August 9, 2022 • 34 mins
Victim Compensation is one of the few programs designed to provide direct reimbursement for victims of crime and violence, and yet too many victims do not receive support from Victim Compensation and are left to struggle alone after a tragedy.
Today’s guest, India Brown, is here to speak about her own difficulties getting the support she needed after experiencing the loss of a loved one to violence, and how she turned that struggle into a mission to help other survivors recover and heal from violence.
India recently led efforts to help pass a historic bill in Ohio that made significant changes to the state’s victim compensation program to better support crime survivors. Tune in to listen to her powerful story.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:02):
- Welcome to this week's episodeof "Crime Survivors Speak".
My name is Aswad Thomas,
I'm the National Director
of Crime Survivors For Safety And Justice.
We are a nationalnetwork of 90,000 victims
from across the country.
Today's episode asksan important question.
Does Victims Compensation help victims?
(upbeat music)
(00:26):
I've been waiting tohave this conversation
ever since I learned aboutVictim's Compensation
four years after I got shot.
So what is victim's compensation?
Victim's compensation isa direct reimbursement
to, or on behalf of a crime victim
for a wide variety ofcrime related expenses,
such as medical costs,
(00:47):
mental health counseling,
lost wages,
funeral and burial costs.
Helping with relocation expenses,
helping to repair damage windows or locks
as a result of victimization
also helps to cover the loss of support
for dependents of victims as well.
Eligibility for compensationvaries by state and territory.
(01:08):
Victims' Compensation doesn't help
the majority of crime victims like me.
The eligibility requirementsare so restrictive.
You have to turn into application so fast.
In states like Michigan
victims have at least 48hours to file a police report
in order to be eligible for the program.
After that, the victim only has one year
(01:30):
to apply for the program.
Many states across the countryhave similar time limits
and face so many barriers
so Crime Survivors For SafetyAnd Justice and our members,
we are going state by stateto revamp this whole program.
In today's episode,
we'll talk about a historic bill
that was just passed last year in Ohio
that made significant changes
(01:50):
to the state's Victim'sCompensation Program
to better support crime survivors.
Today, I will be talking with India Brown
from Cleveland, Ohio.
India is a licensedindependent social worker
who specializes in trauma,
where she provides individual counseling
for adolescents and adults.
India is also a crime survivor
and served as the Co-Chapter Coordinator
(02:11):
of the Cleveland Chapter
of Crime Survivors For Safety And Justice.
India recently led efforts to help pass
that historic VictimCompensation reform bill in Ohio,
Senate Bill 36,
that made significant changes
to the state's Victim'sCompensation Program
to better support crimesurvivors across the state.
India, welcome to the "CrimeSurvivors Speak" podcast.
(02:32):
Thank you for joining us today.
- Hello, Aswad.
It is truly an honor
to be a part of this podcast this evening
and talk about how some of thosebarriers that I experienced
have actually been taken away
in the best interest of the survivors.
- Before we jump into yourexperience as a survivor.
So you're from what I knownow is the forest city,
(02:55):
Cleveland, Ohio.
I would love to hear whatwould your experience like
growing up in Cleveland?
What are some of your favorite memories?
- So I was born andraised in Cleveland, Ohio.
I will be 37 on Sunday,
so I've spent 37 years in Cleveland.
I graduated from ClevelandMunicipal School District,
which is our public schooldistrict for Cleveland.
(03:16):
I also went to Bryant & Stratton
in which I obtained mybachelor's in criminal justice,
then I also went to Cleveland State
in which I obtained mymaster's in social work.
Growing up, we were poor.
I grew up in poverty.
So my best memories were whenmy family did things together,
like family holidays,
outings with either side of the family,
(03:37):
going to Burger King,
'cause that was a once in awhile type opportunity for us
and play on the original Nintendo,
which I actually have the retro one today,
that's how much I enjoyed it.
but another good memorythat I miss, however,
and I miss it dearly
is when growing up in a community
where people were not just your neighbors,
(03:58):
they were more so like your family.
So everybody looked out for everyone.
Everyone knew everyone,
you weren't just somerandom kid on your street.
Every family knew everyone's kids.
Every parent knew theother parents, et cetera.
So it was that sense of community
that I look back and wishwas still here today.
(04:19):
- Thank you so much.
Congratulations on allof your achievements.
I have my masters in social work as well
so it is awesome to talkto a fellow social worker.
So you shared a littlebit about your experiences
of growing up, lots of fun,
but also a lot of hardships
of growing up in poverty
and growing up oftensurrounded by violence as well.
(04:40):
Would love to hear a little bit more
about your experience in high school.
I believe that's where you met
your high school sweetheart, Donald.
Can you tell us a little bit about Donald?
- Yes, so I was 14, Donald was 15.
We met through a mutual friend
and a lot of the times becauseof course we were teenagers
and nobody was driving,
we would spend a lot ofour time on the phone.
(05:02):
I got in trouble a lot
'cause I was on the phone tillthree, four in the morning
when I was supposed tobe in bed for school.
But Hey, I got up and I still made it.
Donald, however, he hada difficult upbringing.
His father was absent in his life,
he was also the only male to four sisters.
He loved his family,
like he would always makesure he provided for them
(05:23):
as much as he could even as a teenager,
family was a veryimportant concept for him.
So despite what was going onin Donald's life, however,
you always caught him with a smile,
the type of smile thatliterally lights up a room.
Like there was no worry in the world,
despite I knew that there was worry.
- So you and Donald, you had two kids.
(05:45):
What are the names?
What are some of the thingsthat they like to do?
- My daughter, Treasurer, she's 19.
She actually ventured off
to college in West Virginia last fall,
but she did not like it down there
so of course she came back home
and she played volleyball
like her entire middle schoolto high school timeframe,
and actually that's how sheended up with a scholarship
(06:05):
to West Virginia.
My son, Darien, he's 15.
He's actually real big into baseball.
So I spent a lot of time with that.
They were babies when thingswent wrong in our lives.
So a lot of things they rememberand some things they don't.
- Let's talk about that.
So in 2007, you and yourfamily's lives changed forever.
(06:30):
What happened on that day thatchanged your life forever?
- Aswad, when I say I willalways remember that day,
like it is still the present moment,
sometimes it gives me chills about it,
but it all started on June 19th, 2007.
Me and Donald we were supposedto meet up that evening
to kind of discuss movingforward as co-parents.
(06:51):
Relationship had prettymuch came to its end,
I was 22, he was 23.
I was on my way headedout with some friends
and he had some thingsthat he was taking care of
so we both agreed that wewould meet later that evening
to kind of break down whatlife was gonna look like for us
moving forward.
Well, unfortunately that night never came.
(07:13):
When I came back homefrom meeting with friends,
I called him several timesand never got a response.
I called around asking otherpeople had they saw him
because it wasn't like himto not answer my phone call.
So I called the next day, still no answer.
I even attempted to filea missing person report
because it was so unusualfor him to go days on end
(07:34):
without anybody hearing from him.
But when the police came to my house,
they told me it was too soon.
It was already like 48 hourssince the last time I saw him.
And because he was an adult,
they said that I had to give it some time.
Well, on June 26th, 2007,
I received a call from hisyoungest daughter's mother
that Donald was admitted
(07:55):
to one of our local hospitals up here
and he was in their ICU dueto almost being beat to death.
And on July 2nd, 2007,Donald died of his injuries.
- India, I know that just asI'm listening to you today
just how difficult thatmust have been for you,
for Donald's family,
(08:16):
but also for your kids.
Walk me through that experience
of having Donald lose his life to violence
and having to deal and copefor yourself as a mother,
but also how did you help your children
(08:40):
deal with losing their father?
- So at the time Treasure was four
and Darien was only about 11 months
at the time of his death.
Here it is, I'm 22, single mom,
never thought I would beraising two kids by myself.
I didn't know what to do,
I didn't know where to turn to.
All I knew is that we hadto prepare for a funeral
(09:01):
and I had to keep my head level
in order to continue parenting.
- During this time
of having to prepare fora funeral still grieving,
the entire family is grieving,
you have to bury your kids' father.
During this time,
were you offered any services or support
(09:22):
or did you and Donald's family
apply for the Ohio VictimsCompensation Program?
- So Aswad, I'm gonna give you
a whole backdrop of that, okay.
When I say there was no help,
I mean, no help.
The response from the justice system
is not what you see on TV,
it it's not.
(09:43):
So like when I got to the hospital
there was no detective information,
I didn't know who to call,
where to turn to.
I'm asking the nurses like,
"Hey, do you know whoI'm supposed to talk to?
"You know I have hisinsurance card, I have his ID.
"What else do I need to do?"
I literally had to callthe police department
and I was left on hold forever
(10:05):
to the point where Icalled multiple times,
was put on hold
to the point where I just hung up.
I couldn't get intocontact with a prosecutor,
no advocates were everassigned to the case.
I literally did notknow what I needed to do
with the legal system,
again, who I needed to talk to,
who was gonna make me awareof if the person was arrested,
(10:26):
when was the court proceedings?
All these things thatwe see on police shows,
I had none of that.
The way that I found out anything
was that I went on to ourclerical of courts docket
and I found out, oh,the person was arrested.
Oh, the person has a upcoming court date.
(10:48):
And the crazy part about itis the upcoming court date
was actually his sentencing date.
So at this point, I'mscavenging around the house
trying to figure out whatI'm gonna do with the kids,
'cause I know for afact I have to be there.
And when I get down there,
they only gave the guy a year
because the witnesses never showed up
so the state didn't have a case.
(11:08):
And I remember the prosecutor telling me
when I finally met him,
'cause the case literallyhad fell in his lap
not too long before the sentencing,
that it wasn't untilpeople like me and him
who wanted change
that we would actually see change.
As far as Victim's Compensation,
I knew nothing about it.
We had never been throughanything of that matter
(11:30):
to the point where we hadto reach out to anyone
but I will never forget that call.
I literally got informationfrom like a friend
like six months later.
And she was like,
"Did you reach out toVictim's Compensation?"
And I'm like, who are they, what is this?
So she explained it tome and she was like,
"You know, you may be able toget something for the kids."
I called down to Columbus
(11:50):
and the woman that answered the phone,
you know, I told her what had happened,
and she said, "What isyour loved one's name?"
So I gave her his name,
she asked me date of birth.
And she asked me, "Did he have a felony?"
I'm sitting here at this point like,
what does any of thatmatter at this moment?
I got two kids, what am I supposed to do?
And when I told her, Iwas like, yeah he does.
(12:10):
He has a felony four and felony five,
which is our low levelfelonies in Cleveland.
And she literally said,
"Y'all don't qualify for nothing."
And I was just like stuck, like I froze.
And I was like, okay,and I hung up the phone.
No one said anything
that we would be eligible for counseling,
(12:31):
grief counseling.
Didn't give me anyconnections to support groups.
I at the point had to prettymuch figure out finances,
even though I was working.
Like I knew for a fact that at this point
I needed to pick up more hours
because there was an absent parent.
So like I literally was tryingto figure everything out
without anyone's help,
(12:52):
because my parents didn't know what to do,
they had never experienced it.
So I'm like, what now, what next?
So that's what made mego to Brian and Stratton.
Actually me and Donald hadenrolled in Brian and Stratton
before his death.
So I said, "You wanna know something,
"this is what I'm gonna continue to do."
That's when I just said, okay,
I'm gonna dive into school,
get this degree and I'mgonna make things change.
(13:15):
And so I got my degreeand there was no change.
So that made me feel defeated.
- You're bringing up something
that I hear across the country,
victims of crime live inunderserved communities of color,
black crime victims,
latino crime victims.
After becoming a victim to violence
(13:37):
or having a loved one become a victim,
whether it's gun violence,
domestic violence, sexual assault.
In communities of color,
it's a consistent theme that
there's no follow up from law enforcement,
no connection to services,
no advocate to help you navigatethe criminal justice system
or to navigate things like victim services
(13:58):
or when they try to goout and seek services,
just like you did to get support,
for not only you but for your children,
were told that you and your family
were denied access to compensation.
I wanna hear what did that feel like?
That rejection of you trying to go get
that support and servicesand being told that
(14:20):
because of Donald's past criminal history,
that the state isdenying access to therapy
to you and your kids.
- The crazy part about it is,
I don't even know if I would actually say
it was a denial to services.
She just didn't tell,
like she didn't tell me anything else.
After she said we didn'tqualify for compensation.
(14:44):
I'm thinking that, okay,we don't qualify for that,
is there something elsewe could qualify for?
You know what I'm saying?
And she literally just said,"No, you don't qualify."
And I'm like, okay.
Like the conversation, Idon't qualify for that,
but is there something else?
I remember Treasure,she was maybe about 12
(15:04):
and I started seeing somebehaviors that I was like,
okay, this is that voidof not having her father.
And I remember reaching outto a grief counseling agency
and them asking me the different things
that she was exhibiting.
And they was like, "Ohno, that's not grief,
"that's just normal 12 year old behavior."
And I'm like, no, it'snot, it really wasn't.
(15:27):
And the fact that they didn't even say,
"Well, come in, let usactually assess her,
"not just go by what you're saying,
"let us see as clinicians,
"if this is normalbehavior or if it's grief."
Nothing.
- Wow, unbelievable.
And so you've seen theimpact of unaddressed trauma,
(15:47):
how that impacted your kids,
how that impacted, notonly you and your family,
but also just the impactthat had on Donald's family
who also have been struggling,
continue to strugglewith losing a loved one.
India, I also would love to hear
during this time of one losing Donald,
being devastated and nosupport from law enforcement,
(16:09):
no support from any victimadvocate or compensation program,
would love to hear likewho was most helpful
to you and your family during this time?
Was it a church?
Was it community members?
Was it other survivors?
Was it support groups?
Who was most helpfulto you and your family
during this time andwhat did they do to help?
- My friends stepped in wholeheartedly,
(16:29):
both sides of the family,
and our church community.
Like they were there to help us
go through the whole funeral arrangements.
Actually, his mom pastor
actually took care ofthe funeral arrangements
'cause we didn't have it.
People would be a listening ear,
they would bring over food,
they just simply helpedout however they could.
Those were the people thatwere there to help navigate,
(16:50):
and again, nobody really knew much about
the systems part of it,
but they were there to help ushowever they possibly could.
- And that just brings me back to
when I became a victim of gun violence,
and I remember recovering
on my mother's one bedroomapartment on this hard couch.
(17:10):
Here I am sitting down withtwo gunshot wounds to my back
and law enforcement cameto visit me several times,
it was always about the case.
They never asked me how I was doing.
There was actually a victimadvocate in their department
who was supposed to workwith victims like myself
and they never connectedme with any services.
So like my family and Iwas left to deal with that
on our own.
But it was this oneorganization that did reach out,
(17:33):
it was an organization called
Mothers United Against Violence.
This group of mothers
who's all lost their children to violence,
you know, provided support to me,
but also provided that supportto my mother at the time
who I think needed it the most.
Seeing, you know, her youngest son shot
and not having any support and services.
You know, often when we become victims,
(17:55):
it's often it's not lawenforcement who provides support,
it's not victim services,
often it's our family and our loved ones
who are responding to our needs
and being that support system for us.
Millions of dollars
have been coming into ourcommunities for decades,
none of those resourcesreached your family.
What would you have liked
for you and your family during this time
(18:17):
as it relates to services?
What are some of the services and support
that you all would've liked
if you had been able to get that?
- I really wish thatsomeone would've told me
about counseling
because I remember one daysomeone telling me that
they could see how angry I was
and that maybe I neededto go to the cemetery
and sit and have a conversation
(18:39):
because I was angry.
I was a single mom,
like why did you leave me?
Why am I here to be left withraising these kids myself?
And I took their adviceand I went to the cemetery
and I cried, I yelled, I screamed.
If somebody would've walked up,
they would've thought like
I literally had lost my lovedone right then and there.
(19:01):
And I went there and I just expressed
everything that I was feeling.
And that is something that Irecommend to my clients now
when I do therapy andthey're dealing with grief.
Go have that conversationthat you did not have
before that person was murdered.
Go have that conversation
that you wish you would'vegot off your chest
(19:23):
before they would've died.
So I wish someone would havetold me about counseling
and the importance that ithas to your healing journey.
I wish someone would've told me,
set me down in a parenting class,
this is what parenting lookslike now being a single parent
just supports around the new new,
(19:44):
because your life has changed now,
this is what you can expect
as a grieving mother with young kids.
This is what you can expect
as just a grieving woman yourself.
These are the things
that you should look out foryour children in this time.
I wish someone would haveexplained all of those things.
- That is why you decided to pursue
(20:06):
a career in counseling, right,
to make that differenceand to be there for,
you know, the clients that you serve.
Do they have that sameor similar experiences
to what you had?
Is that a norm with the clientsthat you're serving in Ohio?
- That is very much a norm.
Back in 2017,
when Ohio brought traumarecovery centers to Ohio,
(20:27):
a lot of the clients that I would see,
like I would walk intothese hospital rooms
after their victimization,
and I remember a young lady,
she had three kids,
she was shot randomly,
and I went in there totalk to her about services.
And she said,
"If you're here to talkto me about compensation,
"I don't qualify."
And I'm like, "What do you mean?
(20:48):
"I haven't even got it out yet."
She was like, "I have a felony."
And I was like, "Oh, okay.
"Yes, that is a barrier to compensation.
"But let me tell youabout these other supports
"that are available to youother than just compensation."
There was this one family
who their son and brother was shot
and I remember sittingdown with the sister
(21:09):
answering some of herquestions of what to expect.
What do things look likefrom a siblings standpoint?
Because a lot of times thesiblings are the forgotten ones.
No one talks with them,
everybody's tending to the parents.
You're kind of just there left alone
to kind of figure it out.
So I kind of walked her through it
and I walked the parentsthrough what it would look like.
(21:31):
One of the barriers for mewhen Donald was at the hospital
was I couldn't pay for parkingevery day at the hospital.
It's pay for parking to sit with him
or make sure my kids hadmilk and food on the table.
So with the trauma recoverycenter that I was at,
that's one of the things thatwe made sure families had.
You don't have to worry about food,
you don't have to worry about parking,
(21:52):
just be here with your loved one.
When you grieving thingslook different for everybody.
You know, you may punch something,
you may yell, you may scream.
But because some of the doctors and nurses
didn't know how to respond to that,
they would contact the hospital police
and I would have to go downto the ER and let them know,
like, let me just talk with the family,
(22:13):
tell the police just to stand back,
let me go talk with them
and let me deescalate the situation.
And nine times outta 10,
that deescalation happened
because they were talkingto somebody who understood
what it was like to have yourloved one be taken from you
and you don't know whereto turn or what to do next.
(22:34):
- So not only did you kind of channel
that pain, that hurt intobeing a service provider,
but you also turnedinto a advocate as well.
What made you get involved
with Crime Survivor Safety And Justice?
- Ohio launched thetrauma recovery centers
and the coordinators wereinvited to Sacramento.
(22:54):
It was in Sacramento
where the trauma recoverycenters originated from.
So I'm sitting in someof the breakout sessions
and I'm sitting among other survivors
and I'm hearing their stories,
I'm hearing their pain,
but I'm also seeing their healing.
And I was like, thisis something different.
I need to be a part of this,
what is this?
(23:16):
You can really function normally.
And I met Shakira Diaz andI remember telling her,
I was like, "Shakira, Iwanna be a part of this.
"This spoke to me, likeit touched my soul."
And she was like, "You already are."
And I was like, "Huh, what you mean?"
I'm like clueless,
like what you talking about?
And I remember sharing my story with her
(23:38):
and I made her awareof some of the barriers
that I had experienced.
So when I returned home,
I came back hungry andfull at the same time.
Like I've never knewthat feeling could exist,
I didn't even know what it was.
But I was hungry to make changes
(23:58):
and full to know that when survivors speak
change would indeed happen.
I saw the changes thatCalifornia had put in place
and I was like, "Oh, ifit could be done there,
"it can be done anywhere.
"Okay, let's make this happen.
"What do I need to do?"
So I came back and Iwas invited to a meeting
(24:18):
for National Crime Survivor's Week,
and I was like, this isit, this is where I belong.
This is how I turn my pain into healing.
This is how I help other people,
not only my family,
but other survivors who are experiencing
or experienced some of those dark moments.
(24:39):
Even as a young child,
I've always seen like gapsin policies and procedures
when it came to peoplethat looked like us.
And I always wanted to know,
well, how do we change it?
Because we know a lot of theselaws were written way before
and they weren't written for us.
So as time changes,
we gotta start changingsome of these policies
'cause things are startingto look different.
(25:00):
Like I did the research on why Ohio's
Victims Of Crime Compensation policies
were the way they were.
So I understood, but I'm likethe mafia ain't really like
in Cleveland for real,
to my knowledge that I know.
So why are we stilloperating off of something
from 19 who knows what?
This is the 2000s now,
(25:21):
we gotta change some thingsand catch up with the times.
- Then let's talk aboutthat a little bit, right.
Talk about researching,
not only the barriersthat exist in the law,
but tracing that back toDonald's experience, right?
Of you going to apply for compensation
and someone tellingyou you're not eligible
(25:43):
because Donald have afelony four or felony five?
But also in that hospital
when you talked to that young woman
who you just came into thatroom to provide service
and she told you,
"I'm not eligible for compensationbecause of my felony."
So during your research,
what are some of thebarriers that you found out
about Ohio's Victim Compensation Program?
(26:03):
- So it was crazy because like
I knew about the felony, of course,
because I went through it.
However, I found out thetimeframe on that felony.
So the timeframe fromOhio was 10 years, right.
So you can be that 18 year old
who was young and doing whatever,
and then on your 27th birthday,
you can become a victim.
(26:25):
But because your 10 years aren't up,
you wouldn't qualify.
And I'm like, why 10 years?
Like 18 to 27, you change a little bit.
Like the little foolish stuff
you may have done when you were younger,
a lot of people grow out of that.
Then it was when I was in the hospital,
I remember applying for a young man
(26:46):
and he owed child support.
So not only was he outof work due to his wounds
but the compensation that hewould have been reimbursed for
went to child supportbecause he was in arrears.
I also found out that
if you had controlledsubstances in your system,
(27:06):
you did not qualify, you were denied.
And a lot of times, a lot of these people
when they're being wheeled into the EMS's,
a lot of them get controlled substances
just to calm them downto get to the hospital,
calm them down to help ease their pain.
And because a tox screen was ran,
it doesn't say when thiscontrolled substance
(27:28):
was in your system,
but it shows a controlled substance.
And I had people that were being denied
because they had fentanyl
that was administered bythe hospital in their system
when the tox screen was done.
- Unbelievable, so thesystem have been denying
individuals' right to counseling
because of a previousrecord that could date back,
(27:51):
you said nine, 10 years ago?
People are being denied support
long after they made amistake in their lives.
So you decided to change that.
Walk us through some of thatadvocacy that happened in Ohio.
- So Cleveland, Ohio actuallyhas their own Survivors Speak.
(28:11):
It wasn't as big as California's,
but we had a wonderful turnout.
And so we had the opportunityto meet with legislators,
sit down and talk to senators,
even had the opportunity tospeak with the Attorney General.
I saw that legislators
are just as much similarto us regular people,
and I was shocked
(28:32):
because a lot of them havetheir own trauma as well.
And they were able to relate,
they were able to sympathize,
but they were also able to empathize.
And that really mattered a lot.
And of course we hadindividuals go testify
for Senate Bill 36.
We as Clevelanders actually said,
(28:54):
okay, it's time for a changeand we're gonna show up.
We're gonna be there.
Wherever you need us at
to get these bills and policies changed,
just let us know, we there.
- And you all in Ohiohave done amazing work
from meeting with legislators,
doing legislative visits,
testifying, at hearings.
I remember that firstSurvivor Speak back in 2019,
(29:17):
90% of those individuals comefrom communities of color.
For a lot of people itwas their first time
being in the state capital building
and to be surrounded byhundreds of other survivors
who share those same experiences,
but were in the capital to change policies
and to let lawmakers knowwhat safety looked like for us
(29:39):
and what healing needs to look like.
I know survivors whowrote dozens of op-eds,
been featured in dozens of media coverage,
really elevating the barriersthat survivors are facing.
I'm excited that India, youwill be leading efforts.
And India before we leave today,
I have one more questionfor you as a crime survivor,
and also as a clinician
(29:59):
that provides trauma recovery services
to victims and families.
For those survivors and advocates
who are out there listening today,
what words of advice do you have
for those survivors and families
that are grieving the loss of a loved one?
And what advice do you got to help them
with their healing journey?
- As a clinician and a survivor,
(30:21):
I lost Donald, but then three years later
my brother was killed to gun violence.
Life was crazy at that point.
The best advice that I can give anybody
is one, seek services that you need
to help you in your healing journey.
And that looks differentfor everybody, right.
That may be counseling,
(30:41):
that may be support groups,
that may be other healingmodalities that's out there,
but seek the services that you need.
But also get yourself familiar
with the resources in your area.
So that way, if you or someone you love,
or a friend of a friend, whatever,
something happens to them,
(31:02):
you are able to share those resources
because that was me to my family
when my brother was murdered.
By that time I had three years in
so I knew what to expect,
how the system looked,
know that the police maynot give you a call back,
the whole nine yards.
So I was able to prepthem for those moments.
Number three, don't give up.
(31:24):
If one door closes, keepknocking as many doors
as you feel are needed
so your healing journeyis not stunted, mine was.
It took me 10 plus yearsto finally figure out
what healing looked like for me.
But also if there's a
Crime Survivors For Safety AndJustice chapter in your area,
(31:46):
get involved.
Because what I learned isthat your story matters
and that you never know whenyour story may be what's needed
for policy makers toaddress the gaps needed
to help yourself andother people around you.
- Thank you so much, India.
Thank you so much for your leadership
(32:06):
and providing what ourcommunities need the most,
which is healing.
So if you're listening today's episode,
as I mentioned earlier,
India is the Co-Chapter Coordinator
of our Cleveland Ohio chapter.
The Cleveland chapterholds monthly meetings
and different types ofevents and activities.
So if you want to jointhe Cleveland chapter,
go to www.cssj.org,
(32:28):
or you can join ourOhio statewide network,
we also have otherchapters across the state,
or you can join otherchapters across the country.
We are a movement of survivors
that we are growing every single day.
And India, thank you so muchfor helping to lead efforts
to change the Ohio'sVictims Compensation Program
and doing that inpartnership with legislators,
(32:48):
doing that in partnership with survivors,
and doing that in partnership
with individuals across the state of Ohio
who want to remove barriers as a service
and get access to the help,healing that communities need.
- Thank you, it has truly been an honor.
When I say healing isreal and it's needed,
it only helps elevate ourselves.
(33:10):
Again, I am truly honored
to have been a part ofthis podcast this evening.
Your story matters,
but your mental health matters as well.
Make that a priority.
- Most definitely.
And if you want to join
the Crime Survivors ForSafety And Justice family,
join us, go to the website,
contact your local coordinatoror member in your state.
We have a lot of excitingthings happening in 2022.
(33:34):
So thank you so much, India.
Thank you so much to everyonewho's listening today
about the important roleCrime Survivors play
in removing barriersto Victims Compensation
and improving access to services.
Remember you can tune into allpodcast episodes on YouTube,
Apple podcast, Spotify, andother streaming platforms.
(33:55):
We are healing through action
and India when survivors speak?
- Change happens.
- Join the movement y'all.
(upbeat music)
- Welcome to this week's episodeof "Crime Survivors Speak".
My name is Aswad Thomas,
I'm the National Director
of Crime Survivors For Safety And Justice.
We are a nationalnetwork of 90,000 victims
from across the country.
Today's episode asksan important question.
Does Victims Compensation help victims?
(upbeat music)
(00:26):
I've been waiting tohave this conversation
ever since I learned aboutVictim's Compensation
four years after I got shot.
So what is victim's compensation?
Victim's compensation isa direct reimbursement
to, or on behalf of a crime victim
for a wide variety ofcrime related expenses,
such as medical costs,
(00:47):
mental health counseling,
lost wages,
funeral and burial costs.
Helping with relocation expenses,
helping to repair damage windows or locks
as a result of victimization
also helps to cover the loss of support
for dependents of victims as well.
Eligibility for compensationvaries by state and territory.
(01:08):
Victims' Compensation doesn't help
the majority of crime victims like me.
The eligibility requirementsare so restrictive.
You have to turn into application so fast.
In states like Michigan
victims have at least 48hours to file a police report
in order to be eligible for the program.
After that, the victim only has one year
(01:30):
to apply for the program.
Many states across the countryhave similar time limits
and face so many barriers
so Crime Survivors For SafetyAnd Justice and our members,
we are going state by stateto revamp this whole program.
In today's episode,
we'll talk about a historic bill
that was just passed last year in Ohio
that made significant changes
(01:50):
to the state's Victim'sCompensation Program
to better support crime survivors.
Today, I will be talking with India Brown
from Cleveland, Ohio.
India is a licensedindependent social worker
who specializes in trauma,
where she provides individual counseling
for adolescents and adults.
India is also a crime survivor
and served as the Co-Chapter Coordinator
(02:11):
of the Cleveland Chapter
of Crime Survivors For Safety And Justice.
India recently led efforts to help pass
that historic VictimCompensation reform bill in Ohio,
Senate Bill 36,
that made significant changes
to the state's Victim'sCompensation Program
to better support crimesurvivors across the state.
India, welcome to the "CrimeSurvivors Speak" podcast.
(02:32):
Thank you for joining us today.
- Hello, Aswad.
It is truly an honor
to be a part of this podcast this evening
and talk about how some of thosebarriers that I experienced
have actually been taken away
in the best interest of the survivors.
- Before we jump into yourexperience as a survivor.
So you're from what I knownow is the forest city,
(02:55):
Cleveland, Ohio.
I would love to hear whatwould your experience like
growing up in Cleveland?
What are some of your favorite memories?
- So I was born andraised in Cleveland, Ohio.
I will be 37 on Sunday,
so I've spent 37 years in Cleveland.
I graduated from ClevelandMunicipal School District,
which is our public schooldistrict for Cleveland.
(03:16):
I also went to Bryant & Stratton
in which I obtained mybachelor's in criminal justice,
then I also went to Cleveland State
in which I obtained mymaster's in social work.
Growing up, we were poor.
I grew up in poverty.
So my best memories were whenmy family did things together,
like family holidays,
outings with either side of the family,
(03:37):
going to Burger King,
'cause that was a once in awhile type opportunity for us
and play on the original Nintendo,
which I actually have the retro one today,
that's how much I enjoyed it.
but another good memorythat I miss, however,
and I miss it dearly
is when growing up in a community
where people were not just your neighbors,
(03:58):
they were more so like your family.
So everybody looked out for everyone.
Everyone knew everyone,
you weren't just somerandom kid on your street.
Every family knew everyone's kids.
Every parent knew theother parents, et cetera.
So it was that sense of community
that I look back and wishwas still here today.
(04:19):
- Thank you so much.
Congratulations on allof your achievements.
I have my masters in social work as well
so it is awesome to talkto a fellow social worker.
So you shared a littlebit about your experiences
of growing up, lots of fun,
but also a lot of hardships
of growing up in poverty
and growing up oftensurrounded by violence as well.
(04:40):
Would love to hear a little bit more
about your experience in high school.
I believe that's where you met
your high school sweetheart, Donald.
Can you tell us a little bit about Donald?
- Yes, so I was 14, Donald was 15.
We met through a mutual friend
and a lot of the times becauseof course we were teenagers
and nobody was driving,
we would spend a lot ofour time on the phone.
(05:02):
I got in trouble a lot
'cause I was on the phone tillthree, four in the morning
when I was supposed tobe in bed for school.
But Hey, I got up and I still made it.
Donald, however, he hada difficult upbringing.
His father was absent in his life,
he was also the only male to four sisters.
He loved his family,
like he would always makesure he provided for them
(05:23):
as much as he could even as a teenager,
family was a veryimportant concept for him.
So despite what was going onin Donald's life, however,
you always caught him with a smile,
the type of smile thatliterally lights up a room.
Like there was no worry in the world,
despite I knew that there was worry.
- So you and Donald, you had two kids.
(05:45):
What are the names?
What are some of the thingsthat they like to do?
- My daughter, Treasurer, she's 19.
She actually ventured off
to college in West Virginia last fall,
but she did not like it down there
so of course she came back home
and she played volleyball
like her entire middle schoolto high school timeframe,
and actually that's how sheended up with a scholarship
(06:05):
to West Virginia.
My son, Darien, he's 15.
He's actually real big into baseball.
So I spent a lot of time with that.
They were babies when thingswent wrong in our lives.
So a lot of things they rememberand some things they don't.
- Let's talk about that.
So in 2007, you and yourfamily's lives changed forever.
(06:30):
What happened on that day thatchanged your life forever?
- Aswad, when I say I willalways remember that day,
like it is still the present moment,
sometimes it gives me chills about it,
but it all started on June 19th, 2007.
Me and Donald we were supposedto meet up that evening
to kind of discuss movingforward as co-parents.
(06:51):
Relationship had prettymuch came to its end,
I was 22, he was 23.
I was on my way headedout with some friends
and he had some thingsthat he was taking care of
so we both agreed that wewould meet later that evening
to kind of break down whatlife was gonna look like for us
moving forward.
Well, unfortunately that night never came.
(07:13):
When I came back homefrom meeting with friends,
I called him several timesand never got a response.
I called around asking otherpeople had they saw him
because it wasn't like himto not answer my phone call.
So I called the next day, still no answer.
I even attempted to filea missing person report
because it was so unusualfor him to go days on end
(07:34):
without anybody hearing from him.
But when the police came to my house,
they told me it was too soon.
It was already like 48 hourssince the last time I saw him.
And because he was an adult,
they said that I had to give it some time.
Well, on June 26th, 2007,
I received a call from hisyoungest daughter's mother
that Donald was admitted
(07:55):
to one of our local hospitals up here
and he was in their ICU dueto almost being beat to death.
And on July 2nd, 2007,Donald died of his injuries.
- India, I know that just asI'm listening to you today
just how difficult thatmust have been for you,
for Donald's family,
(08:16):
but also for your kids.
Walk me through that experience
of having Donald lose his life to violence
and having to deal and copefor yourself as a mother,
but also how did you help your children
(08:40):
deal with losing their father?
- So at the time Treasure was four
and Darien was only about 11 months
at the time of his death.
Here it is, I'm 22, single mom,
never thought I would beraising two kids by myself.
I didn't know what to do,
I didn't know where to turn to.
All I knew is that we hadto prepare for a funeral
(09:01):
and I had to keep my head level
in order to continue parenting.
- During this time
of having to prepare fora funeral still grieving,
the entire family is grieving,
you have to bury your kids' father.
During this time,
were you offered any services or support
(09:22):
or did you and Donald's family
apply for the Ohio VictimsCompensation Program?
- So Aswad, I'm gonna give you
a whole backdrop of that, okay.
When I say there was no help,
I mean, no help.
The response from the justice system
is not what you see on TV,
it it's not.
(09:43):
So like when I got to the hospital
there was no detective information,
I didn't know who to call,
where to turn to.
I'm asking the nurses like,
"Hey, do you know whoI'm supposed to talk to?
"You know I have hisinsurance card, I have his ID.
"What else do I need to do?"
I literally had to callthe police department
and I was left on hold forever
(10:05):
to the point where Icalled multiple times,
was put on hold
to the point where I just hung up.
I couldn't get intocontact with a prosecutor,
no advocates were everassigned to the case.
I literally did notknow what I needed to do
with the legal system,
again, who I needed to talk to,
who was gonna make me awareof if the person was arrested,
(10:26):
when was the court proceedings?
All these things thatwe see on police shows,
I had none of that.
The way that I found out anything
was that I went on to ourclerical of courts docket
and I found out, oh,the person was arrested.
Oh, the person has a upcoming court date.
(10:48):
And the crazy part about itis the upcoming court date
was actually his sentencing date.
So at this point, I'mscavenging around the house
trying to figure out whatI'm gonna do with the kids,
'cause I know for afact I have to be there.
And when I get down there,
they only gave the guy a year
because the witnesses never showed up
so the state didn't have a case.
(11:08):
And I remember the prosecutor telling me
when I finally met him,
'cause the case literallyhad fell in his lap
not too long before the sentencing,
that it wasn't untilpeople like me and him
who wanted change
that we would actually see change.
As far as Victim's Compensation,
I knew nothing about it.
We had never been throughanything of that matter
(11:30):
to the point where we hadto reach out to anyone
but I will never forget that call.
I literally got informationfrom like a friend
like six months later.
And she was like,
"Did you reach out toVictim's Compensation?"
And I'm like, who are they, what is this?
So she explained it tome and she was like,
"You know, you may be able toget something for the kids."
I called down to Columbus
(11:50):
and the woman that answered the phone,
you know, I told her what had happened,
and she said, "What isyour loved one's name?"
So I gave her his name,
she asked me date of birth.
And she asked me, "Did he have a felony?"
I'm sitting here at this point like,
what does any of thatmatter at this moment?
I got two kids, what am I supposed to do?
And when I told her, Iwas like, yeah he does.
(12:10):
He has a felony four and felony five,
which is our low levelfelonies in Cleveland.
And she literally said,
"Y'all don't qualify for nothing."
And I was just like stuck, like I froze.
And I was like, okay,and I hung up the phone.
No one said anything
that we would be eligible for counseling,
(12:31):
grief counseling.
Didn't give me anyconnections to support groups.
I at the point had to prettymuch figure out finances,
even though I was working.
Like I knew for a fact that at this point
I needed to pick up more hours
because there was an absent parent.
So like I literally was tryingto figure everything out
without anyone's help,
(12:52):
because my parents didn't know what to do,
they had never experienced it.
So I'm like, what now, what next?
So that's what made mego to Brian and Stratton.
Actually me and Donald hadenrolled in Brian and Stratton
before his death.
So I said, "You wanna know something,
"this is what I'm gonna continue to do."
That's when I just said, okay,
I'm gonna dive into school,
get this degree and I'mgonna make things change.
(13:15):
And so I got my degreeand there was no change.
So that made me feel defeated.
- You're bringing up something
that I hear across the country,
victims of crime live inunderserved communities of color,
black crime victims,
latino crime victims.
After becoming a victim to violence
(13:37):
or having a loved one become a victim,
whether it's gun violence,
domestic violence, sexual assault.
In communities of color,
it's a consistent theme that
there's no follow up from law enforcement,
no connection to services,
no advocate to help you navigatethe criminal justice system
or to navigate things like victim services
(13:58):
or when they try to goout and seek services,
just like you did to get support,
for not only you but for your children,
were told that you and your family
were denied access to compensation.
I wanna hear what did that feel like?
That rejection of you trying to go get
that support and servicesand being told that
(14:20):
because of Donald's past criminal history,
that the state isdenying access to therapy
to you and your kids.
- The crazy part about it is,
I don't even know if I would actually say
it was a denial to services.
She just didn't tell,
like she didn't tell me anything else.
After she said we didn'tqualify for compensation.
(14:44):
I'm thinking that, okay,we don't qualify for that,
is there something elsewe could qualify for?
You know what I'm saying?
And she literally just said,"No, you don't qualify."
And I'm like, okay.
Like the conversation, Idon't qualify for that,
but is there something else?
I remember Treasure,she was maybe about 12
(15:04):
and I started seeing somebehaviors that I was like,
okay, this is that voidof not having her father.
And I remember reaching outto a grief counseling agency
and them asking me the different things
that she was exhibiting.
And they was like, "Ohno, that's not grief,
"that's just normal 12 year old behavior."
And I'm like, no, it'snot, it really wasn't.
(15:27):
And the fact that they didn't even say,
"Well, come in, let usactually assess her,
"not just go by what you're saying,
"let us see as clinicians,
"if this is normalbehavior or if it's grief."
Nothing.
- Wow, unbelievable.
And so you've seen theimpact of unaddressed trauma,
(15:47):
how that impacted your kids,
how that impacted, notonly you and your family,
but also just the impactthat had on Donald's family
who also have been struggling,
continue to strugglewith losing a loved one.
India, I also would love to hear
during this time of one losing Donald,
being devastated and nosupport from law enforcement,
(16:09):
no support from any victimadvocate or compensation program,
would love to hear likewho was most helpful
to you and your family during this time?
Was it a church?
Was it community members?
Was it other survivors?
Was it support groups?
Who was most helpfulto you and your family
during this time andwhat did they do to help?
- My friends stepped in wholeheartedly,
(16:29):
both sides of the family,
and our church community.
Like they were there to help us
go through the whole funeral arrangements.
Actually, his mom pastor
actually took care ofthe funeral arrangements
'cause we didn't have it.
People would be a listening ear,
they would bring over food,
they just simply helpedout however they could.
Those were the people thatwere there to help navigate,
(16:50):
and again, nobody really knew much about
the systems part of it,
but they were there to help ushowever they possibly could.
- And that just brings me back to
when I became a victim of gun violence,
and I remember recovering
on my mother's one bedroomapartment on this hard couch.
(17:10):
Here I am sitting down withtwo gunshot wounds to my back
and law enforcement cameto visit me several times,
it was always about the case.
They never asked me how I was doing.
There was actually a victimadvocate in their department
who was supposed to workwith victims like myself
and they never connectedme with any services.
So like my family and Iwas left to deal with that
on our own.
But it was this oneorganization that did reach out,
(17:33):
it was an organization called
Mothers United Against Violence.
This group of mothers
who's all lost their children to violence,
you know, provided support to me,
but also provided that supportto my mother at the time
who I think needed it the most.
Seeing, you know, her youngest son shot
and not having any support and services.
You know, often when we become victims,
(17:55):
it's often it's not lawenforcement who provides support,
it's not victim services,
often it's our family and our loved ones
who are responding to our needs
and being that support system for us.
Millions of dollars
have been coming into ourcommunities for decades,
none of those resourcesreached your family.
What would you have liked
for you and your family during this time
(18:17):
as it relates to services?
What are some of the services and support
that you all would've liked
if you had been able to get that?
- I really wish thatsomeone would've told me
about counseling
because I remember one daysomeone telling me that
they could see how angry I was
and that maybe I neededto go to the cemetery
and sit and have a conversation
(18:39):
because I was angry.
I was a single mom,
like why did you leave me?
Why am I here to be left withraising these kids myself?
And I took their adviceand I went to the cemetery
and I cried, I yelled, I screamed.
If somebody would've walked up,
they would've thought like
I literally had lost my lovedone right then and there.
(19:01):
And I went there and I just expressed
everything that I was feeling.
And that is something that Irecommend to my clients now
when I do therapy andthey're dealing with grief.
Go have that conversationthat you did not have
before that person was murdered.
Go have that conversation
that you wish you would'vegot off your chest
(19:23):
before they would've died.
So I wish someone would havetold me about counseling
and the importance that ithas to your healing journey.
I wish someone would've told me,
set me down in a parenting class,
this is what parenting lookslike now being a single parent
just supports around the new new,
(19:44):
because your life has changed now,
this is what you can expect
as a grieving mother with young kids.
This is what you can expect
as just a grieving woman yourself.
These are the things
that you should look out foryour children in this time.
I wish someone would haveexplained all of those things.
- That is why you decided to pursue
(20:06):
a career in counseling, right,
to make that differenceand to be there for,
you know, the clients that you serve.
Do they have that sameor similar experiences
to what you had?
Is that a norm with the clientsthat you're serving in Ohio?
- That is very much a norm.
Back in 2017,
when Ohio brought traumarecovery centers to Ohio,
(20:27):
a lot of the clients that I would see,
like I would walk intothese hospital rooms
after their victimization,
and I remember a young lady,
she had three kids,
she was shot randomly,
and I went in there totalk to her about services.
And she said,
"If you're here to talkto me about compensation,
"I don't qualify."
And I'm like, "What do you mean?
(20:48):
"I haven't even got it out yet."
She was like, "I have a felony."
And I was like, "Oh, okay.
"Yes, that is a barrier to compensation.
"But let me tell youabout these other supports
"that are available to youother than just compensation."
There was this one family
who their son and brother was shot
and I remember sittingdown with the sister
(21:09):
answering some of herquestions of what to expect.
What do things look likefrom a siblings standpoint?
Because a lot of times thesiblings are the forgotten ones.
No one talks with them,
everybody's tending to the parents.
You're kind of just there left alone
to kind of figure it out.
So I kind of walked her through it
and I walked the parentsthrough what it would look like.
(21:31):
One of the barriers for mewhen Donald was at the hospital
was I couldn't pay for parkingevery day at the hospital.
It's pay for parking to sit with him
or make sure my kids hadmilk and food on the table.
So with the trauma recoverycenter that I was at,
that's one of the things thatwe made sure families had.
You don't have to worry about food,
you don't have to worry about parking,
(21:52):
just be here with your loved one.
When you grieving thingslook different for everybody.
You know, you may punch something,
you may yell, you may scream.
But because some of the doctors and nurses
didn't know how to respond to that,
they would contact the hospital police
and I would have to go downto the ER and let them know,
like, let me just talk with the family,
(22:13):
tell the police just to stand back,
let me go talk with them
and let me deescalate the situation.
And nine times outta 10,
that deescalation happened
because they were talkingto somebody who understood
what it was like to have yourloved one be taken from you
and you don't know whereto turn or what to do next.
(22:34):
- So not only did you kind of channel
that pain, that hurt intobeing a service provider,
but you also turnedinto a advocate as well.
What made you get involved
with Crime Survivor Safety And Justice?
- Ohio launched thetrauma recovery centers
and the coordinators wereinvited to Sacramento.
(22:54):
It was in Sacramento
where the trauma recoverycenters originated from.
So I'm sitting in someof the breakout sessions
and I'm sitting among other survivors
and I'm hearing their stories,
I'm hearing their pain,
but I'm also seeing their healing.
And I was like, thisis something different.
I need to be a part of this,
what is this?
(23:16):
You can really function normally.
And I met Shakira Diaz andI remember telling her,
I was like, "Shakira, Iwanna be a part of this.
"This spoke to me, likeit touched my soul."
And she was like, "You already are."
And I was like, "Huh, what you mean?"
I'm like clueless,
like what you talking about?
And I remember sharing my story with her
(23:38):
and I made her awareof some of the barriers
that I had experienced.
So when I returned home,
I came back hungry andfull at the same time.
Like I've never knewthat feeling could exist,
I didn't even know what it was.
But I was hungry to make changes
(23:58):
and full to know that when survivors speak
change would indeed happen.
I saw the changes thatCalifornia had put in place
and I was like, "Oh, ifit could be done there,
"it can be done anywhere.
"Okay, let's make this happen.
"What do I need to do?"
So I came back and Iwas invited to a meeting
(24:18):
for National Crime Survivor's Week,
and I was like, this isit, this is where I belong.
This is how I turn my pain into healing.
This is how I help other people,
not only my family,
but other survivors who are experiencing
or experienced some of those dark moments.
(24:39):
Even as a young child,
I've always seen like gapsin policies and procedures
when it came to peoplethat looked like us.
And I always wanted to know,
well, how do we change it?
Because we know a lot of theselaws were written way before
and they weren't written for us.
So as time changes,
we gotta start changingsome of these policies
'cause things are startingto look different.
(25:00):
Like I did the research on why Ohio's
Victims Of Crime Compensation policies
were the way they were.
So I understood, but I'm likethe mafia ain't really like
in Cleveland for real,
to my knowledge that I know.
So why are we stilloperating off of something
from 19 who knows what?
This is the 2000s now,
(25:21):
we gotta change some thingsand catch up with the times.
- Then let's talk aboutthat a little bit, right.
Talk about researching,
not only the barriersthat exist in the law,
but tracing that back toDonald's experience, right?
Of you going to apply for compensation
and someone tellingyou you're not eligible
(25:43):
because Donald have afelony four or felony five?
But also in that hospital
when you talked to that young woman
who you just came into thatroom to provide service
and she told you,
"I'm not eligible for compensationbecause of my felony."
So during your research,
what are some of thebarriers that you found out
about Ohio's Victim Compensation Program?
(26:03):
- So it was crazy because like
I knew about the felony, of course,
because I went through it.
However, I found out thetimeframe on that felony.
So the timeframe fromOhio was 10 years, right.
So you can be that 18 year old
who was young and doing whatever,
and then on your 27th birthday,
you can become a victim.
(26:25):
But because your 10 years aren't up,
you wouldn't qualify.
And I'm like, why 10 years?
Like 18 to 27, you change a little bit.
Like the little foolish stuff
you may have done when you were younger,
a lot of people grow out of that.
Then it was when I was in the hospital,
I remember applying for a young man
(26:46):
and he owed child support.
So not only was he outof work due to his wounds
but the compensation that hewould have been reimbursed for
went to child supportbecause he was in arrears.
I also found out that
if you had controlledsubstances in your system,
(27:06):
you did not qualify, you were denied.
And a lot of times, a lot of these people
when they're being wheeled into the EMS's,
a lot of them get controlled substances
just to calm them downto get to the hospital,
calm them down to help ease their pain.
And because a tox screen was ran,
it doesn't say when thiscontrolled substance
(27:28):
was in your system,
but it shows a controlled substance.
And I had people that were being denied
because they had fentanyl
that was administered bythe hospital in their system
when the tox screen was done.
- Unbelievable, so thesystem have been denying
individuals' right to counseling
because of a previousrecord that could date back,
(27:51):
you said nine, 10 years ago?
People are being denied support
long after they made amistake in their lives.
So you decided to change that.
Walk us through some of thatadvocacy that happened in Ohio.
- So Cleveland, Ohio actuallyhas their own Survivors Speak.
(28:11):
It wasn't as big as California's,
but we had a wonderful turnout.
And so we had the opportunityto meet with legislators,
sit down and talk to senators,
even had the opportunity tospeak with the Attorney General.
I saw that legislators
are just as much similarto us regular people,
and I was shocked
(28:32):
because a lot of them havetheir own trauma as well.
And they were able to relate,
they were able to sympathize,
but they were also able to empathize.
And that really mattered a lot.
And of course we hadindividuals go testify
for Senate Bill 36.
We as Clevelanders actually said,
(28:54):
okay, it's time for a changeand we're gonna show up.
We're gonna be there.
Wherever you need us at
to get these bills and policies changed,
just let us know, we there.
- And you all in Ohiohave done amazing work
from meeting with legislators,
doing legislative visits,
testifying, at hearings.
I remember that firstSurvivor Speak back in 2019,
(29:17):
90% of those individuals comefrom communities of color.
For a lot of people itwas their first time
being in the state capital building
and to be surrounded byhundreds of other survivors
who share those same experiences,
but were in the capital to change policies
and to let lawmakers knowwhat safety looked like for us
(29:39):
and what healing needs to look like.
I know survivors whowrote dozens of op-eds,
been featured in dozens of media coverage,
really elevating the barriersthat survivors are facing.
I'm excited that India, youwill be leading efforts.
And India before we leave today,
I have one more questionfor you as a crime survivor,
and also as a clinician
(29:59):
that provides trauma recovery services
to victims and families.
For those survivors and advocates
who are out there listening today,
what words of advice do you have
for those survivors and families
that are grieving the loss of a loved one?
And what advice do you got to help them
with their healing journey?
- As a clinician and a survivor,
(30:21):
I lost Donald, but then three years later
my brother was killed to gun violence.
Life was crazy at that point.
The best advice that I can give anybody
is one, seek services that you need
to help you in your healing journey.
And that looks differentfor everybody, right.
That may be counseling,
(30:41):
that may be support groups,
that may be other healingmodalities that's out there,
but seek the services that you need.
But also get yourself familiar
with the resources in your area.
So that way, if you or someone you love,
or a friend of a friend, whatever,
something happens to them,
(31:02):
you are able to share those resources
because that was me to my family
when my brother was murdered.
By that time I had three years in
so I knew what to expect,
how the system looked,
know that the police maynot give you a call back,
the whole nine yards.
So I was able to prepthem for those moments.
Number three, don't give up.
(31:24):
If one door closes, keepknocking as many doors
as you feel are needed
so your healing journeyis not stunted, mine was.
It took me 10 plus yearsto finally figure out
what healing looked like for me.
But also if there's a
Crime Survivors For Safety AndJustice chapter in your area,
(31:46):
get involved.
Because what I learned isthat your story matters
and that you never know whenyour story may be what's needed
for policy makers toaddress the gaps needed
to help yourself andother people around you.
- Thank you so much, India.
Thank you so much for your leadership
(32:06):
and providing what ourcommunities need the most,
which is healing.
So if you're listening today's episode,
as I mentioned earlier,
India is the Co-Chapter Coordinator
of our Cleveland Ohio chapter.
The Cleveland chapterholds monthly meetings
and different types ofevents and activities.
So if you want to jointhe Cleveland chapter,
go to www.cssj.org,
(32:28):
or you can join ourOhio statewide network,
we also have otherchapters across the state,
or you can join otherchapters across the country.
We are a movement of survivors
that we are growing every single day.
And India, thank you so muchfor helping to lead efforts
to change the Ohio'sVictims Compensation Program
and doing that inpartnership with legislators,
(32:48):
doing that in partnership with survivors,
and doing that in partnership
with individuals across the state of Ohio
who want to remove barriers as a service
and get access to the help,healing that communities need.
- Thank you, it has truly been an honor.
When I say healing isreal and it's needed,
it only helps elevate ourselves.
(33:10):
Again, I am truly honored
to have been a part ofthis podcast this evening.
Your story matters,
but your mental health matters as well.
Make that a priority.
- Most definitely.
And if you want to join
the Crime Survivors ForSafety And Justice family,
join us, go to the website,
contact your local coordinatoror member in your state.
We have a lot of excitingthings happening in 2022.
(33:34):
So thank you so much, India.
Thank you so much to everyonewho's listening today
about the important roleCrime Survivors play
in removing barriersto Victims Compensation
and improving access to services.
Remember you can tune into allpodcast episodes on YouTube,
Apple podcast, Spotify, andother streaming platforms.
(33:55):
We are healing through action
and India when survivors speak?
- Change happens.
- Join the movement y'all.
(upbeat music)
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