Vulnerability Wins

Hey there friends. This is an incredibly difficult post for me to make, but it is time for me to do it. Please hold me in your heart as I step into a deeply vulnerable space and place with this part of telling my story. May we collectively be safer for my doing so. I have worked really hard to be trauma informed about this speak out, and not reveal more details than necessary for safety. If this post triggers trauma for you, please, please, please talk to me. I am open to face to face conversation about this speak out, for those who may need it. This is scary, and I offer you this in trust.

In 2012, I testified against my previous partner of several years, on allegations of sexual crimes. My testimony, along with his own admission, resulted in a conviction and his incarceration. While I hold a lot of critique of the prison system, I was relieved to know that this person could no longer cause harm, and was being held accountable for his actions in some capacity. It was not a restorative process for the victims, and the victims were not the primary stakeholders throughout the judicial process. These were difficult outcomes to grapple with, but I could do that with the knowledge that I was at least safe from him. This past December, I was notified by a victims advocate that he was being released from incarceration and transferred to a "reintegration program". Since then, I have really been struggling with how to feel about him being released back into the community. I feel unsafe knowing that there is now a potential reality that I could happen to cross paths with him. I think I see him on the bus, on the street, at school, at the market. Everywhere. This is really disturbing and I am doing trauma work around it. However, I am feeling asked to do more to keep my environment safe, and keep my community safe. This person is well spoken, highly intellectual, perceivably progressive, with all kinds of charm. As I knew him, he was community minded and involved himself in farmers markets, community actions, community housing, and community events. He has radical ideas about society, economy, sexuality, and philosophy. Post incarceration, I have no idea who, or how, or where he is. This is scary because in my reality, there is a very real possibility that he could attempt reintegration into the communities that I engage in, or could attempt reintegration into the school I go to. I want to help make sure that a reintegration into these spaces won't happen, that his victims won't be subject to suffering his presence, and that you all are aware of this person before any chance of being vulnerable to him. So please take a moment to remember his face, remember his history of sexual violence, and keep your community safe. You may share this information with your community if you think it is appropriate.

Thank you for witnessing me in this vulnerable expression of truth. May we stand in solidarity to end violence against women and girls.

Summarized info about the allegations:http://mugshots.com/…/Multno…/Jesse-Wayne-Stark.8700282.html