Domestic violence in the spotlight at April 22 conference

April 11, 2008

Speakers representing a range of perspectives about the critical issue of domestic violence will be featured at a conference entitled “Violence is Everybody’s Problem,” Tuesday, April 22, from 2 - 7 p.m. at Arizona State University’s West campus, 4701 W. Thunderbird Road in Phoenix. The event is free and open to the public (visitor parking on campus is $2 per hour).<separator></separator>The event takes place in La Sala A in the University Center Building (UCB).<separator></separator>“Too many women, men, and children are victims of some form of domestic violence,” says Wanda Tucker Hicks, a faculty associate in the Women’s Studies program and coordinator of the Women’s Studies Resource Center on the West campus. “Every incident we can prevent means there is one less victim and one less perpetrator, and therefore two fewer people in the world who are hurting.”<separator></separator>Tucker Hicks says domestic violence statistics are startling to people who are unfamiliar with them. For example, three quarters of women who experience rape or physical assault are assaulted by an intimate partner, and one in three women will experience a physical assault by a current or former intimate partner. Also, approximately half of the men who assault women also assault children.<separator></separator>The schedule of presenters on April 22 is:<separator></separator>2-2:30 p.m.: Featured speaker Bobbi Sudberry<separator></separator>Sudberry is the mother of Kaitlyn Sudberry, a Moon Valley High School student murdered in January 2008 by her estranged boyfriend, who then killed himself. Bobbi Sudberry has become an advocate for awareness of domestic violence among young people.<separator></separator>"Kaitlyn would have wanted us to tell her story, with the hope of preventing this from happening to others,” says Bobbi. “This is just a sample of her spirit."<separator></separator>2:30-3:15 p.m.: Carl Mangold<separator></separator>Mangold is director of program services for Chrysalis and a member of the Men’s Anti-Violence Network (M.A.N.), an initiative of the Arizona Foundation for Women. He will discuss his perspectives on why domestic violence is not only a women’s issue.<separator></separator>3:20-4:05 p.m.: Aneesah Nadir<separator></separator>Nadir, an assistant professor of social work in ASU’s College of Human Services, will speak from a social worker’s viewpoint and as a Muslim woman.<separator></separator>4:05-4:30 p.m.: Break and light refreshments<separator></separator>4:30-5:15 p.m.: Louise Welter<separator></separator>Welter is a counselor at ASU’s Polytechnic campus in Mesa. Her presentation will focus on intimate partner violence in gay/lesbian couples and the transgender community. (Statistics show that 25 to 30 percent of gay and lesbian couples experience domestic violence.)<separator></separator>5:20-6:05 p.m.: Wanda Tucker Hicks<separator></separator>Tucker Hicks will present her mother’s narrative from a daughter’s perspective. She also will discuss facts and statistics about domestic violence and will talk about available community resources.<separator></separator>6:05 p.m.: The conference concludes with a candlelighting in remembrance of those lost to domestic violence.<separator></separator>The Women’s Studies program on the West campus is a component of ASU’s New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences. New College degree programs in the humanities, arts, and sciences produce graduates who are independent thinkers and who are prepared to be leaders in a rapidly changing social, political and natural environment. More information is available at <a href="http://newcollege.asu.edu/">http://newcollege.asu.edu</a>.

New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences