Work from a Framework that Recognizes Oppression is the Root Cause of Gender-Based Violence

Effective prevention must address the underlying structures and beliefs that support gender-based violence. Oppression in all its forms and intersections contributes to gender-based violence. Without addressing oppression and the social norms that accompany it, the culture of inequality and violence that supports gender-based violence cannot be changed.

1. Prevention specialists should clearly and publicly articulate that intersectional anti-oppression work is a fundamental part of their approach to ending gender-based violence. They should consistently review their language and programming to hold themselves accountable to those expectations.

2. Prevention specialists should analyze their programming to ensure the content is affirming and inclusive. They should also pay attention to the locations where they hold programs to ensure they are accessible and that victim/survivors from oppressed and marginalized groups feel physically and emotionally safe to attend.

3. Prevention specialists should actively support departments and organizations serving oppressed and marginalized groups on campus. In addition to publicizing events on behalf of a group or co-sponsoring an activity, prevention specialists should attend and/or otherwise participate in those events as well as encourage others in their networks to participate.

4. A thorough understanding of the ways in which oppressions function to marginalize certain groups is not possible without a simultaneous examination of the ways in which structures and norms advantage those in the dominant groups. Prevention specialists should examine their programming to discover how it is advantaging dominant groups in unmarked ways, and review these as specific opportunities for leveraging intersectional equity.

5. The public health approach to gender-based violence prevention is based on mitigating risk factors and increasing protective factors. Many risk and protective factors are directly and indirectly connected to various forms of oppression. Having a thorough understanding of how various oppressive factors influence risk for gender-based violence aids prevention planning and education. For more information on risk and protective factors related to intimate partner and sexual violence, visit Prevent Violence NC and Connecting the Dots - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Develop a Comprehensive, Evidence-Informed Prevention Plan in Collaboration with Stakeholders

A prevention plan should be more than a listing of an institution’s gender-based violence programs. It should be the institution’s roadmap to reaching a particular end goal related to gender-based violence. The end goal should be specifically articulated, and the programs and initiatives that comprise the plan should build on one another to reach that goal.

1. Prevention specialists should assess community needs, as well as community risk and protective factors, across the social ecology. Gender-based violence is so embedded into the culture that no single program will be able to address all needs. Prevention specialists should work with students and other stakeholders to prioritize the needs to address in the prevention plan.

2. The particular protective and risk factors that are present in the community, as shown by your institution’s campus climate survey, should inform that process.

3. Campus-based prevention specialists should create the prevention plan in collaboration with their community-based sexual and domestic violence agency. Prevention specialists from these agencies can often enhance the efficacy of the prevention plan through their expertise in gender-based violence prevention as well as their knowledge about the larger community.

4. The resulting prevention plan should be trauma-informed. Prevention specialists should recognize the inherent power differential between students and employees and ensure that students are able to safely share their experiences and beliefs throughout the process. Additionally, the programs within the plan should be consistently reviewed to ensure they are empowering, and non-victim blaming. Victim-blaming is when a victim/survivor is treated as though they are completely or partially responsible for the unlawful action(s) perpetrated against them. Programs should also include resources for participants who may be triggered by the information.

5. Evaluation should be a key component of the prevention plan and should be part of the planning process from the beginning. Prevention specialists should work with stakeholders to create the evaluation plan and should build evaluation opportunities into the overall prevention plan. 
   
   Links to evaluation resources: 

   1. Community Toolbox

   2. EvaluACTION 

   3. NSVRC

   4. PreventConnect elearning course

   5. Evaluating Social Innovation

For more information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on risk and protective factors related to intimate partner and sexual violence, visit:

• Intimate Partner Violence: Risk and Protective Factors

• Connecting the Dots (Addresses multiple forms of violence)

For an example Comprehensive Prevention Plan, visit page 24 of this Safety and Justice for All: Best Practices for VA Campuses Addressing Gender-Based Violence. 

Specifically Address the Needs of Historically Oppressed and Marginalized Populations

Gender-based violence disproportionately impacts oppressed and marginalized communities. Yet sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and stalking have historically been looked at in isolation from other forms of violence and oppression. In order to effectively address the context of oppressed and marginalized groups, prevention specialists should include programs that directly support the needs of those communities on their campus.

1. All community members should be able to see themselves and their experiences reflected in the general prevention programming. Graphics, scenarios, and examples should include a wide variety of identities. Prevention specialists at all institutions should ensure that the images and voices of LGBTQI+ students, students with disabilities, and students from other oppressed and marginalized groups are visible in ways that do not reinforce negative stereotypes.

2.  Prevention specialists should create and/or adapt programs to be specifically designed for oppressed and marginalized groups. Implementing programs developed for primarily white audiences with students of color will not effectively address their experiences and needs. The same concept applies to other groups of students. There are very few nationally marketed prevention programs designed specifically for students of color, LGBTQI+ students, or students from other marginalized groups. This means that prevention specialists must often design their own programs or significantly adapt existing ones. In these cases, prevention specialists should work with student organizations or community groups to develop the programs so that they are culturally relevant and effective.