Reunion Online

It recently came to light that Mike Tyson was cast in a guest-starring role on an upcoming episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. We understand this has caused a great deal of concern to some fans of the show, many of whom are also supporters of the Joyful Heart Foundation. I wanted to take a moment, on behalf of everyone at Joyful Heart, to respond to that feedback.

We have so much to look forward to and so much work to do. We hope you will join us on our journey in the new year. A donation today means not only a deduction on your 2012 taxes, but more importantly, a meaningful contribution to continue Joyful Heart’s work to help heal and empower survivors of violence and abuse.

2013 is just around the corner and we know now, more than ever, how necessary and important our work is. Thanks to supporters like you, in 2013 we will continue to heal and empower survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse and the professionals who serve them. We will extend and grow our reach and we will respond to new community needs.

Sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse are heavy and complex issues. But the greater the number of people willing to lift, the lighter the load becomes for each individual to carry.

On tonight's episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, you'll hear the SVU squad talking about a topic few people do, something called tonic immobility. It sounds complicated, but it's one of the body's most basic responses?the "freeze response"?that happens when an individual is in danger. In today's post, Dr. Rebecca Campbell, professor of community psychology at Michigan State University, discusses tonic immobility in the context of sexual assault.

 I often find myself in awe, but somehow not totally surprised, that turning towards the issues sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse is often so hopeful, so joyful. Maybe you sometimes find yourself thinking the same. It's often inexplicable, or at the very least, difficult to put into words as to why this is. And it can certainly be a strange thing to feel—and to write at this very moment—but it's true. And last Wednesday evening was no exception.

Yesterday, representatives from Joyful Heart, including myself, went to Albany to advocate for the expansion of New York State’s DNA Databank to include samples from all convicted offenders. Right now in New York, state law only allows for collection of DNA from offenders convicted in just 48% of all crimes. We went up with a statewide coalition of advocates, law enforcement, survivors and policymakers. We met with representatives in both political parties in the Senate and Assembly, as well as members of the press. We went with a simple message: pass all crimes DNA legislation.