Tuesday, October 13, 2009

My visit with STAR (Standing Together Against Rape)

After last weeks rally, and the emotional response to my post about it, I found myself a little stuck. I could not seem to stop thinking about sexual assault and the incredibly high number of them in Alaska.

As a lifelong resident of Alaska I have always been aware that we led the nation in rape, as we do in alcohol consumption and incest. These are troubling statistics to be sure, but for most of us they are simply numbers with no familiar faces or emotional impact to accompany them. At least that is what we like to believe.

The facts indicate that victims of sexual assault in Alaska are invariably people that we know. They are the cashier at the local Carrs grocery store, the receptionist at the law office down the road, the Barista making your Cappuccino on your way to work, the little girl at your doors selling you Girl Scout cookies, or even the male mechanic changing your oil. The chances are very good that one, and perhaps even ALL of these people have been sexually assaulted at one time in their lives. You may never be aware of the pain and shame that they carry with them as they live their lives, raise their children, and struggle to trust the people in their lives, but that does not mean it does not exist.

So I decided to visit the offices of STAR in midtown Anchorage, to get an education about just how prevalent this problem is in our community.

During my visit to STAR, talking with Program Director Keeley Olson and Kirsten Strolle, I learned that 1 in 3 women, and 1 in 6 men, in Alaska will be the victim of a sexual assault in their lifetime. (This number includes abuse which happens in childhood.) Just this year alone, from January to September there have been 202 incidents reported to SART (Sexual Assault Response Team) and 760 incidents of assault against children. And those are only the ones that have been reported in Anchorage. Assaults that happen in other parts of the state are reported to other STAR offices, if they are reported at all.

These numbers are dramatically larger than the national numbers, which have 1 in 6 women and 1 in 33 men suffering sexual assault.

This disparity was so shocking that, of course, I wanted to know why.

Since we also have a high incidence of alcoholism, I asked how many of these assaults were alcohol related. I was reminded that being drunk was no excuse for assault, which of course I knew, but I suppose I was also looking for something handy to blame for this terrible crime. I expected that alcohol would be a factor in the majority of these cases, but no. I was told it was a factor in only about half of these incidents, which means that half of these cowards were in complete control of their faculties when they decided to rape a child or assault a family member or friend. (Did I mention that almost ALL sexual assaults are done by somebody the victim knows?)

I also learned that the majority of victims of adult sexual assault had been victimized as children, that the predators are often witnesses of domestic abuse as children, and that when the PFD(Permanent Fund Dividend) checks are issued the number of assaults double in size.

As I absorbed these heartrending statistics I was confronted by even more discouraging information.

Apparently even after a woman, man, or child, reports a sexual assault, after they have had to recount the painful story to a STAR employee, and again to an Anchorage police officer, and then undergone an intrusive and dehumanizing medical exam to gather evidence, it then gets sent to a lab out of state. And at this lab, believe it or not, it can take YEARS for the sample to be processed.

Until this is processed there will be NO prison time for the assailant, without witnesses or a confession. So for years the victim may still be living in close proximity, or even in the same house, as their attacker unless they have been removed by the state (in the case of children) or they have found another place to live. And in a village of 500 or less, how far away can you really get from the person who raped you?

And people wonder why there are so many unreported cases of sexual assault up here.

I asked if the ethnicity of the victims determined if they were any more likely to be victimized sexually and was told that the majority were Alaskan native women and children. I was also informed that while it was usual for most races to be assaulted by a member of their OWN race (African Americans attacking fellow African Americans, Caucasians assaulting Caucasians, Asians with Asians, etc. etc.), that native women in Alaska were perpetrated against by ALL ethnicity's. It appears that something about the often shy and passive nature of the native women singles them out for victimization.

As I drove away from the STAR offices on Fireweed Lane, I found myself taking inventory of the number of women and children I have met in my life that I knew had been victims of sexual assault. When I stopped to think about it the number was staggering. I came to realize that at least a dozen women that I knew very well had been the victim of rape and that I also knew over 30 individuals who had been assaulted as children. With that sudden realization it was clear that the "one in three women" statistic was certainly not an exaggeration.

I would like to believe that the situation in Alaska was improving, however another thing that I learned to my dismay is that 2009 is headed toward becoming another record year for sexual assault.

STAR is doing a wonderful job of educating children in our local schools and advocating for the victims of sexual assault but they are underfunded and often overwhelmed with the shear number of people who request their services.

If you would like to help by donating to them then you can do so by clicking here. If you live in Anchorage and would like to donate your time instead (You can do so from the comfort of your own home)then click here. If you would like to learn more information concerning sexual assault in general then please click here.

It only takes one concerned person willing to reach out and hold the hand of a victim who has been stripped of their dignity, and left feeling empty and exposed to the world, which helps that person begin their long journey toward healing. Think of how many shattered lives we could repair if each of us took a moment to open our arms to somebody who has suffered at the hands of predator.

26 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:55 AM

    Wow - not in the happy sense. Wow in the sense that it staggering to realize how common this is in Alaska. Wow in the sense that it takes so long for the evidence to be processed. Wow in the sense that it is unbelievable that citizens - particularly those affiliated with organized religion or tribal councils - have not been more proactive in campaigning against these horrible, inhumane crimes, and more proactive in demanding justice. Sex education in the schools seems a first start. Anger management classes should be a close second. More money for police departments and health departments and, well, the list seems endless, but certainly money should have gone in those directions instead of that silly "road to nowhere" project and for tanning beds, et cetera. Oh yeah, I forgot - Sarah Palin didn't want to pay for rape kits either, right? Not that she alone has been remiss - sounds like an endless chain of incompetence, ingnornace, and ignoring the obvious.

    Wow, Alaska. How long does it take to sink in?

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  2. Anonymous11:57 AM

    BTW, great post. Humbling and informative. Hope we all are moved to action. Thanks!

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  3. Anonymous12:20 PM

    One of the things that really ticks me off about fundamentalist churches is their heavy duty focus on sin. People are always being told what sinners they are. Now that would make sense if most of the congregation were strangers off the street and weren't 'saved' but that isn't usually the case. So if you go to church regularly, and keep hearing you're a sinner, then I guess you might as well be one.

    Now if churches focused more on building people up and teaching them how to reach out and help others and spend money on important social needs, what a difference that could make.

    Focus on the negative, you get negative. Focus on the good, you get results.

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  4. Gryphen,
    Thank you for educating yourself about sexual assault and thank you for educating others through your blog. As a rape victim(25 yrs ago) and a volunteer with a sexual assault hotline, I am even shocked by the numbers in Alaska. Double the national average(which the national numbers are already shocking) is very disturbing. As sexual assault is very under reported(I never finished reporting mine, as my wounds were being treated--cracked skull, bruised voice, broken nose, hyprthermia, one of the police officers made rude comments that I cannot even repeat)this is truly a tragedy in the communities in Alaska. Why are crimes against women and children in our society treated so lightly by the police and the court systems I will never understand. Please continue to blog periodically about this, many nameless victims need your support and for you to be an advocate for them

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  5. Anonymous12:51 PM

    As a conservative white boy, raised in Alaska, I can tell you my peers think less of a Alaska Native women, than his own dog. I've seen it first hand. My own childhood friends have spent a lifetime trashing them.

    I awoke to their crap, when one particular buddy was gripping at me for throwing my beer bottle away. I asked why and he said he was saving them to throw at "native chics" on a Friday night.

    I went with him and a few buddies one Friday night. I don't know why. Perhaps I couldn't believe he would think of this? I don't know.

    There we were driving around, with a garbage bag of empty bottles, looking for "native chics". We found one and they drove around the block for a better aim. I began to feel nausated.

    They found her and began to throw bottles, hanging out the windows and yelling disparaging gross words. It was just horrible.

    We then returned back to the sports bar and drink. I called my brother for a ride home. I was sick to my stomach, my head was depressed.

    When my brother arrived, we were at the door ready to exit, well in walks the Alaskan Native gal. She followed us! I pointed her to my now former 'buddies'.

    She walked up to one and pulled out a can of spray paint. Bouy orange.
    She spray painted his crotch. Things got tense, bouncers show up and folks started pointing fingers. She held her ground. She was tough and quick at thought. In the end, my buddies were arrested for assult with a weapon. I collaborated with the police and lost the friendship of my childhood friends.

    That was over two decades ago. Today, she and her husband are one of my best friends. And my former childhood friend's kids, well to this day they blame Alaska Natives for the demise of their father's drinking problems. I just don't get it.

    Not to bring anymore pressure on that "white boy guilt", but I know for a fact the whitey in Alaska has spent years targeting Alaska Native women.

    This is a public forum and I haven't spoke of this story ever. It is a bit nerve racking but he'll it feels good telling my story.

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  6. Anonymous1:03 PM

    Very well said Gryphen. Thank you.

    The Native women need to defend themselves like it's a bear attack. Mace them. They need to be proud enough to exude self confidence. They need assertiveness and self defense training.

    The numbers would go down if these creeps didn't think they could get away with it, if they were afraid of getting caught and real penalties. Harsh as it is, I say off with their dicks or they'll do it again, take away their testosterone somehow.

    It's too easy a crime to get away with.

    The media could do a better job in getting the word out that DNA can go back a long way in time to solve rape crimes.

    And I don't think there should be a statute of limitation put on something like this, I think right now it is 10 yrs, why, if they knew they could be caught anytime in their lifetime would as many attempt this.

    We can push our governors/legislators/congressman and President for more test funding, removing the statute of limitation and harsher penalties.

    One year after Walt Moneghan was fired for going (so called) 'rogue' in an attempt to get more funding from Washington, here the situation is worse than before.

    Another Epic Sarah Palin fail.

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  7. I have heard so many accolades for Dr. BaldwinJohnson and I know she works with the Children's Place, a nonprofit organization.
    They need money. Is there someone who will pay them a visit? I would like to know more about their success helping women and children.

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  8. Irishgirl1:15 PM

    Thank you for bringing this to our attention Gryphen. It is a very scary post, and something needs to be done about the situation.

    You sound like a decent bloke.

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  9. Anonymous1:22 PM

    I had to go back and re-read this post, nowhere did you blame Sarah Palin for this mess.

    This is one of your better posts, it's too bad you don't spend more time exposing this dark underbelly of Alaska and less time obsessing about the Palins.

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  10. Anonymous1:27 PM

    Our society is very sick indeed.
    Some of what I read in _The Culture Of Make Believe_, a rather disturbing but well researched book by Derrick Jensen, very clearly showed that our society has deep and serious problems that are fundamental to our worldview. I would strongly recommend that book to anyone interested in domestic violence or other societal justice issues.

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  11. Irishgirl1:51 PM

    Anon at 12.51. Thanks for sharing that.

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  12. SoCalWolfGal1:53 PM

    Gryphen, thank you for taking the time to educate yourself and those of us who read your blog. This is beyond belief. WHY on earth would it take years to investigate cases of this nature? There is something inherently evil in humankind that always prey on those that are weaker or more vunerable.

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  13. Good work, Gryphen. Though I'd like to put in a word for the Alaska's forensic nurses, who do a lot if not most of the sexual assault nurse examinations in the state. http://www.alaskaforensicnurse.com/ And they do their darnedest too not to be dehumanizing in how they conduct the exams. I work at the Justice Center at UAA, where one of our faculty André Rosay has done an incredible lot of research on sexual assault & violence against women in AK -- see http://justice.uaa.alaska.edu/vaw/ -- one of his research partners has been Tara Henry who is a forensive nurse. As they wrote in one article for the Alaska Justice Forum, "[S]exual assault nurse examiners have multiple roles; their key goal is not to secure successful legal resolutions. Instead, their key goal is to provide competent and compassionate nursing care that promotes healing of the patient’s physical, psychological, social, and spiritual health. There is no doubt that this goal is better achieved, now that we have trained sexual assault nurse examiners available." http://justice.uaa.alaska.edu/forum/25/1-2springsummer2008/e_sane.html

    André has testified at least two or three times earlier this year to the Senate Judiciary Committee on research about sexual violence in Alaska. There seems to be a fair amount of commitment by members of the legislature, particular Senate Judiciary, to better deal with the problems. Contact your reps & senators & let them know how important it is to you that they follow through.

    Mel Green
    Henkimaa.com
    (& also publication specialist at the UAA Justice Center)

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  14. Aussie Blue Sky2:01 PM

    Great post, Gryphen. It's time people saw what a terrific journalist you are.

    If you took a "yes/no" poll on your blog asking your readers if they've ever been sexually assaulted, I believe we would all get a nasty shock.

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  15. Anonymous2:16 PM

    Thank you Gryphen! I can't thank your news outlets. We have a pitiful paper of record. The one thing they do is cover the many organized events that bring attention to women and children who are abused or murdered. Our paper of record does not do much reporting. They do cover when citizen groups march or protest and all that. The old boy system is at work here but it is better than what I've learned about Alaska. Your most famous advocate for this is the good doctor. She is the one person you could interview to make people more aware of the problems. It is confusing why she associates with someone with Palin's record on this. Forget Palin. Places like STAR and the Children's Palace deserve to be known for their tireless service.

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  16. Anonymous2:39 PM

    This is an excellent post -- thanks, Gryphen, for the detailed report of what you found out. I think the information about the increase in rapes after people get the dividend checks is another interesting fact that should awaken some people, and may also suggest strategies to try to address the problem. And thanks to Anon 12:51 for a very important eye-witness account that we can all learn from.

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  17. Anonymous3:46 PM

    STAR has a friend in Juneua - - Rep. Anna Fairclough, former executive director of STAR. Oh wait, she voted for Wayne "if you can rape your wife who can you rape" Anthony Ross.

    STAR needs our help. Thanks for reminding us.

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  18. Bravo Gryphen, thanks!

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  19. Anonymous4:32 PM

    Gryphen thanks for the post. I'm going to the "Soul for My Sister" concert on Friday, November 13th at O'Malley's on the Green. There are going to be 5 bands donating their time for the concert. I'm pretty sure all of the proceeds are being donated to STAR.

    I bought my ticket at Metro Music. I think STAR is also selling tickets. I took a look at STAR's website and the concert information is under the Events section if anyone is interested.

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  20. crystalwolf aka caligrl8:03 PM

    CR46, thanks for sharing with us, maybe you could go back and report the cops who were so disrespectful and dismissive to you?Maybe you could talk to a woman's advocate group and someone could help you file charges? Only when people speak up will it change. I can only imagine the horror you went through.

    Anon @12:51 Thanks for sharing with us. For some reason up there the natives are treated less than dogs? I can't believe how this can happen, in such a CHRISTIAN place no less. Maybe you could volunteer at a church or STAR and tell your story to other men so they understand that everyone is a human being, and deserves respect.
    Course we almost had Palin appointing the biggest racist, homophobe, red neck, "if you can't rape your wife...who can you rape" person.
    A Christian (fake christian) If not for some brave people speaking out and testifying and letter writing, it would be worse...than it is now. Only by people speaking up and saying NO, this is no OK, can this stop. And the State troopers or police dept. needs to be more pro-active in prosecuting these Rapists. It really, really ticks me off, the cops there do not seem to care? They should have a dedicated team of woman officers to go interview woman and help them through this traumatic time!
    This is unconscionable!

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  21. Anonymous10:00 PM

    Excellent job, Gryphen. I am so proud of you. It is very important for good men to stand up and make this their cause as well. I hate to depress everyone even more, but the family court (those hearing divorce & dissolutions involving children) do a pitiful job of handling sexual abuse of women and children. Marital rape is minimized, women and children's reports of fathers violating boundaries and outright sexual abuse of children is generally assumed to be false and the mother is blamed for "brainwashing" the child to make such reports. If a child resists visits with an abusive father, the mother is blamed and called "alienating". Sometimes the mother loses all custody of the child for making good faith reports. There is a recent study on AK's courts out of UC Denver which describes how poorly judges respond to abuse in that context.

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  22. Great topic and good to know something about STAR. Thanks Gryphen.

    In Nome they sometimes did not have anyone on call for SART. One day I had a full ER and several people in the clinic. I was the only nurse on for the ER and a rape victim came in. No SART person available. It was not good. There was no way I could stay with her. I asked the other nurses to come help with her and find a SART professional and nothing happened. After this I told them I would love to take the training as I had been raped myself. They did not even give me a response to the request. This is part of the dysfunction and bullying. It gets in the way of helping the people in that region.

    In Nome if an adult woman does not want the rapist charged they go scott free. I was shocked by that. There are big issues with abuse against women from native men in that region. Part of it is from just plain old male domination issues. In their culture they do not believe in making trouble, that is something that most people do not understand. It is considered wrong to make a big deal out of something we would be outraged about. Their culture is being destroyed to the point I would call it a genocide and that causes empty souls. The court system sends lots of them to prison, they have a rough time finding work, this increases violence of all kinds.

    Alcohol is a factor in sexual assault as it lowers inhibitions. A lot of sexually deviant behavior is fantasized and that is normal. When confronted with the same deviant behavior they fantisize about in real life most people would be disgusted by it. Alcohol and other drugs lower the threshold and some people cross the line. Another factor is when someone is sexually assaulted as a child it increases their likelihood to do the same thing. It can be self perpetuating, this is just one of the reasons children who are sexually abused need high quality counseling. I know mental health resources in this state have problems, so I have to assume it is not happening on a consistent high quality basis.

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  23. The word need to get out to the rest of the nation. The women who supposedly wants us all to stand up for our nation was Gov. and did nothing for the women/young women/girls of Alaska and the girls.
    She did nothing during her 2 years to help rape victims, except say she was against abortion even in the case of rape.
    This is the women that some republicans want for President? The do nothing, quitter who quit the Gov.'s position so she could help Alaskan's more effectively. Now she is a liar on top of a do nothing, quitter.
    She has done noting except line her pockets, and hide.
    She is a disgrace to women everywhere.

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  24. Anonymous7:50 PM

    Palin would have had a man like W.A.R. as her top law man. She made some bad choices and appointments. She did not do well with physicians also, too.

    The Alaska State Medical Board can take complaints about unprofessional conduct by physicians licensed to practice in the state of Alaska.

    Unprofessional conduct by a physician in Alaska includes (12 AAC 40.967) any "act or omission" by a medical licensee "that does not conform to the generally accepted standards of practice for the profession for which the applicant seeks licensure or a permit under AS 08.64 or which the licensee is authorized to practice under AS 08.64."

    “Unprofessional conduct” also specifically includes: "(27) providing treatment, rendering a diagnosis, or prescribing medications based solely on a patient-supplied history that a physician licensed in this state received by telephone, facsimile, or electronic format..."

    (Authority: AS 08.01.070 AS 08.64.100 AS 08.64.326)

    Dr. Cathy BaldwinJohnsons was a winner with in the Palin years. She continues to give advise.

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  25. http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2014/09/rape-culture-in-the-alaskan-wilderness/379976/

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  26. Alaska is a heartless state when it comes to social workers such as Corey Bryant and Marian Hallum who are suppose to help children, instead of comforting
    a young child and the mother who were raped, they accused the mother of lying and took the child away, putting the child in abusive foster home and with an alcoholic abusive relative instead of back to the mother. The child suffered for ten years with lack of basic care such as food, clothing proper shelter (the child's room had massive holes in an old trailer where winter snow would blow
    inside. The child was repeatedly physically abused,ignored by the school system. The child was reunited with his mother at age 18, the damage was done and many years of healing needed to take place
    The child now adult is still child like emotionally and has scars from all of the abuse, The adult child has several altercations w/the law and individuals of authority, trust factor is gone, suicide is high, love for his mother and vice versa is strong. Finally this adult child has said to his mother, loosing you was very difficult and I grew up w/out a mother, it was a very lonely existence , the beatings and hunger pains were unbearable at times but thinking of my mothers hugs and love and the fact that she never stopped trying to get me back gave me hope...Alaska is heartless, and these social workers need to pay for what they have done to this now young adult with counseling , financial aid and learn from his own mouth , what they should of done...Maurey Wyland, Corey Bryant, Marion Hallum you all should be in jail long term, you should of never have taken this child from his mother, you should of worked so the two of them could of had counseling together to work through the rape they have been through. you women were on a witch hunt as the mother was very passionate about her beliefs and stood up for justice.
    These women are hardened and heartless. May God have mercy on you all, because this child will not...

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