Philly Stands Up
Philly Stands Up, a non-hierarchical, all-volunteer collective in Philadelphia[1], "works with people who have committed sexual assault to support them through the process of taking responsibility for their actions, learning from them and changing their behaviors, and restoring healthy relationships with their community."[2]
The group operates by consensus and adheres to principles of "Transformative Justice," meaning that they strive to eliminate "the social conditions that perpetuate violence - systems of oppression and exploitation, domination, and state violence". They are prison abolitionists, and they have a policy of never engaging with the police or the legal system.[3]
Asked why sexual assault perpetrators agree to work with Philly Stands Up, a collective member answered: "It depends, and it's not always easy. Party, we try and show them that by working with us in a process, it's hopefully going to improve their life. They're going to be hopefully invited back into the community. They're going to learn a lot about themselves. They're going to have stronger and more authentic relationships. And hopefully we're getting them to a place where they understand that they don't want to commit harm and they want to be accountable."[4]
- ↑ http://www.phillystandsup.com/ourwork.html.
- ↑ Peter Gelderloos, Anarchy Works.
- ↑ http://www.phillystandsup.com/ourwork.html, http://www.phillystandsup.com/philosophy.html.
- ↑ Horizontal Power Hour, "Philly Stands Up and Cheri Honkala," 21 January 2012, https://horizontalpowerhour.wordpress.com/2012/01/21/episode-28-philly-stands-up-and-cheri-honkala/.
