The liberation of people experiencing gender-based violence is directly tied with the liberation of those who experience racism, transphobia, ableism, classism, and all other forms of oppression. We cannot end dating violence, domestic violence, sexual violence, and stalking without coming together with our community to care for one another, illuminate each other’s strengths, and protect each other. Our movement is strongest when we work together.

True justice is first and foremost defined by the survivor. We commit to providing services that allow survivors to decide what justice looks like to them and to provide resources that empower that decision. We acknowledge that the criminal legal system does not feel safe or empowering to many survivors and has often caused harm and re-traumatization, particularly among the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color and LGBTQIA+ communities. To this end, we will continue to listen to survivors of varying backgrounds, identities and experiences and use their feedback to help us provide the most comprehensive approach to achieving justice for each service user.

As a non-profit, we acknowledge that we have caused harm through our complicity in the non-profit industrial complex and will continue to cause harm if we do not create processes by which to hold ourselves accountable to survivors, especially marginalized survivors, in Addison County. We work to adapt and transform ourselves as individuals, as a non-profit organization, and as part of a collective in the movement to end violence.

We believe that safety and equitable access to resources is the bare minimum human right when it comes to supporting survivors and eradicating violence. We wholeheartedly support the notion that all people deserve to feel, express, and embody joy. Our desire for joy is the root of our activism and plays a critical role in our advocacy. Joy precedes, coincides with, and emanates from our work. We emphasize wellness of our community and staff, and support all in their efforts towards self-care and finding and creating joy.

All people are entitled to physical, psychological, and emotional safety. What safety means and looks like is defined by each individual on their own terms – survivors are the experts of their own experiences and know what they need to be safe. We commit to empowering each survivor to define what safety looks like for themselves. WomenSafe strives to provide a community-wide prevention based educational program that teaches what it means to be a safe person.