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DVIS—Exploring Justice and Fighting Disparities For Survivors

For 40 years, DVIS has been serving survivors of domestic and sexual violence in Tulsa and Creek counties. Although domestic and sexual violence span all races and socioeconomic classes, victims with access to fewer resources and those within marginalized populations face additional barriers to seeking help. In this month’s blog, Tracey Lyall, CEO of DVIS, shares how the work of DVIS is leading to reduce those barriers and advocate for justice for all. Read this informative blog HERE.

Justice Session Recap

Last month more than 70 community members joined our fourth community engagement session. During the session we reviewed the topics within the Justice theme with Damion Shade, Criminal Justice Policy Analyst at the Oklahoma Policy Institute; Wendell Franklin, Chief of Police at the Tulsa Police Department; and Maura Guten, President and CEO of the Child Abuse Network.

We also had a panel of service providers share highlights and strategies from their work, including Suzann M. Stewart, Executive Director of Family Safety Center; Buck West, Program Manager at 1^st Step Male Diversion Program, and Kristina Saleh, Program Director at Still She Rises.

Key Takeaways

• According to Oklahoma Policy Institute's research, North Tulsa—where 57% of residents are Black and 38% of residents live below the poverty line—has the highest concentration of court debt anywhere in the county. This turns into failure to pay warrants and a disproportionate number of arrests.
• Tulsa Police Department efforts to cultivate trust with communities of color include a dedicated captain for the newly created Community Engagement Unit, bolstering internal policies to ensure increased accountability for violations such as failure to activate a body camera, and revamped community advisory boards.
• Disparities in child abuse and neglect result from disparities in risk factors such as poverty, untreated mental health and substance abuse issues, and intimate partner violence, according to the Child Abuse Network.
• By housing multiple resources in one location, the Family Safety Center makes it easier for clients to access services related to domestic violence. Such resources include application for emergency protective order, childcare, child therapists, medical care and more.
• The 1^st Step Male Diversion Program collaborates with community partners to ensure wrap-around services for clients and provides programs to develop trust with law enforcement to prevent further justice involvement.
• Still She Rises offers interdisciplinary holistic representation, meaning their clients not only receive legal representation but also advocacy and outreach for needs in other areas of their lives.

Language Access Notice: Following are the steps to add auto-translated subtitles to the event recording:
1. Click CC; 2. Click Settings; 3. Click Subtitles/CC; 4. Click Autotranslate; 5. Choose your language

Justice Resources & Links

Resources shared by panelists and participants:

• The Oklahoma Policy Institute is a non-partisan policy think-tank that writes on a wide array of topics, including Justice.
• Open Justice Oklahoma uses public data to produce analyses that improve understanding of our justice system.
• Tulsa County Fines and Fees Mapping Tool
• Tulsa Police Department
• Tulsa Police Department Community Engagement Unit
• The Child Abuse Network (CAN) is Tulsa’s Children’s Advocacy Center. CAN is the coordinator for the multiple agencies that interact with children of reported child abuse.
• Look Out Reach Out Initiative is a new coalition to educate the community about ways to identify and report child abuse.
• Family Safety Center offers co-located multi-disciplinary services that offer protection, hope and healing to victims of interpersonal and family violence.
• 1^st Step Male Diversion helps young men stay out prison by providing necessary survival skills and services, facilitating career opportunities, and instilling positive behavior change for lifetime success.
• Still She Rises is the first holistic defense office in the country dedicated exclusively to the representation of mothers in both the criminal and civil legal systems.

Justice Data Indicators

Click on the below infographics to further explore the data.

Feedback Survey

How do you use or plan to use the Tulsa Equality Indicators Report? Do you have suggestions about future panelists or blog writers? Let us know here: