Dear Katie: Survivor Stories

S2E6 Centered Safety (Special Guest: Aishah Shahidah Simmons)

In this week's episode, Claire and Katie sit down with Aishah Shahidah Simmons to discuss her survivorship, and the trauma and healing that would develop her artistic voice. Aishah’s lived experiences as a survivor of childhood and adult sexual violence, a Black feminist lesbian, and a long-term Buddhist practitioner inform the creation of her work.

Aishah Shahidah Simmons (she/her) is the creator of the 2006 groundbreaking Ford Foundation-funded film, NO! The Rape Documentary, and the editor of the 2020 Lambda Literary Award-winning anthology, love WITH accountability: Digging Up the Roots of Child Sexual Abuse.  Presently, she is a Soros Media Fellow completing her trilogy of cultural work that uses storytelling as a praxis to heal from, disrupt, and end sexual violence without relying on the carceral state.

Hosts: Katie Koestner and Claire Kaplan

Editor: Kelsey Styles

Producers: Kelsey Styles and Emily Wang

 

S2E5 Tub of Raw Cookie Dough

After being roofied and raped at an off-campus party, Jeanne was devastated to learn that the Title IX laws currently in place would not help her receive justice. Now, she leads her all-women's liberal arts college toward her vision for change. 

 

Hosts: Katie Koestner and Claire Kaplan
Guest: Jeanne Wolkiewicz
Editor: Bob Kanygin
Producers: Kelsey Styles and Emily Wang

 

Dear Katie: Page 2 - Alison Jones Lockwood from End Violence Against Women International

Dear Katie: Page 2 brings you bonus interviews and resources from advocates and experts. 

This interview with Allison Jones-Lockwood discusses her career working with survivors beginning in the U.S. Navy. She has since worked for rape crisis centers in California, Kansas, and Missouri. She currently works to develop training materials for End Violence Against Women International, a nonprofit that inspires and educates those who respond to gender-based violence, equipping them with the knowledge and tools they need to support victims and hold perpetrators accountable.

Guest: Allison Jones-Lockwood
Cohosts: Katie Koestner and Claire Kaplan
Editors: Craig Stanton and Kelsey Styles
Producers: Kelsey Styles and Emily Wang

Learn more about End Violence Against Women International at https://evawintl.org/

S2E4 Dancing with Arms Out

They had known each other for years; she was a bridesmaid at her wedding, and knew her family and all their friends.  But Blair's trust in her dance teacher was dashed when one night, she was a bystander in Blair's rape. How could she trust anyone again? This is Blair's story of recovery and where she is today.

Hosts: Katie Koestner and Claire Kaplan
Editors: Bob Kanygin and Craig Stanton 
Producers: Kelsey Styles and Emily Wang

S2E3 Savage Canvas

Ashley Dequilla is a Filipino artist and activist who was assaulted during her time as an undergrad at William and Mary. In this episode, she talks about her unsupportive family and history of abusive relationships following that night. It is the birth of her daughter and the overwhelming love she feels for her that allows Ashley to reframe her situation and want better for herself. Now, she's enrolled in an MFA program and optimistic about her future.    

 

Hosts: Katie Koestner and Claire Kaplan 
Editors: Bob Kanygin, Kelsey Styles, and Craig Stanton
Producers: Kelsey Styles and Emily Wang

S2E1 One Lost Lamb

Anne’s deep Christian faith was both her burden and her source of strength: it prevented her from understanding that the assault wasn’t her fault, and in turn the assault damaged her relationship with God. Yet over time, that faith allowed her to find her way back to herself and to a stronger spiritual life.

Hosts: Katie Koestner and Sandra Miles
Guest Coordinator: Emily Wang
Editor: Bob Kanygin

 

S2E0 Season 2 Co-Host Roundtable

Welcome to Season 2 of the Dear Katie: Survivor Stories Podcast! We are pleased to welcome an additional two hosts to future episodes of Dear Katie: Survivor Stories. Claire, Sandra, and Kavita will take turns sharing space with Katie and our guests.

Dr. Claire Kaplan is an associate producer on the Dear Katie podcast, and has been the co-host through all of season one. She began her activist work more than thirty years ago in California, and recently retired as Director of the Gender Violence and Social Change Program at UVA’s Maxine Platzer Lynn Women’s Center.

Dr. Sandra Miles is an expert in DEI and Title IX in higher education spaces. She presents regularly at national and regional conferences and at hundreds of schools throughout the country on inclusivity, diversity, gender and sexual harassment. 

Dr. Kavita Ajmere is a psychologist with a focus on women and adolescent girls' health. She's also a yoga instructor and adjunct professor at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology in Los Angeles.

Editor: Kelsey Styles
Producers: Katie Koestner and Emily Wang

S1E20 Sunset on the Ocean

Sabrina wanted to become a firefighter. Perhaps it was the betrayal of the community she vowed to protect that hurt the most. When her certification teacher assaulted her, she tried to ignore it and pretend it wasn't happening. When her small town found out about the assault, they shunned and blamed her. Her school told her not to come to prom so she wouldn't cause a scene. She was forbidden from attending their senior year river cruise. She was blamed for being the only woman in a male-dominated program, and encouraged to enroll in online school. Sabrina talks about her battle to become the certified firefighter she was determined to be, and all the forces standing in her way. 

Hosts: Katie Koestner and Claire Kaplan
Guest Coordinator: Emily Wang
Editor: Bob Kanygin
Voice Actor: Arianne Few

 

S1E19 Penalty Kick from 12 Yards

Taylor was a freshman college athlete who was assaulted after a party. Her story is shockingly common - and she explains that she felt like she grew up in a liberal area, and thought she was prepared for college. This episode, Katie, Claire, and Taylor talk about the lack of education teenagers receive before living on their own, and how that can impact their early sexual encounters. 

Hosts: Katie Koestner and Claire Kaplan
Guest Coordinator: Emily Wang
Editor: Jake McFadden
Voice Actor: Danielle Thacker

S1E18 Fresh Picked Daisies

Sharlene was labeled a troubled child as a result of sexual abuse. Nobody asked her what was wrong. When she cried at the empty bus stop or refused to eat, she was seen as a bad kid. Now, as a grandmother in her sixties, she has wisdom to share. Sharlene watches her children and her grandchildren closely, and protects them from harm. Decades later, she is able to shed the guilt and pain and go on to help others. 

Hosts: Katie Koestner and Claire Kaplan
Guest Coordinator: Emily Wang
Editor: Jake McFadden
Voice Actor: Renee Chambers