Reunion Online

My experience last week at the National Sexual Assault Conference (NSAC) in Pittsburgh convinced me there’s been a shift toward a widespread commitment to focus on helping the 1 in 6 men that have experienced childhood sexual abuse.

This past week, I met with our attorneys for two and a half hours as we are again depending on their expertise and guidance as we embark on another exciting project. I was reminded as I sat across the table from Todd Schneider and Laura McGurty that their deep care and commitment to 1in6 and the men we serve makes our work possible.

When addressing situations of domestic violence, we offer the best possibilities for victim-survivor safety and offender accountability when we work in partnership with individuals from a wide variety of disciplines—medical, legal, spiritual, mental health, criminal justice.

When I was a young man, I nearly drowned a close friend of mine. I'm often reminded of that day when I hear couples talk about their struggles to survive, which they may be having when one or both of the partners experienced childhood sexual abuse.

In my experience, my physical and emotional health positively affected my productivity. Are trauma-informed management practices profitable for companies?

My void: the only place I really felt completely comfortable and safe.

With 1BlueString, our hope is to provide an opportunity for individuals to be creative and find their own unique voice in the important, challenging and rewarding mission to build a network of support for male survivors and their loved ones.

While the focus on universities’ inadequate response to sexual assaults during a student’s time on campus is an important one, most survivors on campus were survivors before they even stepped foot on our quads. Their need for support is just as important as the women and men who will experience assault once on campus.

Pope Francis made some significant pronouncements this week about confronting a culture that allowed sexual abuse to run rampant in the Church. I and billions of Catholics and non-Catholics alike will “wait and see” if he actually seizes the opportunity to create a safer world for kids in a meaningful way.

More and more often it seems we are reading news about adult females “having sex” with teenage boys.