Taking Back Control, launched in 2021, brings together advocates from across the country to talk about the importance of centering survivor stories in the field of gender-based violence.
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Season 3:
Episode 7 | Supreme Court Decisions That Shape Survivor Rights: 2023-2024 Term Digest
In this episode, Kristine Lizdas, Esq. and Rachel Barkley, J.D. dive into key Supreme Court cases from the 2023-2024 term that will have a lasting impact on survivors of domestic violence. They explore landmark rulings like United States v. Rahimi, City of Grants Pass v. Johnson, and Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, breaking down how these decisions affect survivor rights and safety. They will also offer insights into a critical case from the 2024-2025 term that could shape the future of protections for survivors. Tune in for a comprehensive legal update.
Contact:
Kristine Lizdas, Esq.: Klizdas@bwjp.org
Rachel Barkley, J.D.: Rbarkley@bwjp.org
Episode 6 | Providing Meaningful and Effective Representation to Survivors of Domestic Violence: Our North Star
In this episode, the Director of BWJP’s National Center on Legal Approaches to Prevent Family Violence, Kristine Lizdas, speaks with Maria Maier, a family law attorney with the St. Paul and Ramsey County Domestic Abuse Intervention Project (SPIP), and member of the Minnesota Supreme Court’s Standing Committee for the Legal Paraprofessional Pilot Project. Maria speaks with Kristine about Minnesota’s pilot effort to provide nonlawyer legal representation to survivors of domestic violence in specific case-types. Maria shares considerations for using nonlawyers in domestic violence-related cases and recommendations on the mechanics and safeguards that should be built into any effort to provide increased access to representation by nonlawyers to survivors of gender-based violence.
Episode 5 | Battered Woman Syndrome: Helpful Tool or Problematic Framework?
This episode of Taking Back Control dives into the complex issue of presenting evidence in cases involving criminalized survivors, unpacking “battered woman syndrome” (BWS). We’ll chat with Defense Center staff about the use of BWS in criminal court settings and clear up some of the most common misunderstandings of what it is – and what it is not. We’ll discuss the impact of language and explore alternative ways to understand this nuanced issue. Join us for this enriching and entertaining discussion.
Episode 4 | The Realities of Firearms and Domestic Violence
In this month’s episode, we delve into the stark realities of firearms and domestic violence. Joining us are Jennifer Becker, Esq., Director of the National Center on Gun Violence in Relationships, and Dr. April Zeoli. Together, we will explore the deadly intersection of domestic violence and firearms, shedding light on this critical issue. To learn more visit https://www.preventdvgunviolence.org/
Episode 3 | Storytime with a Former Public Defender
Today’s episode will focus on public defense in honor of National Public Defenders Appreciation Day. We are joined by Cindene Pezzell Esq., Director of The National Defense Center for Criminalized Survivors and a major public defender fangirl. Cindene is going to share a few stories from her time as an assistant public defender and talk about why it is crucial for defense attorneys and GBV advocates to join forces when serving criminalized survivors.
Episode 2 | Raising the Voices of Latinas During Hispanic Heritage Awareness Month
BWJP would like to invite you to join us this month as we celebrate and raise the voices and experiences of Latinas at the intersection of gender-based violence (GBV) in observance of Hispanic Heritage Awareness Month. We work to move the needle providing support, education, and innovation to advocates, systems professionals, and policy experts. It is one of our greatest priorities to center the experiences and voices of historically marginalized communities to ensure their specific needs are seen, heard, and met.
Episode 1 | Behind Closed Doors: Unmasking the Lethal Link Between Firearms and Domestic Violence
Did you know the risk of homicide increases by at least 500% when a firearm is present? This means that a woman is five times more likely to be killed by her partner when the partner has access to a firearm. June is National Gun Violence Awareness Month, and BWJP has an all-star lineup of experts in intimate partner violence and firearms to shed light on this deadly crisis.
Season 2:
Episode 8 | How Organizations Can Support Staff Who Are Survivors of GBV
Supporting mothers who are survivors of intimate partner violence is crucial for their physical and emotional well-being, and for the safety and well-being of their children. Providing them with resources and assistance can let them know they are not alone and promote healing and empowerment. Join us as we discuss important steps toward creating a safe work environment for all employees.
Episode 7 | The Impact of IPV on Kids
When people think about intimate partner violence, children are often forgotten about, even though millions of children live in homes surrounded by abuse. In this episode we chat with Ana Martinez-Mullen, Director of the SAFeR project about the connections between different legal systems and how even people working inside them struggle to make sure children aren’t forgotten about. We make connections, problem solve and envision a world where children and their parents are thriving after intimate partner violence.
Useful tools from BWJP and the SAFeR project can be found here: https://bwjp.org/our-work/children/
Episode 6 | Celebrating Bisexual+ Survivors
In this episode, we celebrate and highlight Bisexual+ survivors of intimate partner violence. Bisexual+ people represent a large community under the LGBTQ+ umbrella, with more and more young people identifying as bisexual. We know that bisexual+ people report a higher prevalence of sexual assault, intimate partner violence, and stalking than their heterosexual peers, so in this episode we’re speaking to Andrea Holland at the Bisexual+ Resource Center to find out more about public health, gender-based violence, and the Bisexual+ community.
Find the Bisexual Resource Center at www.biresource.org
Episode 5 | Codifying Coercive Control
This episode builds on our previous one: “Coercive Control in Washington State.” We discuss the benefits and drawbacks of codifying coercive control with Kristine Lizdas, co-Director of BWJP’s Policy Division. We go in-depth about codifying coercive control within the criminal, protection order, and child custody contexts. We discuss BWJP’s recent policy papers on coercive control, and our reasons behind not recommending that coercive control be included in state domestic violence laws.
BWJP’s brief guide on coercive control codification is found here: https://bwjp.org/site-resources/coercive-control-codification-policy-brief-domestic-violence-protection-orders/
BWJP’s coercive control matrix can be found here: https://bwjp.org/site-resources/coercive-control-codification-matrix/
Our policy papers on coercive control can be found here: https://bwjp.org/site-resources/coercive-control-codification-brief-a-guide-for-advocates-and-coalitions/
Episode 4 | Coercive Control in Washington State
Coercive Control is a pattern of threatening, humiliating, or intimidating actions. It is a pattern of behavior that seeks to take away an individual’s liberty or freedom and strip away their sense of self. Coercive Control is designed to make someone dependent, isolating them from support, exploiting them, depriving them of independence, and regulating their everyday behavior.
Many survivors and professionals in the field of gender-based violence are discussing the importance of coercive control to a full understanding of intimate partner violence. In this episode, we discuss the push to include coercive control in the laws of the state of Washington with Heather Wehr, Legal Advocacy Program Coordinator at the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence, www.wscadv.org
A report on HB 1901, the Washington bill codifying coercive control in protection orders and discussed in this episode, is found here.
Episode 3 | The Open Secret
In this episode we speak with BWJP’s own Dave Keck, the Director of the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence and Firearms, and Jennifer Gollan, a print journalist experienced in reporting on the connection between firearms and gender-based violence, who has worked on a year-long series about the connection between domestic violence and illegal guns. Dave and Jennifer discuss a crisis: across the U.S. laws prohibit abusers from possessing guns, but these laws aren’t enforced. That firearms surrender works on the honor system. This is The Open Secret.
Jennifer Gollan’s latest article on firearms and domestic violence, “Revealed: U.S. police consistently miss red flags – and domestic abuse turns deadly,” published in The Guardian, is linked here. Her twitter is @jennifergollan.
Episode 3 | Justice for Survivors Charged with Crimes
The criminalization of survivors of gender-based violence is not new. Survivors end up inside the criminal justice system in so many ways. We talk to Cindene Pezzell, Legal Director of the National Clearinghouse for the Defense of Battered Women, an organization working for criminalized survivors since 1987. We discuss what we would do if we had a magic wand and could fix how the criminal justice system relates to survivors.
Episode 2 | Teens Deserve Protection Too
Teens and young people deserve to be safe from abusive behaviors. Did you know that most jurisdictions have a separate process for teens to receive protection orders? In this episode, we talk with BWJP Attorney-Advisor Sarah Henry about what the National Center on Protective Orders and Full Faith and Credit does to help teens and their families understand the laws around protection orders.
Episode 1 | Using Our Platform to Inform Policy
The best national policy is informed by the real-world experiences of the people who policies affect. BWJP recently responded to the Biden Administration’s National Strategy on Gender Equity and Equality. In this episode, we talk to BWJP CEO Amy Sánchez about our response and why organizations should engage with national policy decisions.
Season 1:
Episode 8 | The Loyalty Trap: Black Women, Domestic Violence, and Firearms
In the 1980s, Dr. Beth Ritchie coined the concept of “The Trap of Loyalty.” The term refers to the immense pressure that black women feel to protect black men even at the expense of their own bodies. In this episode, Alicia Nichols, Deputy Director of the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence and Firearms joins Christina Jones to interview Lashonia Thompson-El and Tiffany Garner about the incredible danger that domestic violence and guns are to black women.
Episode 7 | The Lived Perspectives of Latina Survivors
Rosario de la Torre es Co-directora de apoyo a las familias y participación comunitaria de la organización Esperanza United. Rosario a dedicado su vida profesional a ser intercesora de las mujeres latinas sobrevivientes de violencia de género y a abogar por la comunidad. A raíz de su labor, Rosario conoce las deficiencias del sistema y sus limitaciones en cuanto a la comunidad latina se refiere. En este episodio, moderado por Ana Martínez-Mullen de BWJP, Rosario explora la realidad de la comunidad latina y profundiza en cómo el sistema puede servir mejor a las mujeres latinas y sus familias. Este episodio está grabado en español.
Episode 6 | How We Can Better Serve Victim-Survivors Who Identify as LGBTQ+
The most predictive indicator of domestic violence is gender. In most cases, a woman is being abused by a man. Most systems operate with the assumption that a woman is being abused by a man. But how do systems treat people who are in same sex relationships?
Episode 5 | Reclaiming Bodily Sovereignty
Centering the stories of Native women and girls are essential because they are disproportionately impacted by intimate partner violence. In this episode, we talk to Dr. Corrine Sanchez of Tewa Women United to dig deeper in what it means to reclaim bodily sovereignty for Native women and girls.
Episode 4 | Center the Stories of the Hmong Community
In this episode, we talk to Kabzuag Vaj, Co-Executive Director of Freedom, Inc. Kabzuag is a longtime advocate and proud Hmong-American who has spent her life working to build collective power and social change. We talk to her about the intersection of firearms and domestic violence and the different ways in which communities can tell their stories.
Episode 3 | Hearing the Authentic Voices of Black Women
Advocates across the country have been doing some amazing work in culturally specific communities. Antonia Drew Vann, Director and Founder of the The Asha Project, has been working with black survivors of domestic violence for over 30 years. In this episode, we dive into the importance of culturally specific services and why the movement needs to hear the authentic voices of black women.
Episode 2 | The Stories That We Tell
In this episode, we talk with BWJP Chief Strategy Officer Dr. Sujata Warrier about the history of the advocacy movement and the importance of using your privilege to lift up others.
Episode 1 | Organizational Shifts and How to Bring Your Whole Self to Work
Welcome to Episode 1 of BWJP Present’s Taking Back Control. In this inaugural episode, we talk to BWJP CEO Amy Sanchez about the importance of bringing your full self to the table and the importance of amplifying the voices of marginalized survivors of gender-based-violence.