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Salal to Launch Vancouver’s First Integrated Sexual Assault Medical Clinic

Salal Sexual Violence Support Centre Awarded Funding from The Province of British Columbia to Launch Vancouver’s First Integrated Sexual Assault Medical Clinic For Immediate Release: October 18th, 2023 (Coast Salish Territories ~ Vancouver B.C.) – The Government of British Columbia announced that Salal Sexual Violence Support Centre is one of five organizations across the province […]

Celebrating Queer and Trans Survivors: Recognition Zine 2023!

Call for Submissions Summer, the season we know for celebrating our community with Pride, is right around the corner! Every year, we celebrate the voices of Trans and Queer survivors with our annual creative project, Recognition. This year, we’re taking Recognition back to its roots by making a classic zine! We believe healing can be […]

Provincial Gender-Based Violence Crisis Lines Funding Awarded to Salal Sexual Violence Support Centre and the Indian Residential School Survivors Society

          Salal Sexual Violence Support Centre and Indian Residential School Survivors Society have been jointly awarded funding to operate the Province of B.C.’s first Gender-Based Violence Crisis Lines For Immediate Release: May 17, 2023 (Coast Salish Territories ~ Vancouver B.C.) – As part of the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based […]

We Have A New Name!

On April 1st, 2023, WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre officially completed our transition to Salal Sexual Violence Support Centre. We’ve been deeply rooted in community over the last 40 years as WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre, and we want to make sure our community continues to feel supported under our new name. To help with this evolution, […]

Unpacking Oppressive Media: Books

One of the great things about educating yourself about intersectionality, systems of oppression, and the impacts of colonialism, is that you become more adept at observing when and how this shows up in various aspects of our lives. The only downside is that you can’t unsee it. We can no longer unsee how sexualized violence […]

Condoms and Consent

On July 29th 2022, the Supreme Court of Canada made an historic ruling on the 2021 appeal of R. v. Kirkpatrick. The case reaches back to 2017, and ultimately aimed to answer questions about whether or not negotiation of condom use during intercourse informs part of consent. A practice known by the survivors as “stealthing” […]

WAVAW is Moving

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, July 20th, 2022 WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre has Accepted a Nominal Lease from the City of Vancouver and will be Moving to a Confidential Downtown Location in Early 2023 (Vancouver, BC) — WAVAW Rape Crisis Centre has accepted a nominal lease from the City of Vancouver, and will be operating alongside […]

Sensationalizing Celebrities and Silencing Survivors

Once again, the media has been overwhelmed with multiple cases of sexual violence involving high-profile celebrities, and even local celebrities we may personally know. We are seeing increasingly divided public opinion, ranging in extremes; from calling to ‘cancel’ the careers of people who are involved in these cases, to denying violence is possible. Suddenly, and […]

SUPREME COURT RELEASES DECISION THAT PROTECTS SEXUAL ASSAULT SURVIVORS IN CRIMINAL TRIALS

For Immediate Release – Thursday, June 30, 2022 Ottawa, unceded Algonquin Anishinaabe territory—The Supreme Court of Canada released a decision today that will improve protections for sexual assault survivors in criminal trials. The decision in R v J.J. and A.S. v Her Majesty the Queen et al. has significant implications for how courts handle sexual […]
  • Posted May 16, 2022
  • In healing

Emotional Trauma, Wounding, and the Journey of Healing

Often when we hear the word “wound”, we think of physical wounds to the body. However, intense trauma such as sexual violence, rape, abuse, neglect, or intergenerational trauma can also create wounds, and can shape the way we perceive and make sense of ourselves, our lives, and our relationships. Each of us carries a wound […]