On Jan. 18, Dan Fagan of KFQD Radio remarked on legislative efforts by Gov. Parnell to end violence in Alaska. During his talk show he stated, "Sexual abuse is rampant in Bush Alaska and people are turning a blind eye, looking the other way and nothing is being done about it while girls and young women are being terrorized."
In the first place, sexual violence knows no race, gender, age or economic walls. It happens all over the world. Not just in rural Alaska. I need not delve into cases familiar to most Alaskans to remind us that abuse happens everywhere.
Dan Fagan's outrageous remark that "nothing is being done and people are turning a blind eye, looking the other way" denigrates, minimizes and insults the dedication of those who have worked in the field to end violence in Alaska.
Since 1982, I have worked with and known those at the forefront to make social change in our state. These dedicated Alaskans have worked in very dangerous conditions to speak out and do something to end this scourge. They have been subjected to public ridicule, threats and harassment. They have persevered.
I have seen witnesses terrified as they testified in court, bravely coming forward in order to stop further abuse and to hold the perpetrators accountable. I have seen accountability placed on the abuser, rather than victims blamed for a choice they didn't make. For decades throughout Alaska, support groups have been organized where victims could be healed of their injuries, understood and nurtured into wellness.
This was not accomplished by those who turned a blind eye and did nothing.
Should any advocate be asked why they work to end violence, they undoubtedly would mention a family member or someone they knew who died or had been killed while suffering alone, without their cries being heard. There was no justice for them. They were known as Silent Witnesses. Today they are known as Not-Silent-Any-More-Witnesses. In some places in Alaska, they are known as Safety Girls.
These are not men and women who turn a blind eye and do nothing.
Alaska now has mandated reporters of abuse. I know who they are: private citizens, social workers, tribal elders, council members, health aides, teachers, members of the clergy, village public safety officers, counselors, advocates and village service providers.
I have witnessed them giving hundreds of Alaska's children personal safety skills. I have seen children's expressions change when they discover that abuse is never their fault and that other adults know how they were harmed. I have seen adults empowered to speak out against violence. I have seen families restored. I have seen Native women, once victimized, who are now working for judges or corporate entities and/or getting their degrees. I have seen volunteers hold and care for a victim's baby because the mother was too injured to do so. I have seen advocates remain beside victims whose hearts and lives were broken. I have seen them turn tears into triumph, not just survival.
These are not people who sit by doing nothing.
Fagan stated that I am responsible for further abuse of victims and my agenda is to keep him silent. This is harmful and dangerous for those who are still suffering. It's like telling them not to believe me if I should ever be their advocate.
His response to my objections to mentioning only Bush Alaska were to call me a militant Native activist with no standing in the community. What was his motive? It certainly wasn't to advocate for the rights of victims.
The first casualty of violence is truth. The first loss to a victim is his or her name.
My father and family members didn't honorably serve in the Territorial Guard, the Eskimo Scout Battalion and World War II and the Vietnam War, nor did I sober up, for Dan Fagan to call me anything but an Alaskan, to call me anything but my name.
And the only standing I need in any community is to do the right thing.
Desa Jacobsson is a survivor of physical and sexual abuse who has worked for more than eight years as a trained advocate for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault in Dillingham and Bethel. She also is a candidate for governor.
This essay originally appeared on Tundra Telegraph. Talk of the Tundra features commentary by Alaskans from across the state. The views expressed are the writer's own and are not endorsed by Alaska Dispatch.