 | Dear Friend, We know many in our community are feeling distressed by recent media coverage and public conversations about child sexual abuse. We want you to know: you are not alone. Wings stands in solidarity with adult survivors — including those connected to the Epstein case — and is working to provide essential education to address harmful words, actions, and stereotypes happening in culture right now. | | | | | | We Stand in Solidarity with Adult Survivors Wings joins other survivors and organizations calling for our culture to take childhood sexual abuse (CSA) seriously and insists we address the underlying beliefs and behaviors that cause this violence to occur to 1 in 5 people before they turn 18. We also call for the full public release of information contained in the Epstein files, along with complete accountability for every individual who has sexually abused children and full justice for all survivors. We share the video to the right from Epstein survivors because their voices matter. Their stories help illuminate broader patterns of CSA that are too often ignored or misunderstood. Please take care in deciding whether, how, and when to engage with this content. | | | | | | Understanding Harmful Tactics: DARVO, Minimization, and Their Impact As many of us who are survivors know, there are several key tactics individuals who sexually abuse children engage in—and that our culture perpetuates—to deny harm and avoid accountability. We see these tactics clearly being employed at this time. This includes DARVO – Deny, Attack, Reverse Victim and Offender – and minimization. This educational post from Wings explains the dynamics of DARVO in detail. To summarize, through DARVO: | | | | This recent video from CSA survivor Ashley Judd speaks to this pattern and also offers grounding and validation to fellow survivors. Please take care in deciding whether, how, and when to engage with this content. | |  | While this video references men who cause harm, it's important to recognize that DARVO is a tactic used by people of all gender identities who abuse children, and that our culture often mirrors these behaviors through victim blaming and minimization. It’s also important to acknowledge that CSA happens to people of all gender identities, not just girls. Minimization specifically refers to the act of downplaying or making something seem less serious, harmful, or significant than it actually is. Lately, we are seeing minimization appear frequently in the media, such as talk show host Megyn Kelly’s recent questioning of whether the abuse of a 15-year-old girl is less serious than abuse of a younger aged girl. | | | | Wings identifies these comments for what they are—harmful, dismissive, and deeply damaging to survivors. Any suggestion that abuse can be “less serious” based on age erases the very real and long-lasting impacts that CSA trauma has on all survivors. For more on how age, power, and development make it impossible for teens to consent to sexual activity with adults, please read this educational post from Wings. | | | | | | We Stand for Culture Change Tactics like denial, victim-blaming, and minimization reinforce a culture that enables abuse by those in positions of trust and authority, making our families and communities less safe—especially for children and anyone impacted by sexual violence. That’s why having providers who understand these dynamics is critical, and why educating our culture about them is essential. If you have experienced any of these tactics, please know — you are not alone. Wings is here to support you. Please reach out to be connected to our Survivor Services Navigator, who can connect you with personalized resources including individual therapy referrals or a Wings support group if you are in Colorado. Take your learning further. If you are a survivor, loved one, ally or professional who wants to explore these themes in greater depth and help change our culture, we encourage you sign up to take a self-paced Wings’ Champions of Healing™ course today. | | The learning series is available at no cost because we know what a vital and necessary resource it is for breaking stigma, building resilience, supporting survivors, and changing our culture for the better – from one of potential harm to one of collective healing. | | | | | | | | Our Work is Possible Because of You If you feel moved to support Wings’ essential education work and services for survivors, we encourage you to make a direct contribution to our organization today. There is truly no better time to give, thanks to some extraordinary matching gift opportunities. | | | | All one-time gifts will be doubled, and all new monthly gifts will be quadrupled. | | | | Together in Courage and Strength Wings is incredibly grateful to have a community that not only supports our work but also speaks out against harmful tactics that hurt survivors of all ages. By calling out injustice, standing with survivors, and demanding accountability, you help create a world where CSA trauma can be acknowledged and healed—and where healthy relating between all of us in our communities, near and far, can be realized and restored. This is the challenge and opportunity of our time. In hope and community,  Jenny Stith, MAT, MA Executive Director Wings | | | | “I did what my conscience told me to do, and you can’t fail if you do that.”
—Anita Hill | | | | Sharing is caring! Please forward this message on to those who need it. | | | | | | Wings
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