Sexual Violence
Prevention for Indigenous Youth
We teach youth skills to prevent sexual violence and embrace a healthy, non-violent path to adulthood.
Our Objectives
1
TEACH ALL CHILDREN
Teach ALL children in ALL schools on Pine Ridge reservation
2
NATIONWIDE STRATEGY
Implement nationwide strategy to teach ALL children in ALL tribes by 2050
3
END SEXUAL VIOLENCE
End sexual violence against indigenous youth in our lifetime
How will we do it?
We are a school-based program with curriculums for ages 5 to 18. We train community members from participating tribes to lead programming in their local schools.
What Will Kids Learn?
Through interactive role-plays and skills-practice, girls and boys are empowered with practical tools they can take with them for the rest of their lives. They are also educated on their role and responsibility in preventing violence in their lives and communities.
SPECIFICS:
We use the IMpower system of sexual violence prevention which has over 16 publications on its efficacy and is readily adapted to local contexts.
Elementary Children
EMPOWERMENT SELF-DEFENSE (ESD)
Say NO
Yes Feelings and No Feelings
Good Touch and Bad Touch
Physical Defense Skills for Safety
Awareness Skills
Boundary Setting
Safety Skits with Puppets
How to Tell a Trusted Adult
Middle & High School Girls
EMPOWERMENT SELF-DEFENSE (ESD)
How to Identify Risk
Verbal Skills for Safety
Physical Defense Skills for Safety
The Patterns Attackers Use
Awareness and Intuition
Boundary Setting
How to Tell a Trusted Adult
Middle School Boys
SOURCES OF STRENGTH (SOS)
The journey to manhood
The cycle of force
Managing unavoidable conflict
Staying out of the Man Box
Resist harmful gender stereotypes
Creating a life worth living
High School Boys
YOUR MOMENT OF TRUTH (YMOT)
Sexual Violence
Challenging rape culture
Practicing consent
No Means No
De-escalation
Bystander Intervention
*Gender-diverse students may attend the class of their choice.
Does It Work?
Yup.
Take a look.
Effectiveness of a Sexual Assault Self-defense Program for American Indian Girls
Published by Journal of Interpersonal Violence (2021)
This study evaluated the effectiveness of a 6-session (12-hour) empowerment self-defense classroom delivered curriculum (i.e., IMpower) among American Indian girls. Girls (N=74) in one middle school and two high schools on an Indian Reservation in the Great Plains region of the United States received the intervention and completed a pre-test and a post-test six months following the final program session.
Efficacy of a Sexual Abuse Prevention Program with Children on an Indian Reservation
Published by Journal of Child Sexual Abuse (2020)
American Indian youth experience high rates of child sexual abuse. To date, however, we are aware of no programs that have assessed outcomes associated with an evidence-based CSA prevention program among American Indian children. The purpose of the proposed study was to assess the preliminary acceptability and efficacy of IMpower, a 12-hour curriculum that teaches children how to identify their anatomy, recognize risk, say “no,” and tell others if they are being hurt.
“I learned that I am worth defending”: A process evaluation of a sexual assault prevention program implemented on an Indian reservation
Published by Journal of Community Psychology (2020)
The purpose of this study was to examine the acceptability of im-plementing an empowerment SA self‐defense program for adolescent girls on an Indian reservation. Data for the study came from posttest surveys of Native American adolescent girls who participated in an SA prevention program and interviews with community stakeholders, including program participants.
Why We Do What We Do
Native Americans are 2.5 times more likely to experience sexual assault and rape than any other racial/ethnic group in the United States.
Violence against Native Americans is a public health crisis…
NEARLY HALF
OF INDIGENOUS WOMEN IN THE U.S. ARE RAPED IN THEIR LIFETIME.
NEARLY 1 IN 3
INDIGENOUS HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS IN THE U.S. HAVE BEEN FORCED TO HAVE SEX IN THEIR LIFETIME.
NEARLY 1 IN 3
INDIGENOUS HIGH SCHOOL BOYS IN THE U.S. HAVE BEEN FORCED TO HAVE SEX IN THEIR LIFETIME.
40%
OF ALL SEX TRAFFICKING VICTIMS ARE INDIGENOUS.
APPROXIMATELY 4,200
MISSING AND MURDERED CASES HAVE GONE UNSOLVED (ESTIMATED BY THE BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS).
TWO SPIRIT LGBTQ+ INDIGENOUS YOUTH
TWO SPIRIT LGBTQ+ INDIGENOUS YOUTH EXPERIENCE HIGH RATES OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE.
NATIVE AMERICAN AND ALASKAN WOMEN
ARE DISAPPEARED AND MURDERED AT ALARMINGLY HIGH RATES EACH YEAR.
THE COLONIAL
Legacy of Violence
continues to leave deep scars in the Native American communities, and has normalized and fuels the high levels of sexual abuse and violence against Native people today.
We aren’t waiting for something to be done!
➤ Classes begin at age 5 and become increasingly more sophisticated as kids grow older.
➤ Students report needing to use IMpower strategies the same day they learn them.
