Our STORY
Transformative joy for survivor-centered healing and justice
A Call for Connection, Hope and Healing
When Mariska Hargitay started playing Olivia Benson on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, she learned the staggering statistics of sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse in the United States. While the numbers opened her eyes to the scale and urgency of these issues, she also received thousands of letters and emails from survivors disclosing their stories of abuse, many for the first time.
Mariska recognized that society’s response to this violence was failing survivors, and she set out to change the way they were received and supported. To address the need for connection, hope and healing that so many survivors expressed, and to offer a path from the shame and isolation so many described, she created the Joyful Heart Foundation.
Since 2004, Joyful Heart has been a leading national organization with a mission to transform society’s response to sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse by building a world that prioritizes survivors’ healing.
Since 2004, Joyful Heart has been a leading national organization with a mission to transform society’s response to sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse by building a world that prioritizes survivors’ healing.
Joyful Heart Today
Our Areas of Focus
We continue to carry out our mission through programming centered on survivors’ needs. We strive to fill gaps where those needs aren’t being met, without duplicating existing programs. In order to build a more compassionate, more informed culture rooted in the possibility and promise of healing, we focus on three key areas: Awareness and Community Building, Policy and Advocacy and Healing Programs.
Healing Programs and Resources
Creating and fostering a culture of healing and nurturing for survivors and the professionals who support them.
Policy and Advocacy
Advocating for policies and practices that forge a path to safety, justice and hope for survivors.
Awareness and Community Building
Creating spaces and conversations that channel a drive for change into action and transformation.
Key Initiatives
These three programs are emblematic of our work to create foundational change that expands care and protection for survivors of violence and abuse.
Heal the Healers
The Heal the Healers Grantmaking Program provides critical support for secondary trauma among professionals working on the front lines of survivor-centered services.
End The Backlog
End the Backlog has one clear, ambitious goal: to eliminate the backlog of untested rape kits and prevent a backlog from occurring again. We collaborate with diverse partners to make fundamental reforms that will safeguard survivors’ wellbeing and support their varied paths to seeking justice.
Image-Based Abuse Initiative
The Image-Based Abuse Initiative seeks to use legislative tools, awareness campaigns and advocacy to establish a framework for addressing online exploitation and supporting those affected. The initiative operates on the fundamental principle that everyone deserves autonomy over their body and image.
Joyful Heart, Going Forward
While the cultural response to sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse has changed considerably since the founding of Joyful Heart in 2004, the work of building for a world that prioritizes healing and justice is not only ongoing, but more vital than ever.
We continually drive change that replaces a culture of shame, silence and complacency with a culture of deep compassion, purposeful connection and informed action. Through our targeted advocacy and innovative programming, including the Joyful Heart Virtual Book Club and the Survivor Stories podcast, we are creating opportunities, platforms and communities for those dedicated to transforming society’s response to this violence and abuse.
Your support makes the Joyful Heart Foundation’s transformative work possible. Join us to help continue building a world that is transforming the response to sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse by offering a path toward hope, justice and healing for survivors.
Support Our Transformative Work
Help us build a world that supports survivors on their journeys to healing and justice.