The Truth About Sexual Assault on College Campuses: The Campus Sexual Violence Act (Campus SaVE Act) Was Passed on March 2013: The Numbers Are Abysmal. Could the Rate Of Discipline Be Relevant to Victims Reporting?

Infographic created by Workplace Answers

Maya Angelou Recites Her Poem "And Still I Rise" - Her Voice Warms My Soul..... As My Southern Soul Sisters Would Say.... "Just Like Buttah!"

What a beautiful woman with a magical spirit, who overcame such atrocities and eventually emerged, her self and her voice intact. She has been an inspiration to men and women and children, everywhere. Just the sound of her voice spreads warm syrup over my heart... every single time. Sharing this with you on a Sunday morning... hoping it warms your soul and you can share in her tenacious and joyful message... :))  As my Southern sisters would say "Just like buttah!!"

"A Good Man" Is A Short Wonderful Video About LGBT Youth Aftermath & Healing :)

This is a beautiful short animated film made by StoryCorps, about the conversation between two brothers who shared an evening of conversation. They and their 6 other siblings had survived a difficult childhood and had all become completely estranged from their parents. The narrator was the oldest brother who had been cast out of the family the night his father had discovered a love letter exchanged between his son and another guy... This son was literally abandoned in the forest... Somehow, he survived.

Years later, the phone rang...

This film gives us a glimpse into the unspeakable horror with which some children and teens are treated when their families discover that they are "gay" or "lesbian" or "bisexual" or "transgendered." 

Reach out, be sensitive, be kind and be open. PFLAG is an amazing organization and this is an amazing animated short film. Thank you guys. May the dialogues begin... :))

Conflict Resolution Expert Elizabeth Bader Speaks On "The Self of Peace"

Elizabeth Bader presents "The Self of Peace" at the 2012 Self and Duality Conference (SAND) and describes how the issues of the self and identity are "front and center" in the mediation process. Over the course of her legal career, she observed the worst in people: greed, envy, destruction, entrapment in patterns of perpetuation of what people saw as "necessary" in the service of "the self." This coincided with a crisis in her own personal and professional life. She reflected on a prayer she had read: "Bless me into usefulness." 

Ms. Bader began to study the work of others, including Peter Levine (in his work on the trauma of people) and Stephen Porges (in his work on neuroscience.) She learned that through disappointment, the human sense of "self" and "identity" shift in a definable, predictable manner. Disappointment creates the doorway in order to move past the "ego," (which is the limited sense of the self) in order to ever be able to come to any sense of compromise and resolution. "This cycle is what I eventually called the IDR cycle." (Inflation-Deflation-Resolution)

In the first stage, people are inflated (in parallel with the involuntary neurological response to danger "the optimism bias," which is the psychological correlate of the biological shift.) The second phase is one of  deflation. The third phase is realistic resolution and recognition of truth. Impasse is the point at which both sides know that unless they get past this point, there will be no resolution (and what they ultimately seek; which is peace.) "Peace never happens because of another person." It happens when one  surrenders to the truth of the situation and says to oneself "yes, the war is over. I finally have resolution." What a beautiful video. The video clip containing "Blessed Are the Peacemakers" by medicine music.com.au is the cherry on top! Thank you, Ms. Bader.

NBA: Great Man In Basketball! Kevin Durant's MVP Acceptance Speech! Happy Mother's Day!

         After weeks of humiliating headlines about a lot of reprehensible behavior in people in the field of professional sports, Mr. Durant's acceptance speech for his award as Most Valuable Player washes over the viewer like a fresh spring shower!" What a proud mother she must be. What a lovely and humble son... Wow! Sharing this as a hopeful treat to all mothers and sons everywhere... just in time for Mother's Day. 

Brain Flight: Happening TODAY! Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day National Launch

HAPPENING TODAY: 

National Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day National Launch 1:45 p.m. EDT.

Please join us and watch live via http://ow.ly/wx3nh . 

Use Hashtags and Twitter to Join the Conversation. The Instructions Will Be Right There... 

                               (along with the support chat link, too! See you there?) 

Kind regards
- Valerie

Why You Should Put a Poster of a Set of Eyes (or a Mirror) in Your Kitchen, In Your Office, in the Hallway... Thank you, 59 Seconds!

Drownings: 10 Per Day: Water Safety for 6-Month Old Infants on Up- Thank you to JoshtheOtter.org

This beautifully produced video delivers the powerful message in which the Collingsworth family shouts out a tribute and a call to action, in the loving memory of their young son, Josh. Kathy and Blake Collingsworth established a foundation in Josh's name. They have also developed a growing campaign which is designed to teach babies as young as 6 months old to "become the otter" and flip over onto their backs if they encounter a body of water. It only takes a few seconds for our children to elude our supervision- and it only takes a few inches of water in which they can drown. All of the latches, alarms, gates and cameras cannot guarantee that a child cannot elude them. They are mighty ninjas and it is our daunting task to outmaneuver  them. Are we up for the challenge? Deepest gratitude to Kathy and Blake Collingsworth for all of the lives you will continue to save.   

Sam Harris' TED Talk in 2010: Morality Is Relevant in Science; Now More Than Ever

"Through Our Eyes: Children, Violence and Trauma" Thank you, Office for the Victims of Crimes

Eighth Grader Made This Video for a School Project Featuring Problem of Child Abduction

This video was made by a girl named Ava, for her school project where she selected a global issue. It was featured by a website called Reunite International (www.reunite.org) which assists families with international abductions. This video was published in early December, 2013. There is an upcoming annual Child Abduction Conference 2014, hosted by 1 Kings Bench Walk Chambers,  (UK) being held on January 24th, 2014 for lawyers specializing working with these complex cases. The press release states: "Designed for those in the legal profession, the conference will include lectures and open discussions in the company of acknowledged child abduction law specialists, designed to inform and keep attendees up to date with the law in this complex area. To register your attendance please complete the online form which can be found at www.1kbw.co.uk/conferences."

Great Christmas Ad: Teen Make a Gift for His Family: Misunderstood: Challenge Our Assumptions :)) Happy Holidays to Everyone

My Little Niece: A Short Digital Story to Commemorate the Final Day of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence: Thank You, Center for Digital Storytelling and the Asian Women's Shelter

Depression: "I Had a Black Dog" The Equal Opportunity Mongrel... 450,000,000 People Affected by Mental Illness, Worldwide and We CAN Do Something to Help and Heal! Reach Out, Be Authentic and Practice Empathy and Gratitude... That's a Start :)

National Violence Monitoring System (NVMS) is Used in Indonesia to Actualize Their Policy of Sharing Commitment to Reducing Violence