by Jamal Tull

Yesterday, the IAM: Sexual Assault Survivors Support Group met at the FamilyWorks Center on Patterson Street. The group was established January 2012 by five American family therapy advanced standing graduate students.

The group sought out to create a platform where survivors can share their thoughts and emotions, and IAM has been running strong for almost a year now. IAM partners with local rape crisis center and emergency women’s shelter, The Haven, to provide support for surviving victims of sexual assault. “I wanted a space for the survivors to have a voice,” Riece Hamilton, second-year advanced standing student in American family therapy and a leader in IAM, said.

The IAM Sexual Assault Survivors Support Group meets every Wednesday at 7:30 pm at 903 N. Patterson Street. IAM continues to make difference and educate people and is open to all who are interested. It has a very open platform for anyone to get their thoughts and emotions out.

Also, IAM prides itself in keeping its members feeling comfortable, so privacy will not be an issue for people inquiring about the group. For this reason, advertisement about the group is kept at a minimum. “This a very touchy subject to talk about, so we try not advertise through (anything other than) flyers,” Hamilton said.