About / Core Beliefs
Mission
To provide leadership, coordination, collaboration and a unified voice on issues of sexual abuse and sexual assault.
Vision
An Alberta free of sexual abuse and sexual assault.
Focus Areas
As a provincial umbrella organization, the Association of Alberta Sexual Assault Services focuses its efforts in these key areas:
- Awareness
AASAS works to increase public and government awareness of issues involving sexual abuse and sexual assault, and the impacts they have on all Albertans.
- Access
AASAS strives to ensure that all Albertans affected by sexual abuse and sexual assault have access to healing and recovery programs, services and supports.
Core Beliefs
- We believe anyone can be a victim of sexual abuse and sexual assault.
- We believe anyone affected by sexual abuse and sexual assault has the right to access effective, affordable, and timely services that are distinct and specialized.
- We believe everyone has the capacity and resiliency to recover from sexual abuse and sexual assault.
- We believe victims of sexual abuse and sexual assault are not to blame and perpetrators must be held accountable.
- We believe society minimizes the impact of sexual abuse and sexual assault on individuals and that minimization has devastating outcomes for survivors.
- We believe society minimizes the crime of sexual abuse and sexual assault, and this must change in order to address and prevent issues of violence.
- We believe services addressing sexual abuse and sexual assault need to be delivered in an inclusive, respectful, and equitable manner regardless of ethnicity, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, or ability.
- We believe there is a need for increased recognition and support for existing and emerging sexual assault services in Alberta.
- We believe education and awareness initiatives need to be targeted at everyone.
- We believe prevention initiatives are not to be targeted to survivors or potential survivors but towards perpetrators and potential perpetrators as well as those who can intervene.
- We believe that treatment is a form of prevention because healthy individuals and healthy communities break the cycle of abuse.
- We believe in the need for treatment and for greater access to treatment for perpetrators of sexual abuse and sexual assault.