CW: Please note that the lesson explores content about Sexual and Emotional Abuse.

Objectives

By the end of this lesson, learners will:

• Learners will define and describe the acts and actions that reside under committing a sexual and emotional violence offence.

• Learners will discuss the benefits of using restorative justice to repair damage caused by sexual and emotional violence.

Introduction

As discussed in the previous lesson, implementing restorative justice has many benefits to all parties involved in a conflict: survivors, offenders, and communities around them.

The mission of UVA Survivors is promoting “restorative justice and direct action to combat the culture of sexual violence.” (2019). Thus, it is important to ensure the proper understanding of sexual and emotional harm. What classifies as emotional violence offense? How can we identify sexual harm? And how can we incorporate restorative justice to repair damage caused by these harmful acts?

According to the information sheet "Understanding and addressing violence against women" published by the World Health Organization (2012), sexual violence is:

“Any sexual act, attempt to obtain a sexual act, unwanted sexual comments or advances, or acts to traffic or otherwise directed against a person’s sexuality using coercion, by any person regardless of their relationship to the victim, in any setting, including but not limited to home and work” (Garcia-Moreno et al., p. 2).

What is the difference between sexual violence and sexual assault?

According to RAINN (Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network), "[t]he term "sexual violence" is all-encompassing, non-legal term that refers to crimes like sexual assault, rape, and sexual abuse." ("Types of Sexual Violence," n.d.). Thus, the term "sexual violence" is broader in describing any sexual crime.

To understand sexual violence, and how to differentiate between its types, please see the below videos. The first video (1:55 min) is published on the website Break the Silence, which aims to raise awareness about sexual violence as part of the Canadian province, Nova Scotia's, Sexual Violence Strategy.

The second video (6:12 min) was created by Uplift, "a nonprofit organization dedicated to combating sexual abuse in online communities through education advocacy." (Uplift - Online Communities Against Sexual Violence, 2014). The video provides a clear understanding of sexual assault and the actions classified as sexual assault.

Why is the focus on Sexual Violence?

Mercer and Madsen (2011) presented an important question in their guide, "Why is the harm caused by sexual violence different from other types of crime?" (p. 15). The authors refer to the cultural beliefs that normalize sexual violence resulting in the "marginalizing and silencing of victims of SV" (p. 15). The cultural issue is called "Rape Culture," and it is clearly described in the video "What is Rape Culture?" (2:04 min) presented also by the "Break the Silence" website.

The "Rape Culture Pyramid" presented by 11th Principle: Consent! provides a visual representation on the culture of rape evolves from attitudes and jokes to rape.

This visual is not meant to rate the severity of violence faced, but how seemingly subtle or harmless violence creates the culture that normalizes rape.

Emotional abuse is not as clearly defined and visible as sexual and physical abuse. It is rather unclear and hidden affecting the abused person's mind and soul. According to "Emotional Abuse" article on the Psychology Today website (n.d.), "Emotional abuse is a pattern of behavior in which the perpetrator insults, humiliates, and generally instills fear in an individual in order to control them." The article adds, "The individual's reality may become distorted as they internalize the abuse as their own failings" (n.d.).

Jantz (2015) highlighted the importance of defining emotional abuse, and what constitutes it. He described the harm that emotional abuse creates for a person by stating, "Emotional abuse undercuts a person's foundational self-confidence and love of self and replaces them with confusion about self-worth, value, justice, mercy, and love." Jantz also pointed out an important note between the relation between physical and emotional abuse: "Emotional abuse almost always accompanies physical or sexual abuse, but emotional abuse can occur without anyone lifting a finger" (Jantz, 2015).

What are the signs of emotional abuse? How do we classify it? The below video illustrates some of the signs of emotional abuse (5:19 min):

Now that we understood the different acts of Sexual and Emotional violence, how can restorative justice programs help victims? How effective is it?

The first pillar of RJ focuses on the Harms and Needs. Zehr and Gohar (2002) stated, "For restorative justice, then, justice begins with concern for victims and their needs" (p. 27). Accordingly, the importance of implementing restorative justice for sexual violence crimes is to give victims opportunity to heal by prioritizing their needs. Away from theoretical definitions and principles, Mercer and Madsen (2011) created a practical guide for "Doing restorative justices in cases of sexual violence."

Sexual assault survivors are often left traumatized, losing their sense of safety and trust. They seek answers, they deserve a chance to understand what happened, and why did it happen? They deserve a chance to ask their offenders: Why did you this to me?

Gretchen Casey (2018) speaks openly in her TED Talk about how restorative justice would address the trauma caused by harm and conflict. How could restorative justice help in the case of sexual assault? How can we heal the shame, fear, and trauma caused by sexual assault and rape?

Watch Gretchen's inspirational TED Talk video below (Length: 12:02 min.) as she speaks about her own personal experience with sexual assault, and her process of healing after the trauma. Casey mentions in her talk, "When a perpetrator, a human, faces a victim, another human, we grow closer to understanding what rape is, why rape happens, and what is needed to repair it and prevent it." She also added, "we can build empathy and accountability in many perpetrators, how? By inviting them to become capable of alleviating harm" (TED, 2018, 11:50).

An example of implementing restorative justice for sexual harm is presented on BBC's website. Laura Coel was sexually abused by her former stepdad. In the article and interview with Laura, she explained the process and the preparation, the interview with the offender, and her feelings after the meeting. The most important note that Laura made is the "empowerment" she felt after the meeting took place, and after she heard her abuser's apology (Eley, 2015). You can also read Laura Coel's story through the following link: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-34571936

Restorative justice is about survivor empowerment. It is about giving survivors the ability to restore the feelings of safety and trust that were lost because of the harm. In the next lesson, we will be looking into survivor empowerment in more detail.

Reflection Form

Reflect on your understanding of the concept of restorative justice, and share with us your thoughts by filling out the below Reflection Form. The form allow us to understand how this information helped you in understanding the objectives of the lesson.

Check-in Questions

Test your knowledge about the material through taking the following check-in questions. Please note that these questions provide feedback on the spot for you, but responses are not tracked nor recorded.

Chandra, J. & Cervix. (2018). Rape culture pyramid version 5 [Image]. 11^th Principle: Consent. https://www.11thprincipleconsent.org/consent-propaganda/rape-culture-pyramid/

Eley, A. (2015, October 22). Restorative justice: ‘How I got an apology from my abuser.’ BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-34571936

Emotional abuse. (n.d.). Psychology Today. Retrieved December 13, 2020 from https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/basics/emotional-abuse

Garcia-Moreno, C., Guedes, A., & Knerr, W. (2012). Understanding and addressing violence against women (Report No. WHO/RHR/12.37). World Health Organization and Pan American Health Organization. Retrieved from https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/77434/WHO_RHR_12.37_eng.pdf;jsessionid=BA387F8A5B45E5662CAADADAB5A883EC?sequence=1

Jantz, G. L. (2015, December 1). What is emotional abuse?. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hope-relationships/201512/what-is-emotional-abuse

Mercer, V. & Madsen, K. S. (2015). Doing restorative justice in case of sexual violence: A practical guide. Leuven Institute of Criminology. Retrieved from https://www.euforumrj.org/sites/default/files/2019-11/doing-restorative-justice-in-cases-of-sexual-violence_practice-guide_sept2015-1.pdf

Psych2Go. (2020, August 14). 7 Warnings signs of emotional abuse [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_CCA7KAou4

Sexual assault. (n.d.). Rape, Abuse, and Incent National Network (RAINN). Retrieved December 13, 2020 from https://www.rainn.org/articles/sexual-assault

TEDx Talks. (2018, June 13). Restoring justice: Repairing the harm after sexual assault | Gretchen Casey | TEDxUF [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGzjM1JEbwo

The Birds and the Bees NS. (2016, October 4). What is rape culture? [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akA_zBpU9Qs

The Birds and the Bees NS. (2016, October 4). What is sexual violence? [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4G2ZOAu1pE

Uplift – Online Communities Against Sexual Violence. (2015, July 15). Episode # 2: What is sexual assault? – Engage by Uplift [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3xVZJ0EoaU

UVA Survivors. (2019). Home [Facebook page]. Facebook. Retrieved September 24, 2020, from https://www.facebook.com/uvasurvivors/

Zehr, H. & Gohar, A. (2002). The little book of restorative justice.