March is Women’s History Month! It is a time to celebrate and honor our decolonial aunties, Black, Indigenous, and women of color who continue to advocate, influence and nourish our communities during these times of unbalance. We believe in our fiercely loving aunties fighting to restore balance to our lives, communities and movements. This year, our women’s history month theme is Decolonial Aunties: Their Stories is Our Story.
This month, join the Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women (CSVANW) as we honor all Black, Indigenous, and women of color working in and with tribal communities as leaders, politicians, organizers, caretakers, artists, teachers, thought leaders, healthcare workers, advocates, land and water protectors, lawyers, first responders, scientists, and the list goes on. These women continue to flourish to make our communities safe and resilient. They inspire a new generation of young folks to become leaders in their own communities.
#WomensHistoryMonth #WHM
Ma-gu-wam. Hello Advocates,
I hope everyone is doing well. This month will be a very busy one for the Coalition and I want to apologize in advance for my delays in responses to emails. We are planning for the Tribal Leaders Summit coming up at the end of the month and I am also in the middle of writing our continuation grant with CVRC STOP VAWA to be able to support our advocates so they may continue to support our Indigenous families they serve. If your tribe is needing assistance with also applying, please let me know so we can help support. I want to remind our advocates of our up-coming CSVANW Advocate meetings set in March. Our first meeting will be a training with Renae Swope on TLGBQ+ 101 on March 3rd at 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM. I will list important dates to keep in mind for advocates here:
March 8th , 10th, 15th, 17th, 22nd, 24th, 29th, & 31st 2022 – Native Focused 40 Hour Sexual Assualt Advocacy Training provided by Minnesota Indian Women’s Sexual Assault Coalition. https://www.miwsac.
March 15, 2022 – CVRC monthly Zoom Trainings on Victim Compensation and Emergency Funds @10:00 AM-11:00 AM https://us02web.zoom.us/j/
March 17, 2022- CSVANW Advocate Community Meeting/support group
March 28, 2022- CVRC STOP VAWA grant proposals due
March 30th-31st -Tribal Leaders Summit
Lucretia Williams is the victim service coordinator for the Pueblo of Santa Clara located near Espanola, New Mexico. The tribe was awarded funding through the Department of Justice, Office for Victims of Crimes (OVC) FY2018 Tribal Victim Services Set-Aside grant to implement a victim service program. With this opportunity, Mrs. Williams is leading efforts to set up the program that would assist all victims of crime; a program that would offer confidential support and services and coordinated efforts to help victims. Lucretia received her Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Indiana University Northwest and has previous experience in tourism, hospitality, retail, human resources, housing and tribal education as well as volunteer youth basketball coach. Lucretia Williams, is a tribal member from Santa Clara Pueblo, where she resides with her husband, their four children and their cat. She enjoys watching her children play and compete in sports throughout the year, walking during the warmer months, coffee, reading and the occasional Netflix docuseries.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Thank you Lucretia for all your hard work in serving your community. We honor you and uplift you! Congratulations for being CSVANW Advocate of the Month! Stay strong.
Tiffany Jiron
Advocate Coordinator for CSVANW
February 4, 2022 – CSVANW joined advocates, impacted families, and NM Legislators on February 4, 2021 in Santa Fe, NM for a March to the State Capitol to raise awareness for MMIW at Indian Day at the NM State Legislature. Our executive director gave remarks alongside Senator Pinto, Delegate Amber Crotty, and Pamela Foster.
February 9 & 23, 2022 – Our Native Youth Program Coordinator Jovita Belgarde held a Native Youth Council recruitment event where she invited Native teens ages 13-17 to come play games, win prizes, and learn about joining the CSVANW Native Youth Council.
February 2, 2022 – Our Native Youth Program Coordinator Jovita Belgarde gave a presentation on Consent and Setting Boundaries to 61 Juniors at the Santa Fe Indian School. She explained what consent and boundaries are and how to ask for consent and how to set boundaries
February 11, 2022 – Our Native Youth Program Coordinator Jovita Belgarde gave a presentation on Teen Dating Violence to 20 seniors at the Santa Fe Indian School. She explained how to recognize Teen Dating Violence, resources for teen dating violence and some prevention strategies.
February 15, 2022 – The CSVANW Staff Community came together in February to plan our year ahead. We co-created some big decisions for the way we will engage with our community, take larger organizational stances, and root ourselves in a one year strategy rooted in relationship building. As a result of our time together, we believe CSVANW will be more balanced, retain our amazing staff and establish longevity and high expectations for ourselves and the community.
February 17, 2022 – Domestic violence creates significant fear and trauma for survivors, but for many, the impacts of systemic racism and oppression further violate their trust in systems and isolate them from being able to access resources to seek safety and healing. Meaningful inclusion requires us to amplify the voices and experiences of diverse communities. In this training and panel discussion, you will hear the perspectives of advocates with diverse identities as they discuss the challenges, barriers, and impacts of oppression that survivors in unserved and underserved communities face, as well as learn how to create impactful inclusion in your advocacy work with domestic violence survivors. Hosted by The Ohio National Domestic Violence Network http://events.r20.
February 23, 2022 – CSVANW’s Sexual Violence Project Coordinator, Floripa Olguin, participated in a discussion with college students at Savannah School of Art and Design’s Women’s Empowerment Club about the coalition’s founding, focus area, and a discussion on women’s empowerment in indigenous communities.
February 24, 2022 – Our Native Youth Program Coordinator Jovita Belgarde gave a presentation on Consent and Setting Boundaries to the Proud Indigenous Youth Leaders program. She explained what consent and boundaries are and how to use them.
February 25, 2022 – Our Native Youth Program Coordinator Jovita Belgarde gave a presentation on Teen Dating Violence to Bureau of Education staff that work in the dorms. She explained how to recognize Teen Dating Violence, resources for teen dating violence and some prevention strategies.