A child development and educational studies professor took part in the library Book Talk Series to recount her story of surviving and thriving in the wake of child sexual abuse in her book Can’t Touch my Soul.
The author, Donna Rafanello, of Can’t Touch my Soul does not only write about her story, but includes sixty personal stories of adult survivors of child sexual abuse as well that she interview herself.
Rafanello’s book is a guide to recovery, from the earliest stages of remembering to overcoming the coping and defense mechanisms children adapt to survive. Her book also consists of research and information on post-traumatic stress disorder and healing therapies.
If interested in reading the book, there is one copy available each at the PCC and LAC library. It is also accessible at retailers online like Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
The library Book Talk Series is geared to find administrators that have written books and don’t mind sharing their book and sharing their stories with the students.
For students that are interested in learning more or want to get involved in sexual assault awareness month, Survivors Night will take place on Monday, April 16th, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the LAC Fishbowl located in E119.
“Survivors Night will be very informal. It is ran by the student committee. They are all survivors that have created a safe space for anyone to come in and talk about their experiences through sharing circles,” said Sylvia Garcia from student affairs.
With twelve more events that are set up this sexual assault awareness month, students are welcomed to take part in as many events as possible.
More events to take place are the Clothesline Project on Wednesday, April 18th from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Quad at PCC, where students will be able to create Tshirts that depict various forms of violence against women, then publicly display them to “ air out the dirty laundry” according to LBCC site.