safety and Security Act.
Help me celebrate my birthday by paying it forward for everyone who is struggling to reclaim their body and their voice. I’m so excited to see what we create together! And I am not placing a ceiling on the matching campaign so if you want to give a big amount, I welcome it — make me stretch!
Xoxo, Violet
P.S. women supporting and uplifting women is changing the world and we need your help! End the suffering of sexual abuse and exploitation by supporting CAASE and every dollar you give will be matched by me and by CAASE, tripling your impact. Give here now: http://caase.org/donate
