The Survivor Advocacy Project (SAP) builds generations of lawyers dedicated to preventing and combatting sexual harassment and violence. SAP provides the communities within UC Berkeley, the Bay Area, and beyond with legal support aimed at empowering and supporting survivors of sexual violence. SAP instills skills of prevention, advocacy, training, empathy, cultural competency, and healing.
In 2022-23 academic year, SAP members will work with one of two partners:
(1) With the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center, students will be focusing on driving policy change for incarcerated survivers in Massachusetts. Members will draft legal memoranda to encourage the legislature to upgrade incarcerated survivors’ mailing status to allow for more confidential mailings. This work will support BARCC’s Incarcerated Survivor Support Program, which was founded following the passage of the Prison Rape Elimination Act. Through this project, students will gain an understanding of prison law and the interaction between federal law, state law, and regulations.
(2) With Queen’s Bench Bar Association of the San Francisco Bay Area (Queen’s Bench), members will continue a longstanding research partnership to investigate solutions to the criminalization of sex work. During the first semester, students will research and reach independent conclusions regarding the equality model, an up-and-coming method of decriminalizing sex work, and develop a resolution for the Conference of California Bar Associations and legislation for the state legislature. In the second semester, team members will create an educational workshop on the newly proposed resolution to inform lawyers and legal practitioners on the needed change in the law. Students will improve their research, writing, and advocacy skills, as well as gain firsthand experience drafting legal resolutions.
The subject matter of sexual violence can often be difficult and triggering. We encourage students to be aware of self-care, and we seek to support all volunteers with vicarious trauma training.
Supervision: Students in SAP provide legal services under the supervision of attorneys from Queen’s Bench Bar Association, International Action Network for Gender Equity & Law,and Boston Area Rape Crisis Center.
Time Commitment: Approximately 25 hours a semester for BARCC and approximately 25 hours a semester for Queen’s Bench.
For more information, please contact the student leaders at berkeleylawsap@law.berkeley.edu.