Fostering a community of love, kindness, respect, and growth.

Beijing is pursuing nuclear capability on its long-range bombers, report says August 17, 2018
CIA official: China wants to replace US as world superpower July 21, 2018
The goal of China's influence operations around the world is to replace the United States as the world's leading superpower, the CIA's Michael Collins said Friday.
China's new destroyers: 'Power, prestige and majesty' July 14, 2018
China's navy is getting bigger and better and doing it at a speed unmatched by any nation around the globe.
Hear US Navy plane warned off by Chinese military August 17, 2018
During a US Navy reconnaissance flight over contested islands in the South China Sea, the US crew was repeatedly warned to leave the area immediately by Chinese military.
China says hypersonic aircraft test a success August 17, 2018
China claims to have successfully tested its first hypersonic aircraft, a big step forward in aerospace technology that could intensify pressure on the US military.

Blogger Beth Manos Brickey on Food, Wellness, and Her #MeToo Moment
Joyful Heart Foundation Beth Manos Brickey is a Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, a yoga instructor, and a blogger with a love for food and wellness. She was chosen as one of four bloggers to compete in the Canyon Bakehouse Sammie Smackdown, a challenge to create the tastiest gluten-free sandwich. Canyon Bakehouse will donate $10,000 to […]
New State Laws To End The Untested Rape Kit Backlog
Joyful Heart Foundation During its second year, Joyful Heart’s national campaign to pass comprehensive rape kit reform continued to build momentum. Since January, an exceptional 46 rape kit reform bills were introduced in 24 states. We worked with partners in 11 states and helped lawmakers amend several drafts of legislation. As a result, we celebrate […]
Working With LGBTQ Survivors of Sexual Violence
Joyful Heart Foundation Lyzanne Malfitano has been a hotline shift supervisor at the Chicago Rape Crisis Hotline for five years. She is the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning) staff trainer for the YWCA Metropolitan Chicago 40-Hour Sexual Assault Crisis Intervention Training. She is also a mental health counselor and provides counseling to women […]
5 Facts About Sexual and Domestic Violence in LGBTQ Communities
Joyful Heart Foundation June is LGBTQ Pride Month, when lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning people and their allies celebrate diversity, progress, and pride. This month Joyful Heart reaffirms our support for survivors of all sexual orientations and gender identities or expressions.Sexual and domestic violence can happen in all different relationships and to anyone, and […]
MILCK and the Power of Speaking Out
MILCK MILCK is a singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and poet. Her song, “Quiet,” is a clarion call for people of all races, creeds, and colors who have suffered and survived gallantly in the face of trauma, trials, and tribulations. MILCK created the #ICANTKEEPQUIET Fund to help build a culture where anyone can find tools to protect against and […]

Working With LGBTQ Survivors of Sexual Violence
Lyzanne Malfitano has been a hotline shift supervisor at the Chicago Rape Crisis Hotline for five years. She is the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning) staff trainer for the YWCA Metropolitan Chicago 40-Hour Sexual Assault Crisis Intervention Training. She is also a mental health counselor and provides counseling to women and LGBTQ adults […]
5 Facts About Sexual and Domestic Violence in LGBTQ Communities
June is LGBTQ Pride Month, when lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning people and their allies celebrate diversity, progress, and pride. This month Joyful Heart reaffirms our support for survivors of all sexual orientations and gender identities or expressions.Sexual and domestic violence can happen in all different relationships and to anyone, and respecting survivors’ diverse […]
The Intersections of Disability and Violence
NPR called it the “assault epidemic no one talks about.” Each year, people with disabilities—physical, mental, intellectual, and others—face disproportionate rates of sexual and domestic violence. And too often, they do not receive the support they need.As many as 1 in 2 disabled women have experienced domestic violence—twice the rate of non-disabled women. People with […]
Introducing Joyful Heart en Español
Joyful Heart’s website now offers Spanish-language resources to make our educational materials about sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse accessible to those who speak Spanish, including the more than 40 million Spanish speakers in the United States.One in three Hispanic women has experienced physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime, and one […]
Seven Tips To Help Men Speak Out in Support of #MeToo
At the Golden Globe Awards last month, the #MeToo movement and TIME’S UP initiative took center stage. In a visually stunning show of solidarity, attendees—both women and men —wore black eveningwear and “Time’s Up” pins. But while nearly every woman who accepted an award spoke out in support of survivors in all industries, expressed their […]

A Conversation with Jennifer Fox on her HBO film, The Tale
Jennifer Fox is an internationally acclaimed producer, director, writer, and camerawoman. The Tale is Fox’s first fiction feature film, which she wrote, directed, and produced. The HBO film is based on Fox’s own life story as the main character, portrayed by Emmy award-winning actress Laura Dern, re-examines her first sexual relationship and the stories we […]
Healing as a Family After Child Sexual Abuse
Nancy Nesbitt is the parent representative on the Connecticut Governor’s Task Force on Justice for Abused Children. She applies her perspective and experiences as a mother of children who were sexually abused at a young age to her work. The task force serves to coordinate agencies in the investigation, intervention, and prosecution of child sexual […]
The Intersections of Disability and Violence
NPR called it the “assault epidemic no one talks about.” Each year, people with disabilities—physical, mental, intellectual, and others—face disproportionate rates of sexual and domestic violence. And too often, they do not receive the support they need.As many as 1 in 2 disabled women have experienced domestic violence—twice the rate of non-disabled women. People with […]
Introducing Joyful Heart en Español
Joyful Heart’s website now offers Spanish-language resources to make our educational materials about sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse accessible to those who speak Spanish, including the more than 40 million Spanish speakers in the United States.One in three Hispanic women has experienced physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime, and one […]
6 Tips for Parents Talking About Dating Abuse
Parents who suspect their child is in an unhealthy relationship may not know how to help. Parents can begin discussing healthy relationships and signs of dating abuse with their children before they even begin dating. Here are six tips on how parents can navigate having conversations about dating violence with their children.1. Educate yourself.Learn warning […]

Keeping Our Healing Practices Survivor-centered
Healing from trauma looks different for every survivor. At Joyful Heart, our healing programs are based on honoring each survivor’s journey.We recently expanded the core of this work as participants in Blue Shield Foundation of California’s Learning Circle Project, a collaborative learning experience with seven other leading organizations serving domestic violence survivors. The learning circle’s […]
TALK LA: Supporting Survivors' Healing though our Signature Retreat Program
Thursday, 10 March 2016TALK EventsLos Angeles, CA On Thursday, March 10th, Joyful Heart board members Jenny Belushi and Heather Mnuchin hosted a TALK event in Los Angeles at the Belushi home. Over 30 guests gathered with our Los Angeles Committee for a presentation and conversation centered on Joyful Heart's survivor retreat research project with Georgetown […]
April: A Month of Healing, Education and Advocacy
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month and National Child Abuse Prevention Month. For many of us, it will be marked by awareness-raising efforts, days of remembrance and calls to action. It will be a month, though, unchanged by the staggering facts:Every two minutes in the United States, someone is sexually assaulted.One in five women and […]
LA2050: We need your vote
Big news. This year, We are competing in this year's LA2050 Challenge to win $100,000 to support our holistic healing programs that help survivors heal from sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse.With your support, we will evaluate and document our retreat model and create a replication plan for agencies in Los Angeles and beyond […]

The Me Too movement has changed our culture. Now it’s changing our laws.
July 31, 2018HuffPostRebecca Beitsch The Me Too movement has touched almost every industry in the past year, and state legislatures have been under growing pressure to curb sexual assault and harassment in private workplaces and within their own chambers. But has the reckoning had an impact on the law?Early signs point to yes.Pushed by survivors […]
New State Laws To End The Untested Rape Kit Backlog
During its second year, Joyful Heart’s national campaign to pass comprehensive rape kit reform continued to build momentum. Since January, an exceptional 46 rape kit reform bills were introduced in 24 states. We worked with partners in 11 states and helped lawmakers amend several drafts of legislation. As a result, we celebrate 15 states passing […]
Pair of bills to tackle California's rape kit backlog pass legislature
June 1, 2018LA WeeklyAvery Bissett California legislators this week set aside partisanship to move toward reducing the state’s backlog of untested rape kits, with both houses passing separate bills targeting the problem.While California may have a reputation for progressive policies and a history of tough-on-crime laws, Los Angeles and L.A. County at one point had […]
Minnesota's rape kit reform bill becomes law as Duluth passes a milestone on its backlog
May 23, 2018Star TribuneJennifer Bjorhus In Minnesota's most ambitious effort to process untested rape kits, the Duluth Police Department has eliminated its entire backlog and submitted 415 kits for laboratory testing, a step that could open the door to justice for scores of sexual assault victims.The kits, sitting in storage for as long as 25 […]
Focus on untested rape kits in California after East Area Rapist suspect arrest
Sacramento BeeAngela Hart Pressure is building for California lawmakers to end the backlog of untested rape kits, following the arrest this week of the suspected East Area Rapist.Law enforcement officials said a major break leading to the arrest of Joseph James DeAngelo was made possible, in large part, by DNA evidence tied to old crimes […]