In support of Domestic Violence Month, the Imperial Court de San Diego presented a fundraiser at The Center Wednesday, Oct. 15. Event proceeds benefit The Center’s domestic violence program, Bienestar’s domestic violence program and the National Leather Association-International Domestic Violence Project.

Speakers included Danielle Hickman of the San Diego City Attorney’s Office Domestic Violence Unit and Denise Brown of the Nicole Brown Charitable Foundation.

“One of the things the city attorney’s office has done [to battle domestic violence and overcome cultural barriers] is create the Family Justice Center, which just opened up a year ago,” said Hickman. “We don’t turn [anyone] away. Our purpose of being here this evening is to express the diversity within our office and the diversity in the ways we are reaching out to the community.”

Family and partner violence is considered a national epidemic. “Our position is that there is no excuse for partner abuse,” said Hickman. “If you’re in a relationship, you are going to be treated with respect, love and kindness. If someone is putting their hands on you in a manner that you do not consent to, that is wrong.”

Domestic violence kills three people in the United States every day. Nonprofit and government agencies such as The Center, Bienestar, the National Leather Association and the city attorney’s office focus on responding to victims’ needs, educating the public about the prevalence of domestic violence, and teaching people to recognize the signs of abuse.

“Those who are in trouble, they need our help,” Brown said in her keynote address. “We as a community care; we just need to get out there to continue to talk, continue the programs to educate people. Let people know that there are things they can do, that they are not alone as victims.”

Brown is the sister of Nicole Brown Simpson, ex-wife of O.J. Simpson, who was murdered along with Ronald Goldman in 1994 in what became the biggest media event of the decade. “I learned about domestic violence too late,” Brown said. “I learned about it after my sister Nicole was murdered. It was through her notes and diaries that I began to realize what domestic violence is all about.”

The Nicole Brown Charitable Foundation was founded in 1994 to help shelter and protect families caught in a cycle of family violence. Brown has addressed college students, men in prison and in batterer’s treatment programs, women at risk, church groups and legislative forums, including Congress and the Senate. One of her most important projects was to lobby on behalf of the Violence Against Women Act [1994]. After her testimony in the Senate, that portion of the bill’s funding was increased from $18 million to $32 million.

“This is something that I will never stop doing,” said Brown. “I made a promise not only to myself and all of you, but to my sister Nicole. We started a foundation in her name, and I will never let her down.”

In addition to providing informational packages and literature, the Nicole Brown Charitable Foundation connects victims and families seeking help with national hotlines, shelters and counseling services, as well as advocacy groups who help guide them through the legal system.

For domestic violence intervention to be successful, Brown sees the need for communication between cultural groups. In an interview before the event, Brown expressed her commitment to educating every community about domestic abuse. “Some of my gay friends say, ‘Oh, domestic violence only affects heterosexuals.’ But I say, no it doesn’t – it happens everywhere, in every community.”

She was recently honored by the mayor of West Hollywood at an awards ceremony for activism against GLBT violence, and was the only prominent heterosexual activist for the West Hollywood community. “I was really honored,” said Brown, “but I wondered why I was the only one.”

The Nicole Brown Charitable Foundation is gathering donations to open Nicole’s House, a long-term transitional housing and life skills program for domestic violence victims.

The program is eighteen to twenty-four months long, and designed to help participants and their children become emotionally and economically self-sufficient.

“Nicole’s House is transitional housing, but it’s also [independent] apartment living,” explained Brown. “We offer services to help victims feel self-confident again, and really make that step towards independence.” Participants will be connected to substance abuse rehabilitation outreach centers, child guidance and parenting programs, basic life skills classes, GED programs, college entry classes, job training and job placement tutoring.

For information on local resources, call The Center at (619) 692-2077 or Bienestar at (619) 295-2192. For more information on the Nicole Brown Charitable Foundation, call (949) 283-5330 or visit this story at www.gaylesbiantimes.com for a web link.