Back to Basics: Partnering with Survivors and Communities to Promote Health Equity at the Intersections of Sexual and Intimate Partner Violence

For many, the COVID-19 pandemic has been an eye-opening and life-changing experience. It has also changed the way we work and live in society. It has magnified systemic racial and gender inequities, urging us to do our movement work in bold and innovative ways. We, as advocates and activists dedicated to ending gender-based violence, must work together for health equity and racial justice. It is clearer than ever that this is key to fostering healthy and thriving communities.

This paper makes connections between health equity and our work to prevent sexual and intimate partner violence. It centers the stories of survivors at the intersections of systemic racism, violence, and oppression. It explores ways to build both individual and organizational capacity to address health inequity. And, it offers a call to action for those ready to commit to health equity in their gender-based violence prevention work.

This document was co-authored by staff of the National Sexual Violence Resource Center and National Resource Center on Domestic Violence, with significant input, guidance, and leadership from Black and women of color survivors and advocates.