FreeFrom.Org: Economic Justice is Healing Justice
By Michael Smith
Verité Entertainment is a production company focused on becoming a global entertainment brand that produces diversified and inclusive content across formats and genres. As an LGBTQ+ owned business, Verité strongly believes in aiding and partnering with organizations that empower underrepresented groups. FreeFrom is a national, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization focused on violence prevention by empowering survivors of domestically abusive relationships to gain and maintain financial stability.
Without financial stability or a means to independently rebuild their lives, survivors of domestic violence are far more likely to return to their abuser. Furthermore, without financial independence, most survivors won’t even consider leaving their abuser. During a speech at the 2018 Prosperity Summit, CEO and Founder of FreeFrom Sonya Passi claimed that, “Ninety eight percent of cases of domestic violence, in addition to there being physical abuse, psychological abuse, [and] sexual abuse, there’s also financial abuse.” Domestic violence occurs in many forms depending on the situation: being forced out of employment, losing employment due to abuse, coerced or fraudulent debt and not having access to cash can all cause financial trauma. Due to the nexus between gender-based violence and financial insecurity, this trauma can continue to be felt by survivors long after the abuse has ended. The economic consequences of abusive relationships can persist long after the relationship has ceased. Many individuals escape abusive relationships with bad credit, no money, no job, and sometimes with kids or dependents in tow. These are potential stressors and factors that may result in them returning to their abuser.
(L to R) Em Jackson, Director of Security Initiatives & Tannia Ventura, Director of Partnerships and Education
Verité happily welcomed FreeFrom’s Director of Partnerships and Education, Tannia Ventura and Director of Security Initiatives, Em Jackson, to record audio for the organization’s Survivor Wealth and Wellness Certification Program. “It’s an amazing program for the gender-based violence movement to get ready to support survivors in helping rebuild economically,” Ventura said. This certification program is the “B2B” part of their 3-pronged strategy. The Survivor Wealth and Wellness Program is designed to train coaches at various organizations across the country seeking to implement financial capacity building programming into their work with survivors. According to FreeFrom’s website, “the training will cover income building, credit repair and credit building, personal finance protection, and recovery from financial trauma.”
Team Verité in our “Economic Justice is Healing Justice” hoodies
Learn more about FreeFrom and their mission to dismantle gender-based violence and financial insecurity by visiting their website: www.freefrom.org.