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Highlighting NO MORE Day in the Media
Wednesday, March 13, marked the public launch of NO MORE, a national movement to end domestic violence and sexual assault. The coverage of the event has been overwhelming, and we know many of you want to know more about the day’s events and this important movement. We’ve compiled some of the initial articles about the launch that we’ve been reading here at Joyful Heart so that you can check them out too and get excited about coming together to say NO MORE to domestic violence and sexual assault. From the NO MORE congressional briefing to our meeting with the Vice President, from Mariska's inspiring speech at the National Press Club to the Washington Wizards saying NO MORE, there's plenty to read about.
Redouble efforts on untested rape kits
The News Tribune calls on the Missouri Highway Patrol to redouble its efforts to address the problem of a growing number of untested rape kits at the patrol's crime lab.
The Kansas City Star reported the number of untested rape kits with the patrol's crime lab has more than doubled since last August, when a new law requiring police to submit kits within 14 days took effect.
Cities and States Continue to Face Challenges with Rape Kit Backlogs
In attempting to clear a backlog of 6,838 untested rape kits, Wisconsin’s crime labs delayed DNA testing in around 350 active cases, a report released this week found. Since 2016, when the push to clear the backlog began, crime lab technicians have spent over 4,850 hours testing 4,160 of the kits, taking up about half of the state labs’ analyst capacity.
Wisconsin isn’t alone, explained Ilse Knecht, the director of policy and advocacy at the Joyful Heart Foundation, a survivor’s advocacy group.
Hundreds of rape kits go untested in South Carolina
MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WMBF) - When Ilse Knecht thinks about thousands of untested sexual assault kits, she imagines thousands of people sitting on shelves.
“Each one of these boxes represents a survivor who went through that experience, did everything society asked them to do - report the crime to police, have evidence collected and participate in the criminal justice process - and we fail them,” Knecht said.
Test Every Kit
DNA evidence collected after a sexual assault is known as a rape kit. Rape kits are supposed to be tested immediately. When they aren’t—it creates a backlog. New York City was one of the first states to clear its backlog in 2003. But nationally a quarter of a million rape kits sit in storage, waiting to be tested.
Healing and Justice for African-American Survivors
Kalimah Johnson is the founder and chair of the SASHA Center (Sexual Assault Services for Holistic Healing and Awareness), an agency serving African-American survivors in Detroit. A survivor of sexual assault herself, Kalimah also provides trainings to professional sports leagues—including the NBA, NFL, and NHL—about ending sexual and domestic violence.
Nonprofit Joyful Heart Moves a Mountain of Systemic Indifference on Rape
Taiwana lived in Flint, Michigan, in 1996, in a home her grandparents had passed down through her family. She was in that home with six of her seven children when her rapist attacked.
Although she reported her attacker and got a rape kit, her case was not pursued for over two decades. Tens of thousands of people have had an experience like Taiwana’s. The Joyful Heart Foundation (JHF) is leading a national effort to end this pattern.
Quiz: How Much Do You Know About Consent?
Public awareness efforts regularly reinforce that all partners need to get consent before sexual activity, but what does that really mean? Understanding consent is key to promoting healthy and respectful relationships, changing the culture around sexual violence, and ending sexual assault. This Sexual Assault Awareness Month, test your knowledge of what it means to ask for and give consent with this Joyful Heart quiz.
Washington moves to clear backlog of 10,000 rape kits
Washington state officials say they have the solution to the massive backlog in untested rape kits.
The bill that the Senate passed Thursday, combined with funding in the upcoming two-year state operating budget, will enable the State Patrol to clear the backlog by December, 2021, an aide to Gov. Jay Inslee said.
Inside a SAFE Clinic: A Space for Survivors
Olivia Christians is a member of the GenerationJOY committee at the Joyful Heart Foundation. She had the opportunity to tour the Sexual Assault Forensic Exam (SAFE) Clinic at the Nashville Sexual Assault Center and meet with its president, Rachel Freeman, and Vice President of Programs, Mary Beth Heaney-Garate.
