BRONX DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICE OBSERVES NATIONAL CRIME VICTIMS’ RIGHTS WEEK AS CO-SPONSOR OF A TWO DAY EVENT AT THE JOHN PHILLIP SOUSA MIDDLE SCHOOL 142

The Bronx District Attorney’s Crime Victims Assistance Unit, in partnership with allied professionals and community volunteers, observed National Crime Victims’ Rights Week as co-sponsors of a two day event at the John Phillip Sousa Middle School 142, at 3750 Baychester Avenue, the Bronx.

A centerpiece of this past week’s event was the tenth annual Bronx Clothesline Project and Tribute to Survivors. The Clothesline Project is a massive visual presentation that tells the stories of hundreds of survivors of abuse, violence and neglect. The display was exhibited in the school’s gymnasium. Rows of approximately fifteen hundred T-shirts created by survivors of crime hung side by side on clotheslines as though the survivors were standing shoulder to shoulder bearing witness to the violence that had scarred their lives.

The Clothesline Project is intended to serve as an ongoing source of support and inspiration to crime victims during their process of healing by giving them an opportunity to ‘break their silence’ about their experiences and have their voices heard. Another objective of the Clothesline Project is to increase awareness of the magnitude of violence committed against men, women and children.

The massive display served as a backdrop for a ‘Tribute to Survivors’ that was held on Tuesday evening April 25th. The tribute included a skit on teen dating violence , a featured speaker, and closing remarks by children from families of homicide victims. Young people from a program sponsored by E.A.R.S. (Effective Alternatives and Reconciliation Services), performed a skit in which teen dating and violence were seen from the perspectives of the victim, parents, and younger sister. After the performance, the audience had an opportunity to interact with the cast during a question and answer session.

A highlight of the evening was a talk by featured speaker, Karen Carol, Associate Director of the Bronx Sexual Assault Response Team. Carol, a registered nurse, shared her personal experience as a survivor of domestic violence who had been sexually assaulted by her husband. She explained how, through the healing process, she was led to develop a specialty in forensic nursing in order to help other people who have suffered the trauma of sexual assault. The Tribute to Survivors ended with a moving ceremony in which children ranging in age from 4 to 11 read a group statement about the loss of a loved one and then recited a poignant role call of the dead. One after the other they called out the names of the mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, grandmothers, grandfathers, uncles, aunts and cousins whose lives were cut short violently and abruptly. The children were participants in a support group for families of homicide victims sponsored by Safe Horizons.

Earlier in the day, the students at the middle school were given an opportunity to view the Clothesline exhibit and attend an Information Fair concerning the rights of crime victims. Some twenty three Bronx based organizations distributed pamphlets and brochures about a wide variety of resources and services that are available for victims of crime. Students also attended a special Assembly Program on the danger of being victimized by adults who prey upon children via the Internet. The program included a skit in which young people demonstrated ways of protecting themselves from Internet predators. The skit was based on information that the students had learned in workshops with Detective Investigators from the Bronx District Attorney’s Office.

The two day observance of Crime Victims’ Rights Week ended with a series of classroom visits by Bronx District Attorney Robert T. Johnson, Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion, State Senator Ruth Hassell-Thompson and others. The elected officials as well as service providers met with students in their classrooms and engaged them in discussions about their feelings about crime and its impact on their community.

District Attorney Johnson praised the spirit of cooperation that contributed to the success of the two day event that was made possible by a broad coalition of victims’ advocates and service providers. The list included the Bronx District Attorney’s Crime Victims Assistance, Community Affairs and Detective Investigators Units; The Bronx Borough President’s Office; The Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic Violence; The Office of State Senator Ruth Hassell-Thompson; Safe Horizons; Effective Alternative in Reconciliation Services (EARS); the 47th Precinct; St. Barnabas Hospital - Child Protection Center; Fordham / Tremont Community Mental Health Center; Kingsbridge Heights Community Center (Child Sexual Assault Program); Legal Information for Families Today; the New York City Housing Authority (Bronx Social Services); Sanctuary for Families; North Central Bronx Hospital; NYC Commission on Human Rights; Day One (formerly Break the Cycle); New York State Crime Victims Board; Jewish Board of Family & Children Services; Institute for Puerto Rican / Hispanic Elderly; East Harlem Neighborhood Based Alliance; Bronx Independent Living Services; NYC Human Resources Administration - Community Affairs Unit; Jacobi Hospital Family Advocacy Center; New Yorkers Against Gun Violence; Aging in America; and Neighborhood SHOPP.