No Haters Please!

It's a new year, which means most people are coming up with New Years Resolutions. Or in the case of many, those resolutions have already ended in failure. Well, I've decided this year I'm going to keep up with this blog and write about some more engaging and fun topics!

Let's see, it's January 26th, which means we are in the midst of a little thing called No Name Calling Week. It's so easy to get caught up in making fun of people. Most of us do it without even realizing it! I know I am one of the most sarcastic people I know, and often (okay, more than often) let some words slip. But after taking a few minutes to think about it, I realized that when people direct harsh words at me I can't help but feel there is a little truth to the statement, no matter how jokingly it's said. That's why I am challenging you to take the rest of the week to think about what you say before you say it.

What would the world be like if everyone thought before they spoke? Or to narrow it down a bit, what would UofL's campus be like? To have everyone get along and not have people talking bad behind another person's back or even to their face is a pretty good goal. It may seem far fetched to believe we can have a 100% Hate Free Campus, but if everyone just thinks a little bit more before they speak, this goal is 100% obtainable!

The next time you want to say something rude to or about someone, try a compliment instead! You're not perfect, and neither is anyone else. No one in the world has the right to judge another person. Everyone has faults, as well as strengths. Let's try to see the good in each other!

No More Haters! Only PEACC and Love :)

-Amber

Things to get Excited About!!

Hey everybody! I wanted to let you all know of an upcoming event that I am getting really excited for! International Women's Day is going to be March 8th, and it happens to be the 100th year anniversary! We're in the process of planning this event right now and I can tell you that it's going to be a lot of fun and a great experience. I'll be keeping you informed of what we have in the works as well as other important info for volunteer opportunities so keep checking the blog.

Also, don't forget about V-Week coming up February 7th-12th, and the production of the Vagina Monologues is being performed Feb 10, 11 and 12th at 7pm! More info to come on that too! 

With all this talk about Women's Day and V-Week you guys may be feeling a bit left out. But don't worry because there is a Men's Story Project Workshop being held February 8th from 6:30-8 pm in the Campus Health Activity Room! 

There are so many events coming up this semester that you will never be bored! Keep checking the blog to get updates, and don't forget about the Volunteer Facebook Group!

-Amber

Welcome back from break everyone! I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Even though we just got back it's already almost that time of year again, finals week. With all the late nights spent in the library studying, it's tough to think of anything to look forward to. But I hope you're getting excited for all the fun events we have coming up next semester! We've got the Vagina Monologues coming up at the start of next year. Auditions are about to begin so if either you or someone you know is interested here's the dates and times:

12/6: 2pm-4pm, 12/7: 2pm-4pm, 12/7: 6pm-8pm, 12/9: 2pm-4pm, 12/9: 6-8 pm

You can audition for a part during the actual performance or for a crew member position! If you forget the times and dates just look around campus for the bright pink fliers! 

Good luck to everyone that has finals, I know I'm going to need some luck as well! I hope everyone has a fun and safe break and comes back next semester refreshed!

Happy Holidays!

Amber

HEYY!

Hey everybody!  Sorry it's been so long since the last post, life's been super busy lately! I just want to thank everyone that came out and supported Engaging Men's Week! It was a successful and very fun week. Just so you all know there is an International Tea event going on today in the Red Barn at noon. Then later tonight there is a volunteer meeting at 5pm at the PEACC office! It would be great to see a lot of faces out at these events today before we all finally get a break for Thanksgiving.

Happy Break!
-Amber

EVENTS! EVENTS! EVENTS!

Hey everybody!! So today is Thursday in Black and I was excited to see people on campus that participated! I actually completely failed today and forgot so thanks to everyone that did remember and wore black to show their support for victims of violence!  There's a lot on the schedule at PEACC that we're so excited about!

How Can We Best Serve - November 6th - 11am-3pm in the SAC. 

Come and learn about health equity as a social justice issue and making your community a better place.  This event is sponsored by my fellow UofL Bonner Leaders and the Office of Civic Engagement, Leadership and Service.  This is a fantastic event that you really don't want to miss out on!  You can register online at louisville.edu/leadership/hcwbs.  Make sure you register so you can get your free lunch, otherwise you don't get food!!  

Engaging Men Week starts the week of November 8th! 

The guys (alright, and some girls) here at PEACC have been working really hard to get this week together for you men!! It's going to be a great week that I hope a lot of you all are looking forward to! There's going to be tons of information, discussions and even Byron Hurt! I'll post the daily schedule next week for you all!

Alright, well that's it for now. Keep checking the blog for updates and make sure to send in anything that you want posted! We want this to be for anyone to share whatever they want!

-Amber :D

Here is a guest post, featuring a reflection paper that U of L student Jeremy Stochaj wrote about Take Back the Night for one of his classes. Thanks Jeremy!

            “Take Back the Night”, a title for an eventful evening as powerful as the night itself.  I was training with Housing and Residence Life the summer prior to my sophomore year when a PEACC representative came into one of our day-long training sessions to introduce us to PEACC and the event.  It was the first time I’d encountered organized domestic and sexual violence awareness and prevention in a community.  This hit home with me.

            With twenty-eight freshman students below me and my job being to “guide” them, I thought no campus supported event would be better to bring them to than this.  So I put up fliers at the start of the semester; I spread awareness about PEACC and what positive male influences could do for the program; and encouraged each of the students to come.  It was a first-time experience for all of us and I was glad to be sharing it with them and spreading education about the dangers of domestic and sexual abuse.

            When we arrived, perhaps one of the most powerful public speakers I have witnessed was entrancing the crowd atop a podium.  A woman and victim of sexual abuse, we rose and fell with the rhythm of her words.  It was not necessarily that her dialect or emotion carried the crowd insomuch as it was the topic of her speech and the way it touched each of us.

            When it was time for the march I didn’t really know how it would be organized, or exactly how it would occur.  But before I had time to think about it we were moving together as a crowd.  We shouted empowering words.  We felt powerful.  We were.

            Was it that we were yelling directly at anyone?  No.  Quite contrary, actually, was that we were yelling for someone, for everyone, for every woman, child, or even man ever affected negatively by sexual or domestic violence.  The strength of numbers was evident.  We were truly taking back the night.

            The message conveyed through the event was clear, that together, through education and awareness and the mindset that we were more powerful than any one sick human being who made prey of women, we could make a difference.

            I returned the next year and went through the march again.  Not by obligation or as part of a job; but because I wanted to be there.  I think that community support is incredibly critical in providing a message to abused women everywhere that you don’t have to be a victim.  And that if you are, you are not alone, that the peers surrounding you are a support network and are willing to help.

            The night effectively taught me that this is no longer a problem that we as a society are willing to quietly allow further.  It is a mind-blowing sense of togetherness and power that events such as this create that give it its magnitude.

            “We aren’t willing to be victims.” “We don’t have to feel any sort of shame or embarrassment, our attackers should feel fear.”  I was raised by a mother who was a victim of violent domestic abuse, and I think to myself, ‘If she had such a powerful community of support surrounding her, maybe if she had felt the power that we all felt those nights.. just maybe.. it could have saved her from one more night of pain, one more night of grief.’  But I take solace in knowing that just maybe, one less woman will.

BREAKING BREAD TONIGHT!!

Right now at the PEACC office we're getting ready for Breaking Bread! Make sure to come out to the Sustainability Tent in front of the library at 4pm for FREE food and to learn about different services campus has to offer. Along the tour you'll get to visit the Women's Center, PEACC and Campus Health, the Intersection and the Cultural Center, all with free food at each one! Ending the night back at the Sustainability Tent you'll get more food and a chance to win prizes! There's no reason to miss this event, so come out early!!!

See you all at PEACC :)
-Amber