Over 1,600 survivors, advocates, and prevention practitioners gathered in Anaheim, CA, for the National Sexual Assault Conference® (NSAC)! This year, attendees at NSAC were invited to reimagine what the future holds for the movement. Plenary speakers and performances shared lived experiences as frameworks to rethink tumultuous periods, while plenary entertainment by Drummers without Borders, Mariachi Divas, and Bamby Salcedo energized us to imagine and work toward a future focused on strong communities and restorative practices.
NSAC’s Tribal Welcome at the opening plenary session set the tone for the next three days. Members of the Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women, Hopi-Tewa Women’s Coalition to End Abuse, Minnesota Indian Women’s Sexual Assault Coalition, Native Women’s Society of the Great Plains, Southwest Indigenous Women’s Coalition, and Strong Hearted Native Women’s Coalition began the conference by calling on everyone to commit to building intentional partnerships with Native and Indigenous organizations and communities. They reminded us that by working together without expecting anything in return, we can reach our shared goals of preventing violence, serving survivors, and creating stronger, more resilient relationships.
Opening plenary speakers Sandra Henriquez, CEO of VALOR, and Tinisch Hollins, Executive Director of Californians for Safety & Justice and Vice Chair of the San Francisco African American Reparations Committee, appealed to conference attendees to disentangle our values from realities that add to the cycle of violence. In her plenary, Sandra shared how her understanding of what it means to serve survivors has evolved throughout her career. She recalled moments from the beginning of her tenure as VALOR’s CEO that led her to understand the importance of support and accountability alongside survivor healing as a way to create safer environments and stronger communities. Following Sandra, Tinisch connected historical events to the continuing harm of Black, Brown, Indigenous and Native, and immigrant communities. Sandra and Tinisch challenged conference participants to acknowledge the legacy of violence in our country and how the movement has historically shunned harmdoers, even those who acknowledged they have caused harm. Together, they call on us to build on our past by providing opportunities like restorative practices and reparations so all people in our communities can heal.
Plenary speakers on Day 2 continued pushing us to reimagine what social and cultural change really entails. David S. Lee, Deputy Director of VALOR and host of the day’s Plenary, urged all of us to embrace restorative and transformative justice practices as a way to develop communities rooted in healing, accountability, connection, and safety. Nicole Klaymoon, Francis Aquino, and Amikaeyla Gaston from Embodiment Project performed an excerpt from Belly of the Whale, a moving story of healing from child sexual abuse that demonstrated the strength of survivors to heal after harm alongside those who have acknowledged the harm they have caused. Complementary to Embodiment Project’s performance, Krystal A.McLeod, Co-Executive Director and Chief Program Officer at the Center on Violence and Recovery, New York University, powerfully expressed how restorative options are pathways to healing for survivors, harmdoers, and the movement. By investing in restorative options and harm-doer accountability, Krystal offers us a way to reimagine how we view healing and “justice” while increasing our ability to support all survivors of violence.
On the last day of NSAC, closing plenary speakers expressed how they have imagined and forged new pathways for prevention by asking questions like,
“Why aren’t we asking the community?,” “What would it look like if we made everyone feel seen, safe, and supported?,” and “Why do choices made by society not meet the values I live by?” Rebeca M. Melendez, Director of Wellness Programs at the East Los Angeles Women’s Center, remembered how her ideas of culturally-specific prevention initiatives were met with hesitation and discouragement early on in her career. By focusing on her culture and community, Rebeca shared how she forged her own path by connecting with the cultures that she serves, asking them what they need to feel safe and be healthy, and putting it into action. Josef Canaria, Manager of Programs & Strategic Initiatives at Act to Change, recalled how a visit to a Deep South men’s prison in Alabama, a Title IX meeting at a college, and being presented the idea of ‘greening’ in prevention made him realize that being the most knowledgeable in the room didn’t matter. Josef reminded us that prevention is messy, and while there is no perfect way to do it, showing up for others was the most important step to create positive change. Ashleigh Klein-Jimenez, Director of Prevention at VALOR and the final NSAC speaker, shared the first time she realized that her values did not match present society when she first noticed that inequity between neighborhoods meant that some kids had better education than others. As the movement continues working against patriarchal social norms that create inequity, Ashleigh called on us to remember that resiliency, persistence, and love are at the core of preventing and ending sexual violence and creating a future where everyone thrives.
NSAC 2025 provided an opportunity for attendees to imagine, show up, and work toward a world that fosters shared values, creates healing spaces for survivors and those who have harmed, and where violence is preventable, not inevitable.
“I believe that if we really let love shape how we make decisions – we start to build a world where violence is unthinkable.”
– Ashleigh Klein-Jimenez
