About Us
SCESA was born out of a desire for Women of Color in the anti-sexual assault movement across the country to reclaim our leadership and ensure inclusion of our experiences in ending sexual assault.
As an anti-sexual assault organization, we understand that sexual assault is a symptom of a larger problem that reinforces an environment which allows violence to exist and a society that has deemed some people as less deserving. Therefore, we must also address social justice issues that can create a vulnerability to sexual assault as well as impact on a survivor's ability to heal. These include numerous social justice issues however, based on feedback received from Women of Color working in the local community, we have chosen to currently focus on Housing, Immigration, Economics and Health. Further, we recognize that the silence that surrounds incest in our communities is alarming and therefore, we must focus on ways to address this within our communities.
SCESA's fundamental principal is to work with our communities to give voice and develop action strategies that incorporate and address the multiple layers of discrimination that are faced by Women of Color.
We employ a multi-strategy approach of:
- Supporting and enhancing the leadership of Women of Color;
- Advocacy and support for organizations by and for Communities of Color to assist in their efforts to raise the consciousness, outrage and accountability within their communities regarding violence against women;
- Education and training on sexual assault and Communities of Color;
- Advocacy strategies to ensure that the realities of our communities inform systems change and public policy; and
- Collaborative efforts with other social justice movements to create an environment where all forms of injustices cease to exist.
