This Fall, WWAV announced that we will be launching a new program on domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking for African American women and LBTQ women in New Orleans, with the support of the Office on Violence Against Women.  We are now THRILLED to introduce you to the program coordinator, Ms. Ashley M. Bernal, MA.
Ashley is a life-long resident of New Orleans. She has committed both her personal and professional lives to social advocacy; focusing on vulnerable communities throughout the city. She received her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Sociology, with concentrations of the intersection of Race, Class, and Gender. Before joining WWAV she worked for the City of New Orleans Health Department’s Blueprint for Safety domestic violence program. At the Blueprint for Safety, Ashley worked with the program’s interagency coordinator to develop and implement tools to address the disparate impact that domestic violence has on African-American women and other vulnerable communities. Ashley hopes that by working with WWAV that she can utilize the subjugated knowledge of various communities to give voice to the otherwise silenced.
Stay tuned for updates from Ashley on all of the new domestic violence programming you can expect from WWAV in 2014, as we work to raise awareness and address stigma surrounding violence against African American women, provide twice monthly support to survivors, and advocate for culturally specific services across the host of violence intervention programs already available in New Orleans.
And please join us in welcoming Ashley to the WWAV family!!!