Mission Statement
Recognizing that women of color are an underserved population in the area of sexual violence, the MCASA's Women of Color Network strives to promote education, advocacy and leadership in communities in order to improve service delivery to victims.

History and Mission
MCASA’s Women of Color Network was founded on October 4, 2000, to be an advocate in communities of color for victims of sexual crimes, and to provide insight and guidance to the Maryland Coalition Against Sexual Assault on issues of sexual violence that impact women of color. Since its inception, the MCASA's Women of Color Network has actively worked toward breaking down barriers to service delivery and influencing meaningful change at all levels for women of color by providing workshops, participating in community activities, and researching the best practices that support women of color who are survivors of sexual crimes.

MCASA's WOCN Goals

• Actively recruit more women of color for paid and volunteer leadership and clinical positions
• Work with educational institutions to encourage women of color to go into health, social service and human services fields
• Create more opportunities for leadership training
• Heighten the understanding of white staff of women of color needs and issues
• Maintain contacts with existing women of color and other minority organizations
• Dedicate a column in MCASA’s quarterly newsletter, Frontline

MCASA's WOCN Membership
Participation in the MCASA's WOCN is open to women with professional experience in victim services and to women from the community who are interested in promoting improvement of services and assistance to victims of sexual violence. For more information about membership or to join the MCAS's WOCN, contact Jennifer Pollitt Hill at MCASA (410) 974-4507.

And Still I Rise
Black Women Confronting Rape

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MCASA's Women of Color Sexual Assault Prevention Conference 2006

Many thanks to all who sponsored, attended, or supported MCASA’s Women of Color conference, Preventing Sexual Assault in Communities of Color: Men and Women United, held April 19th at Prince George’s Community College. Opening Remarks were made by Mr. Keith Washington, Deputy Director for Prince George’s County Department of Homeland Security and Dr. James A. Dula, DCAO of Health and Human Services for Prince George’s County. The keynote speakers were Tony Porter and Ted Bunch –co-founders of A Call to Men—The National Association of Men and Women Committed to Ending Violence against Women, who focused on men “to reconsider their long held beliefs about men and women in an effort to become a part of the solution and create a more just society.” In the afternoon session, Carolyn M. West, PhD, editor and contributor to the book Violence in the Lives of Black Women: Battered, Black and Blue, presented “Still on the Auction Block: Sexual Objectification of Black Women in Hip Hop Culture.” For more information about the conference, see the Spring 2006 issue of Frontline or contact Kathy Ferguson, MCASA's WOCN Project Coordinator, at 410.974.4507 or Kathy@mcasa.org.

+ MCASA's WOCN Sexual Assault Prevention Conference 2006 Pictures

Deborah Chandler		Ted Bunch, A Call to Men
MCASA's WOCN Members: Jessica Dickerson, Saran Myers-Martin, Tonya Prince, Ellie Jones, Kathy Ferguson, and Alexis Dickens		Conference Presenters: Ted Bunch, Carolyn West, Tony Porter
Tonya Prince, Tanya Bryant, and Yaphet Bryant

Web Site Resources

• Colorlines Magazine
• Essence Magazine
• National Asian Women’s Health Organization
• South Asian Women’s Network
• Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE)
• Making Faces, Making Soul…A Chicana Feminist Homepage
• National MultiCultural Institute
• Women’s Justice Project