Vision

Mis­sion:

SACHA is a fem­i­nist, non-prof­it, com­mu­ni­ty-based orga­ni­za­tion that pro­vides sup­ports to peo­ple who have expe­ri­enced sex­u­al­ized vio­lence at any point in their lives. We work to end vio­lence and oppres­sion through edu­ca­tion, advo­ca­cy, out­reach, coali­tion build­ing, com­mu­ni­ty part­ner­ships, and activism.

Val­ues:

SACHA will chal­lenge social and polit­i­cal struc­tures and sys­tems that con­tribute to the expe­ri­ence of vio­lence, oppres­sion, and exploita­tion of all people.

We believe that:

Def­i­n­i­tion & Roots of Sex­u­al­ized Violence

• Sex­u­al­ized vio­lence is an act of pow­er and con­trol expressed in sex­u­al means. Although com­mit­ted by an indi­vid­ual, such sex­u­al­ized vio­lence is a result of gen­der and pow­er dynam­ics and is struc­tural­ly sup­port­ed in our cul­ture and institutions.

• Sex­u­al­ized vio­lence is a gen­dered issue. This vio­lence takes place with­in a social, polit­i­cal, cul­tur­al and eco­nom­ic, his­tor­i­cal and still ongo­ing, con­text of male dom­i­na­tion and the dis­ad­van­tage and oppres­sion of women and chil­dren. Both boys and girls are social­ized to fit into this sys­tem and to per­pet­u­ate it, cre­at­ing a mod­el of tox­ic mas­culin­i­ty which harms peo­ple of all genders. 

• There­fore, SACHA works from inter­sec­tion­al, equi­table, fem­i­nist, anti-racist and anti-oppres­sive frameworks.Working toward the elim­i­na­tion of sex­u­al­ized vio­lence means rec­og­niz­ing and address­ing the lay­ered ways mul­ti­ple forms of vio­lence are per­pet­u­at­ed in our society.

• A con­sent cul­ture, based on equi­ty, is essen­tial to end­ing sex­u­al­ized violence.

• It is essen­tial that we rec­og­nize and hon­our the his­tor­i­cal con­tri­bu­tion to the anti-sex­u­al vio­lence move­ment made by women with inter­sect­ing iden­ti­ties; crit­i­cism that the fem­i­nist move­ment has exclud­ed racial­ized, trans, Indige­nous, les­bian, dis­Abled and oth­er women is valid and these voic­es must be heard at SACHA.

Sur­vivors’ Rights

• Our efforts must be ground­ed and informed by sur­vivors, who found­ed our organization.

• Sup­port­ing sur­vivors of sex­u­al­ized vio­lence to heal requires us to acknowl­edge that peo­ple have mul­ti­ple iden­ti­ties and expe­ri­ences of oppres­sion that shape the way they expe­ri­ence and respond to sex­u­al­ized vio­lence as indi­vid­u­als and communities.

• Peo­ple respond to and resist sex­u­al­ized vio­lence in diverse ways, and it is a person’s right to self-deter­mine how to access safe­ty when expe­ri­enc­ing vio­lence or oppres­sion in their life.

• Sur­vivors of sex­u­al­ized vio­lence have the right to con­trol their own bod­ies and their own path to healing.

• Sur­vivors are nev­er respon­si­ble for vio­lence per­pe­trat­ed against them.

• Men’s social­iza­tion can serve as bar­ri­ers to male-iden­ti­fied sur­vivors reach­ing out and receiv­ing sup­port; we are com­mit­ted to mak­ing our ser­vices acces­si­ble to all genders.

SACHA Orga­ni­za­tion­al Culture

• SACHA oper­ates as a mod­i­fied col­lec­tive, using con­sen­sus and col­lab­o­ra­tion, to ensure all mem­bers of SACHA – vol­un­teers, staff, and stu­dents – have their voic­es heard.

• Self-care and well­ness of those work­ing and vol­un­teer­ing at SACHA are a polit­i­cal tool that sus­tain us in our work.

Ser­vices are con­fi­den­tial and free of charge. We respect the right to safe­ty and privacy.