Safety Comes From Inside Ourselves–Talking to Kids in the Wake of Disaster

Introductory note from DoingRightByOurKids.com co-author Amy Tiemann: Irene van der Zande originally wrote this article Safety Comes From Inside Ourselves as the Kidpower response to the events of September 11, 2001, but the challenges this piece addresses and skills it provides are relevant to a wide variety of disasters. This morning our thoughts and condolences are with the town of Joplin, Missouri, that was devastated by a major tornado last night. We hope this article will provide... Read more

Osama bin Laden – Bogeyman to Today’s Generation of Young Adults

In the wake of the death of Osama bin Laden, there were a number of media reports about the hold this man has had as the embodiment of evil on many of today’s generation of young adults. Ten years ago, these young people were 8 to 15, and they were old enough to understand much of what was going on in the world around them. Like the rest of us, they were shocked by the September 11 attacks – the images of the World Trade Center’s twin towers falling, the faces and voices of... Read more

Dominique Strauss-Kahn rape accusations and connecting the dots of cultural violence

Too often, violence is not an aberration from society, but built into the system. That is why we must keep speaking up and acting to end violence of all kinds. The sexual assault allegations about IMF Chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn have me so angry I can hardly sleep at night. The idea of the world’s most powerful banker sexually attacking a hotel worker who is an African immigrant is absolutely terrible, and terrifying to all women. I also wonder how all citizens of countries who depend... Read more

Sexual assault, status and power: IMF Chief charged with attempted rape

Anti-rape activists have long said that sexual violence is at the core about a power, not sex, and the breaking news about the attempted rape allegations made by a maid at a Manhattan hotel against the chief of the International Monetary Fund crystallize this idea. This powerful man who is the alleged attacker is Dominique Strauss-Kahn, 62, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund, the intergovernmental organization that oversees the global financial system. While his name is... Read more