Feminist Peace Network

Many, many thanks to  Susan McGee and Vickie Frederick-Toure for these beautiful and inspiring words of healing and strength:

Affirmations

I celebrate my courage in coming here.
I was alone, but now I am not alone.
I was victimized but I am no longer a victim.
I name the violence in my life and declare it wrong.
I name that I need help, and that I am willing to give help.
Nothing I do provokes the violence.
Nothing about me causes the violence.
Nothing gives one person the right to abuse another person.
My abuser can change himself; I cannot change him.
Nothing I can do will change my past.
Everything I do changes my future.
I have protected myself and my children.
Resistance to violence, defending myself OR my children is not abuse.
I believe myself; I believe my sisters.
I can ask support; I can give support.
I can change myself; I can change the world.
My being here helps others.
I am not here to judge my sisters, but to support their healing.
I will take the risk to trust other women here.
I affirm the privacy and confidentiality of every woman in this group.
Every time a sister resists, she creates a space for resistance around her.
I am here in solidarity with my sisters of all persuasions, all colors, all orientations, and all faiths to say NO to violence.
We will not be divided by our diversity, we will be strengthened by it.
In the words of Alice Walker “I am the woman offering two flowers whose roots are twin. Justice and Hope. Let us begin.”

Or for survivors with female assailants:

Affirmations

I celebrate my courage in coming here.
I was alone, but now I am not alone.
I was victimized but I am no longer a victim.
I name the violence in my life and declare it wrong.
I name that I need help, and that I am willing to give help.
Nothing I do provokes the violence.
Nothing about me causes the violence.
Nothing gives one person the right to abuse another person.
My abuser can change herself; I cannot change her.
Nothing I can do will change my past.
Everything I do changes my future.
I have protected myself and my children.
Resistance to violence, defending myself OR my children is not abuse.
I believe myself; I believe my sisters.
I can ask support; I can give support.
I can change myself; I can change the world.
My being here helps others.
I am not here to judge my sisters, but to support their healing.
I will take the risk to trust other women here.
I affirm the privacy and confidentiality of every woman in this group.
Every time a sister resists, she creates a space for resistance around her.
I am here in solidarity with my sisters of all persuasions, all colors, all orientations, and all faiths to say NO to violence.
We will not be divided by our diversity, we will be strengthened by it.
In the words of Alice Walker “I am the woman offering two flowers whose roots are twin. Justice and Hope. Let us begin.”

(Note from the authors:  This affirmation does not work well for male survivors; another needs to be written. If you want to use this one, pronouns can be changed; sisters can be changed to brothers, women can be changed to men, but the Alice Walker quote would need to be omitted.)

Filed under: Uncategorized, Violence Against Women