[Wamvan] Please circulate! New Circle of 6 App prevents violence without blaming victims

Tue Apr 3 10:07:33 PDT 2012

Hi all,

Please find message from WAMmer and SlutWalk member Nancy
Schwartzman<http://www.nancyschwartzman.com/> below.
She co-created this great non-victim blaming violence prevention app, and
would love it if we could all help spread the word through Sexual Assault
Awareness Month and beyond!

The app works internationally, not just in the U.S.!

Joanna

---

In just two weeks we have 15,000 downloads :) - we'd love to get it into
the hands of activists and young people to start using. Pasted in is our
press release, and here is the demo video about how it works:
http://vimeo.com/38802136

This is also not a victim-blaming device --- we were very careful to craft
a tool that could prevent violence without putting the onus on victims to
"protect themselves from rape" -- here is more on that:
http://whereisyourline.org/2012/03/circle-of-6-one-mobile-piece-of-the-anti-violence-puzzle/

Would love your help getting this out far and wide to slutwalk networks
both via email and social media. We're @circleof6app #c6 via
@thelinecampaign and @isisorg
www.circleof6app.com

THANKS!!

We're moving into *April’s Sexual Assault Awareness Month* with an exciting
new tool at our fingertips!! The *Circle of 6 iPhone app -- targeted to
college-age students, with two taps helps to prevent sexual violence*.
Press release is below (and here, with video:
http://www.circleof6app.com/press.html). I’d love to connect you to Circle
of 6 co-creator Nancy
Schwartzman<http://whereisyourline.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fd3201c18776345ff77fae7b6&id=fccb85a17a&e=223147fce2>who
can speak to the impact we’re hoping the app will have -- and how
important it is to have tools available for young folks that meet them
where they are at, and offer support rather than victim-blaming and scare
tactics.

************************************************

 *FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*
 Press: media at circleof6app.com
 Website: circleof6app.com<http://whereisyourline.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fd3201c18776345ff77fae7b6&id=f717914681&e=223147fce2>
 Twitter: @Circleof6app

 *iPHONE APP TO PREVENT SEXUAL ASSAULT LAUNCHES NATIONWIDE*
 Circle of 6 Endorsed by White House & Top Universities, Users Pledge to
Stop Violence

 March 20, 2012 (New York, NY) – *Circle of
6*<http://whereisyourline.us2.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=fd3201c18776345ff77fae7b6&id=2bfef9852b&e=223147fce2>,
winner of the White House “Apps Against Abuse” Technology challenge
launched by Vice President Joe Biden and HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius,
launches today nationwide as a groundbreaking mobile phone application
designed to prevent sexual assault and dating violence among young adults.

 Dating violence and sexual assault are widespread problems among young
women, with nearly 1 in 5 reporting assault while in college. With only two
taps, *Circle of 6* connects users threatened with possible sexual assault
and abuse to a network of trusted friends, using GPS technology,
anti-violence online resources, and a commitment to support each other: “I
won't let violence happen in my circle.” Anti-violence resources, Circle of
6 video, and iPhone download is available at
*circleof6app.com*<http://whereisyourline.us2.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=fd3201c18776345ff77fae7b6&id=832f823e6d&e=223147fce2>
.

 *Said Vice President Biden,* “Thanks to the creativity and vision of these
developers, young men and women now have a new line of defense against
violence in their lives.”

 “College students today live on their mobile phones, and they move in
tight-knit online and offline social networks,” said *Nancy Schwartzman,
Circle of 6 co-creator* and Executive Director of The Line Campaign, Inc.
“Circle of 6 is a tool that meets young people where they are and offers
concrete strategies for supporting each other, whether safety threats are
coming from intimate relationships or potentially dangerous social
situations.”

 *Circle of 6* evolved from candid conversations with students across the
country on how consent, dating culture, and rape affect their lives and
what strategies have proven most effective in preventing violence.

 “Talking about sexual violence can be very difficult. As a health
educator, I’ve seen that it’s often easier for people to reach out for help
from behind a screen. Circle of 6 offers a free way to stay safe and
support your campus community, with the ease of a few clicks on a smart
phone,” said co-creator Deb Levine, Circle of 6 co-creator and Executive
Director and Founder of Internet Sexuality Information Services, Inc.
(ISIS).

 *Circle of 6 is already having an impact:*

   - Nearly *15,000 people downloaded the Circle of 6 app* within days of
   its availability online, and thousands of young men and women have
taken a pledge
   on Facebook to stop dating
violence<http://whereisyourline.us2.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=fd3201c18776345ff77fae7b6&id=1680653d7b&e=223147fce2>on
their campuses as part of a strategy to raise awareness and transform
a
   culture of bystanders into a culture of accountability: “Publicly we ask
   that everyone take the pledge to stop violence before it happens.
   Privately, we ask that you look out for each other.”
   - Circle of 6 will be a part of *ongoing efforts from the The White House
   * to help schools, colleges and universities better prevent and respond
   to sexual assault, through Vice President Biden’s #1is2Many project and
   HHS' Open.gov initiatives.  www.hhs.gov/open
   - Several *colleges are onboard to engage Circle of 6 on campus* to
   prevent dating violence and sexual assault, including UT Austin, Longwood
   (VA), Laramie WY, University of Virginia, Louisville, Amherst and New
   School.
   - Circle of 6 is being *featured as a critical tool against sexual
   assault in Cosmo Magazine’s April issue *as part of their yearlong
   campaign fighting campus rape. “Circle of 6” has also appeared in The New
   York Daily News, Marie Claire, MTV, the Christian Science Monitor, and the
   Cult of Mac Blog, among other publications.

 *Circle of 6 creative team* includes mobile and women’s health expert Deb
Levine (isis-inc.org), filmmaker and violence prevention specialist Nancy
Schwartzman (whereisyourline.org), award-winning designer Thomas Cabus (
thomascabus.com), and MIT-trained app developer Christine Corbett Moran (
kliq.in).

 More information and updates are available on twitter *@Circleof6app* and
download at *www.circleof6app.com*<http://whereisyourline.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=fd3201c18776345ff77fae7b6&id=6d29a8edb5&e=223147fce2>.
For press interview contact media at circleof6app.com.

 ABOUT: Internet Sexuality Information Services, Inc., established May,
2001, is a nonprofit organization developing technology for promotion of
sexual health and healthy relationships, and to prevent disease
transmission. Our mission is to provide leadership, innovation, educational
resources and research in online sexual health promotion.

 ABOUT: The Line Campaign, Inc. is a non-profit organization and movement
that is committed to empowering young leaders to create a world without
sexual violence. We create critical dialogues and original media to inspire
action. We develop leadership among diverse groups of people reaching and
mobilizing them in their communities.

-- 
Winner of the White House Apps Against Abuse Technology Challenge ...
download the Circleof6 iPhone
App!<http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/circleof6/id507735256?mt=8>

Nancy Schwartzman
www.nancyschwartzman.com
Tools. Stories. Solutions.

-- 
Joanna Chiu

www.joannachiu.com <http://www.joannachiu.com%20>
twitter.com/joannachiu
Ph: 917 767 6145
WAM! Vancouver <http://www.wamvancouver.wordpress.com%20>
<http://twitter.com/joannachiu>
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