Teaching

The response to our May 22, 2018 webinar “Uncovering the Roots of Violence: New Perspectives on Domestic Violence, Social Justice, and Faith,” was overwhelming. Participants from all over the world raised incisive questions that call for further conversation, so we reconvened our panel of anti-violence pioneers to move the dialog forward!

Watch the June 27, 2018 webinar Questions You Asked: Further Conversations on Domestic Violence, Social Justice, and Faith with Julie Owens and Ron Clark—learn about specific ways we can work together to change cultures of violence in our homes, our places of worship, and our communities.

Hear what people are saying about “Uncovering the Roots of Violence” and “Questions You Asked”:

“Thank you — this webinar was excellent!”

“Great job. Very informative and wonderful energy.”

“Thank you for a memorable, informative, inspiring conversation, excellent questions & answers, resources and continuing the song. An invaluable webinar.”

“I wanted to thank the panelists and team who put this together…this topic is so relevant as a Community Educator, but especially moves me in my personal life. I grew up in a fundamentalist Evangelical Christian tradition, and this conversation about how to re-interpret faith and reclaim it from dominance is incredibly encouraging both professionally and personally. Thank you thank you!”

“Thank you all, hearing you and your ideas has been an encouragement and helps give hope.”

“Thank you so much for this dynamic and enlightening presentation.”

“Excellent in every way. Thank you all.”

Resource List

Download the comprehensive Resource List: Domestic Violence, Social Justice, and Faith.

Speakers:
Julie Owens, a ground-breaking trainer in the field of domestic violence prevention and victim advocacy, and Ron Clark, Church-Planter and Minister of Portland, Oregon’s Agape Church of Christ, who has authored Freeing the Oppressed and developed innovative approaches to enrolling clergy-people as effective advocates for those who are victimized or oppressed.

Contributors:

Riane Eisler, internationally known for her work to reveal the deep historical and cultural foundations of misogyny and violence in books such as The Chalice and the Blade and Sacred Pleasure.

Moderated by Sara Saltee.

Owens, and Clark responded to your questions about strategies for moving away from traditions of domination and forging healthier and more equitable relationships – without leaving behind the faith traditions that can inspire and sustain our journey.

Don’t miss the continuation of this timely and important conversation!

• Why is gender inequality the lynchpin of oppression and violence across different eras and cultures?
• How does an intersectional understanding of oppression help us connect the dots between seemingly unrelated forms of violence?
• What possibilities for action open when we understand domestic violence as a human rights and social justice issue?

This webinar was recorded, and all registrants received the video link.

In this moment of #MeToo, #EnoughisEnough, and #BlackLivesMatter, our essential task is to uncover the roots of violence including its roots in our religious traditions and faith communities. The extraordinary May 22, 2018 webinar event brought together three anti-violence pioneers to share fresh perspectives on the stories we have lived by and explore what it really takes to end the pandemic of violence against women, children, and other vulnerable peoples

Millions around the world strive to break free from traditions of violence in our intimate relationships and in our broader culture. But, even as we speak out for an ethic of human relationships grounded in mutuality and caring, we find ourselves confronting beliefs and traditions that justify and normalize violence, including traditions embedded in religious doctrine and practice. How can we re-shape the stories we live by and re-claim the power of faith communities as leaders in today’s intersecting movements to end violence and promote healthy, ethical human relationships?

Uncovering the Roots of Violence: New Perspectives on Domestic Violence, Social Justice, and Faith

Speakers include Riane Eisler, internationally known for her work to reveal the deep historical and cultural foundations of misogyny and violence in books such as The Chalice and the Blade and Sacred Pleasure; Julie Owens, a ground-breaking trainer in the field of domestic violence prevention and victim advocacy, and Ron Clark, Church-Planter and Minister of Portland, Oregon’s Agape Church of Christ, who has authored Freeing the Oppressed and developed innovative approaches to enrolling clergy-people as effective advocates for those who are victimized or oppressed. Moderated by Renita Robinson, CEO, Green Bay YWCA.

“Very informative training.” – Alicia Fuller, CW3 USARMY HRC

“I did have the opportunity to watch the webinar and found it very informative. The majority of our staff at the shelter viewed it together which also lead to discussions on the topics.” – Norma Jean Hepler, Domestic Violence Court Advocate, YWCA of Central Virginia

How can we re-shape the stories we live by and re-claim the power of faith communities as leaders in today’s intersecting movements to end violence and promote healthy, ethical human relationships?

Eisler, Owens, and Clark will candidly share the events in their own lives that sparked their passion for disrupting the roots of violence and will dialogue about how we can move away from traditions of domination and forge healthier and more equitable relationships – without leaving behind the faith traditions that can inspire and sustain our journey.

This dialogue explores:

• How should we respond when sacred texts are used to justify violence?
• How do we make sense of the ways in which religious texts seem to hold conflicting messages about how we are supposed to treat one another?
• How can we help our faith communities stop ignoring or normalizing women’s experiences of intimate violence, while cultivating ears to hear and hearts to believe the experiences of women and other survivors of violence?
• What roles can faith communities play?
• Why is gender inequality the lynchpin of oppression and violence across different eras and cultures?
• How does an intersectional understanding of oppression help us connect the dots between seemingly unrelated forms of violence?
• What possibilities for action open when we understand domestic violence as a human rights and social justice issue?
• Why are local interventions in violent behavior not enough to prevent violence in our families and communities?
• What does it really take to move away from cultures of domination, driven by control and fear?
• How can we build cultures of partnership which celebrate relationships of mutual benefit and mutual responsibility?

Resources:

Speakers:

Riane Eisler is President of the Center for Partnership Studies and internationally known as a systems scientist, attorney working for the human rights of women and children, and author of groundbreaking books such as The Chalice and the Blade: Our History, Our Future, now in 26 foreign editions, and The Real Wealth of Nations: Creating a Caring Economics. Dr. Eisler has received many honors, including honorary PhDs and peace and human rights awards. She lectures worldwide, including the United Nations General Assembly, the U.S. Department of State, Congressional briefings, universities, corporations, conference keynotes, and events hosted by heads of State. Dr. Eisler is also co-founder of the Caring Economy Campaign, the Spiritual Alliance to Stop Intimate Violence (SAIV), and is Editor in Chief of the Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies, an online peer-reviewed journal housed at the University of Minnesota that was inspired by Eisler’s work.

In 1988 Julie Owens survived domestic violence (DV) attempted murder along with her pastor father. After healing, she attended a victim support group before herself co-facilitating groups and lobbying for improved laws. She left her field of special education to train counselors, develop training for physicians, and found an on-call ER crisis team and transitional shelter. She later directed related trauma research projects at the National Center for PTSD, coordinated DV efforts in an urban mental health system and oversaw victim service agencies in twenty counties of N.C. Julie has trained nationally and internationally for many years and in 2011 was sent to the Republic of Kosovo for the Department of State to provide nationwide training. She works as an independent Expert Consultant for the Department of Justice Office for Victims of Crime, the DHHS National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Center, Bank of America and other organizations. In 2017, she co-developed the national toolkit and screening tool for adult victims of human trafficking. Her primary focus is best practices in victim advocacy in both secular and faith-based settings.

Ron Clark is the minister for the Agape Church of Christ in downtown Portland, OR. He has been in ministry for over 30 years. He is an adjunct instructor for Portland Seminary and is co-chair of the Pacific Northwest Society of Biblical Literature’s World of Early Christianity and New Testament Scriptures section. He has authored books and articles concerning Intimate Partner Violence and Theology, Biblical studies and ministry, and Marriage and Family Ministry. Ron has an MDiv and D.Min from Harding School of Theology in Memphis, TN. He and his wife Lori planted Agape Church of Christ in downtown Portland in 2007 and lead ministries with various state, county, and local government agencies addressing houselessness, prostitution, abuse, trafficking, and developing healthy marriages. Ron and Lori have been married since 1987 and have three sons.

Renita Robinson is currently the CEO of the Green Bay YWCA. In her professional career, Renita has been an advocate, educator and supporter for victims of sexual and domestic violence across the life, gender and race span. Renita has served as Executive Director of the Committee Against Domestic Abuse, Inc. (the largest provider of domestic and sexual violence services in Southern Minnesota); Director of the Duluth Family Visitation Center, a program of the world re-known Domestic Abuse Intervention Programs (DAIP); and as Adjunct Instructor at three Mid-western universities teaching a range of courses to undergraduate and graduate students in Education and Sociology.Renita designed and directed The Mirror Project, a non-medical recovery program within a 400 bed homeless shelter in the Peoples City Mission of Lincoln, NE. The emphasis was on female domestic violence survivors with life controlling addictions. Renita was also a trainer with DAIP on Post-Separation Violence bringing to light how institutions designed to help victims often collude with abusers because they fail to recognize their insidious tactics. Her favorite accomplishment is raising two compassionate sons.

The #MeToo movement has been an opportunity for profound awakening for some, and for increased visibility of a pervasive reality for others, but where do we go from here? How do we raise caring men? And how do we seize this opportunity to create family, workplace, and national cultures that support new possibilities for manhood?

Hear gender equality pioneers Riane Eisler of the Center for Partnership Studies and Gary Barker of Promundo engage in this transformational dialogue about the future of masculinity in the #MeToo world. The March 6, 2018 webinar was moderated by Promundo board member Ron LeGrand.

As powerful men are being called out and brought down for sexual abuse and harassment, and we witness an American President bragging about violating women’s bodily integrity, women around the world have responded by courageously speaking the truth about what it means to live in a world without gender equality.

This time of reckoning is an opportunity not only to call men out, but to call them in to positive versions of masculinity that benefit us all. Gary Barker and Riane Eisler invite your questions and ideas as we discuss:

• How can the #MeToo moment revolutionize the way we think about manhood?
• What do we know about parenting practices that nurture caring boys?
• What kinds of new markers and myths of masculinity will support humanizing experiences of boyhood?
• How will we make the shift from control to connection as our most-prized masculine quality?
• What can we do now to create workplace cultures that value the full human experience, including responsibilities for care of children, elders, and our natural environment?
• How do we use this moment to drive changes at the social and economic policy level that will set the stage for a future of gender partnership?

Co-hosted by the Center for Partnership Studies and Promundo.

Hear what people are saying about Raising Caring Men:

“Thank you all – amazing discussion. Your work is changing the world, and I am grateful.”

“Thank you SO much for this valuable webinar. I will share it widely!!”

“Thank you for a very stimulating and moving conversation!”

“Thank you for this program. Thank you for your caring compassion for all of us and this journey we all travel. I believe when we change and become more caring we change everything around us.”

“Thanks so much for this webinar. I will find ways to share what you have talked about with my friends and parents that I work with. It is so easy these days to get lost in grief and fear and lose sight of a broader perspective. That our dear humanity is evolving. And there are growing pains in this. But it helps to get a bigger picture like you have portrayed. To set my sights more broadly and clearly. And with more strength. I appreciate all the patient, devoted work you have done on this topic over the decades. And patient devotion is what is needed looking forward. Thanks again for showing up today and sharing this with all of us. And for humanity.”

Speakers:

Riane Eisler is President of the Center for Partnership Studies and internationally known as a systems scientist, attorney working for the human rights of women and children, and author of groundbreaking books such as The Chalice and the Blade: Our History, Our Future, now in 26 foreign editions, and The Real Wealth of Nations: Creating a Caring Economics. Dr. Eisler has received many honors, including honorary PhDs and peace and human rights awards. She lectures worldwide, including the United Nations General Assembly, the U.S. Department of State, Congressional briefings, universities, corporations, conference keynotes, and events hosted by heads of State. Dr. Eisler is also co-founder of the Caring Economy Campaign, the Spiritual Alliance to Stop Intimate Violence (SAIV), and is Editor in Chief of the Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies, an online peer-reviewed journal housed at the University of Minnesota that was inspired by Eisler’s work.

Gary Barker is President and CEO of Promundo. He has conducted extensive global research and program development around engaging men and boys in gender equality and violence prevention, and is a leading voice for the worldwide effort to establish positive, healthy dynamics between men and women. Gary is the co-founder of MenCare, a global campaign to promote men’s involvement as equitable, non-violent caregivers, and co-founder of MenEngage, a global alliance of more than 600 NGOs and UN agencies working toward gender equality. He coordinates IMAGES (the International Men and Gender Equality Survey), a pioneering multi-country survey of men’s attitudes and behaviors related to violence, fatherhood, and gender equality, among other themes. He is a member of the UN Secretary General’s Men’s Leaders Network and has been honored with an Ashoka Fellowship, a fellowship from the Open Society Institute, and the Vital Voices Solidarity Award. Gary earned a PhD in child and adolescent development from Loyola University in Chicago and a Master’s degree in Public Policy from Duke University.

Ron LeGrand is an attorney, licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia, and CEO of the LeGrand Group, LLC, which provides consulting services with a focus on gender-based violence, legislative affairs, and criminal justice reform. Ron has co-authored a Domestic Violence Awareness Month op-ed on Ebony, appeared on Prince George’s County, Maryland cable television programming regarding domestic violence, and was one of several planners and presenters at the recent “Band of Brothers” event for engaging men in conversations on domestic violence, sexual assault and healthy masculinity. Ron’s career includes 20 years in federal service, including Chief Investigator and Counsel to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, and Counsel to the House Judiciary Committee where he served as the lead Democratic Counsel of bi-partisan congressional staff working group and convened meetings with advocates regarding the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act and the Trafficking Victims Protection Act which were signed into law on March 7, 2013.