April 3, 2019

Sexual Assault Awareness Month is a great time to remind you that the Idaho Coalition provides civil legal assistance for survivors of sexual violence aged 11-24. Civil legal assistance needed by survivors can take many forms, and may include help:

• Navigating educational or administrative processes. This type of assistance is often necessary if the assault took place on school or employer property, or the assailant was someone the survivor goes to school or works with. We can also help if the assault took placed under another context, and the survivor needs to seek accommodations at school or work to allow them to continue to learn or earn income.
• With housing concerns. From negotiating with a landlord to allow early termination of a lease agreement, to putting extra security measures in place, we can help provide a survivor options and work with them to get safe and secure housing.
• Moving through the criminal justice system. The criminal justice system is confusing, and survivors often don’t understand why law enforcement and prosecutors make the decisions they do. We can engage in discussions with system actors to get more information and make sure the survivor’s voice is heard.
• With related immigration concerns. If a survivor you are working with has immigration concerns related to reporting the assault or seeking services, we can help connect the survivor with a qualified immigration attorney (at no cost to the survivor) to discuss options.

We can also assist with protecting records and survivor privacy, seeking crime victim assistance and other funds available to recoup financial losses, as well as make referrals to attorneys that may be able to help in other areas (such as monetary recovery through civil law suits). Consultations can be done by phone or if necessary for representation we can come to your site to meet with the client. To make a referral to the Idaho Coalition civil legal assistance program, please contact Annie at annie@engagingvoices.org.

---

Annie Pelletier Hightower
annie@engagingvoices.org

Reach out to me for:

• Law and Policy
• Legislative Updates
• Title IX

April 24, 2019 is Denim Day

The Women’s and Children’s Alliance (WCA) generously offered to share Denim Day materials to sister programs throughout the state. Below, WCA materials have been shared without distinguishing logos so programs may localize the materials with their information.

What is Denim Day? Denim Day is a day-long awareness campaign that allows us to honor survivors of sexual assault and start conversations about the dangers of victim blaming.

Why denim? In the late 90’s an 18-year-old Italian girl was sexually assaulted by her 45-year-old male driving instructor. While he was initially convicted of the crime and sent to prison, the ruling was later overturned by the Italian Supreme Court because the justices felt that because the victim wore tight jeans, she must have helped remove them thereby making the act consensual.

The following day the women of the Italian Legislature protested this decision by wearing jeans to work. As news of the decision spread, so did the protests. In 1999, an agency in Los Angeles, CA established the first Denim Day in the US—a tradition that has grown and continued since.

Sexual assault and victim blaming are issues that not only demand your attention – they deserve your action. The WCA would love for programs throughout the state to join them for Denim Day to help raise awareness of these issues and increase visibility of the local resources available to victims of sexual assault and victim blaming.

MATERIALS

• Customizable Denim Day Poster (11 x 17)
• Customizable Denim Day Flyer (8.5 x 11)
• Denim Day Sticker – Ask Me About Denim Day
• Denim Day Postcards

Thank you to the WCA for the shared materials and for their list highlighting “ways to get involved”:

• Wear denim or, if jeans are not an option in your work environment, wear an “Ask Me About Denim Day” sticker, denim ribbon, or bracelet on April 24th, 2019. Order WCA Denim Day materials here.
• Start a conversation with your friends, family, and/or coworkers by sharing statistics and definitions surrounding the issues of sexual assault
• Host an awareness event at your work or within your community
• Print posters and flyers for Denim Day
• Post photos, statistics, and info about local resources and share on social media with the hashtag #DenimDay, your program, and #WCABoise. Don’t forget to tag the WCA’s social media pages and they will share your photo as well!

Questions for how to implement Denim Day in your area? Contact the WCA Outreach Team at outreach@wcaboise.org.

Training & Events

Stories of Transformation
Thursday, April 11th | Doors Open at 6:00 | Reading 6:30 – 8:30 PM | Linen Building
Published author/s and schools will be celebrated at the 10th Annual Stories of Transformation Poetry Celebration.

We invite students, families, friends, and educators to help celebrate all of the winning authors from this year’s writing challenge; admission is FREE!

Housing Justice For All: A Collaborative Movement
hosted by Intermountain Fair Housing Council
Thursday, April 4, 2019 | 8:30 – 4:30 pm MST
The Linen Building | 1402 West Grove Street Boise, ID 83702

At this event, we will build on Idaho Fair Housing Councils’s 2018 Vision Summit by shaping a movement to create homes and community for all. Cost of workshop is $25.00 per person. Please register each person attending. For any individual or organization that is unable to pay the registration fee, there is a zero-cost scholarship option. Please contact llopez@ifhcidaho.org.

Facilitators: Attorneys Alison Brace and Zoe Ann Olson of IFHC, D&C Moderator Ana Chavez, IFHC

Register here

Annual Idaho Prevention and Support Conference
Idaho Department of Education
April 18th-19th | Sun Valley, ID

The Annual Idaho Prevention & Support Conference is a gathering focused on innovation, best practices, collective problem-solving, and motivation to most effectively address youth risk behaviors, foster optimal health, and support academic success for Idaho students.

Registration Information

Idaho Safety & Resilience Conference
June 6th and 7th | The Riverside Hotel | 2900 W Chinden Blvd Boise, ID

Idaho Safety & Resilience Conference is a two (2) day multi-disciplinary conference for professionals working in the area of domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, investigations, interviewing, assessment, and neglect.

Registration information

Intermountain Fair Housing Council | Statewide Training Events

Fair Housing Training | Spokane, WA
Thursday, April 11, 2019 8:30am-4:15pm
Spokane Convention Center, Spokane, WA
Register now

Fair Housing Training | Idaho Falls, ID
Wednesday, April 24, 2019 8:30am-4:30pm
Colonial Theater, Idaho Falls Idaho
Register now

Fair Housing Training | Moscow, ID
Wednesday, September 18, 2019 8:30am-4:30pm
Moscow, Idaho
Register now

Fair Housing Training | Lewiston, ID
Thursday, September 19, 2019 8:30am-4:30pm
Lewiston, Idaho
Register now

Fair Housing Training | Coeur d’ Alene, ID
Fall Date To Be Determined
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
Register now

Community Members, Housing Providers, Advocates, Government Personnel, and Attorneys encouraged to attend.

Idaho Coalition Store Materials

Reminder that shipping for all material orders made by Programs on the Idaho Coalition website store is FREE of cost, please use the below coupon for all orders.

Visit the online store to view current Idaho Coalition materials available for order. For store questions, please contact Lacey Sinn.

Coupon Code

Membership