Hello Julie, I would suggest that you strongly consider interviewing survivors of DV/child abuse and those who have addressed poverty issues to see how they feel their own experiences of providing testimony to government bodies. I can provide you with names of people who have testified. I can 100% assure you that it is empowering to survivors to testify before governmental bodies about these issues. I have worked in grassroots advocacy for 26 years addressing issues of poverty for women and minority males and with survivors of DV and child abuse. I have organized at the city, county, state and federal levels to assist in bringing folks together to provide testimony. I have witnessed folks who were shaking in their boots at the mere thought of speaking in public transform into very empowered folks who knew that they did make a difference as a result of providing their own personal experiences and by providing solutions to law makers and those who develop policy around these issues I believe that there is a very profound difference in testifying before legislatures and being a witness in court. Providing legislative testimony is much less traumatic. The witness is not likely to be badgered by a defense type attorney. Yes, they may be questioned by an opposing panel member, but not in the same hostile way that a defense attorney would attack a witness on the stand in a trial. Portia A Davis, Executive Director The Ross County Network For Children http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Village/3648/ -----Original Message----- From: Julie Steen, MSW <jsteen@xxxxxxxxxxx> To: Child Maltreatment Researchers <CHILD-MALTREATMENT-RESEARCH-L@xxxxxxxxxxx> Date: Friday, September 24, 1999 4:48 PM Subject: Legislative Advocacy and Survivors > I am beginning the first stage of creating a dissertation topic. I have >an idea of what I would like to focus on but am unsure if there is any >knowledge base in the literature to build a dissertation upon. I am not >finding any literature that is directly related to my research question. > >My research questions are based on the following. I have worked in the >field of legislative advocacy and have seen people testify before >legislative committee, where they recount their experiences of domestic >violence and child abuse. I have two primary questions: Is this traumatic >or empowering for these survivors to testify before the legislature? What >factors make this testimony more or less traumatic? Would you say that >this type of testimony is similar to the testmony in court, in terms of >trauma experienced by the person testifying? > >I am hoping that through this research, the field of advocacy can gain >insight into how advocacy can be successfully accomplished without >sacrificing the emotional health of survivors or other consumers of social >serives. > >Does anyone have any ideas of where I can go to get information on this >topic? If you have information on how to do advocacy while actively >involving other consumers, such as families affected by disabilities, >mental illness, or poverty, that information might also be helpful. > >Thank you. > >Julie Steen >Florida State University > > >
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