FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, August 20, 2020

– Joint Press Release –

WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre and Just Outcomes Launches the  Changing Systems Through Transformative Justice Project, Funded By Vancouver Foundation

(Vancouver, BC) — WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre, in partnership with Just Outcomes, is pleased to announce the launch of their three-year Changing Systems Through Transformative Justice Project, funded by Vancouver Foundation. Through this Project, WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre and Just Outcomes Consulting will offer Transformative Justice to survivors of sexualized violence.

A community leader and expert on sexualized violence, WAVAW has witnessed the critical need for a change to the systems, policies and resources that survivors encounter following an experience of sexualized violence. WAVAW has heard for more than 38 years, that regardless of rulings, engaging with the criminal justice system often does not result in feelings of healing or justice for survivors of sexualized violence. Transformative Justice aims to ensure survivor safety, healing and agency; cultivate accountability and transformation of those who harmed; involve community response and accountability; and support transformation of social conditions that create and perpetuate violence.

“Feminists, particularly feminists of colour, have long argued that the criminal justice system is not successful in reducing rates of sexualized violence, or offering healing and justice to survivors,” shares WAVAW Executive Director, Dalya Israel. “Survivors have diverse needs when it comes to justice; therefore, there must also be diverse options to access justice. We are excited to offer survivors another path to justice through our Transformative Justice pilot project”.

Just Outcomes is a Restorative Justice organization that shares WAVAW’s belief in the potential of Transformative Justice to connect survivors to healing and justice. “Just Outcomes is thrilled to be partnering with WAVAW on this vital and timely initiative. We know this project has enormous potential to stimulate new societal discourse and create long-overdue options for survivors of sexual assault,” says Catharine Bargen of Just Outcomes.

$300,000 in funds from Vancouver Foundation’s Systems Change funding stream will be allocated over three years for WAVAW’s Changing Systems Through Transformative Justice project; which commences in October 2020. “In order for support services to be responsive of the survivors we serve, we must look at options outside of the criminal justice system and restorative justice practices,” says Dalya Israel. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to partner with Just Outcomes to deliver Transformative Justice to survivors of sexualized violence”. 

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Media Contacts
Dalya Israel
Executive Director, WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre
604-255-6228 x 224
dalya@salalsvsc.ca

Catherine Bargen
Just Outcomes Consulting
604-308-2068
catherine@justoutcomesconsulting.com

WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre

WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre provides free-of-charge, support services to survivors of sexualized violence with shared experiences of gendered oppression including cis and trans women and trans, non-binary and Two-Spirit survivors. Support services include 24hr crisis line.victim services, hospital, court, and police accompaniments, and individual and group counselling. Gender-based violence is systemic, and our work goes beyond service provision to advocating for and enacting change within our society to create safer communities. Despite being BC’s largest sexual assault centre, and managing a caseload of more than 300 survivors at any given time, the waitlist to access free-of-charge counselling at WAVAW is almost 2 years long. 

Just Outcomes Consulting
Just Outcomes Consulting is an agency dedicated to supporting organizations and communities in developing just responses to harmful actions or situations. Since 2014, Just Outcomes has been actively providing restorative justice services in numerous contexts including courts, schools, workplaces and prisons. Advocates of a victim-centred approach to restorative and transformative justice approaches, they believe that victims/survivors and the communities that serve them should have access to restorative and transformative justice services when requested.