(Beaver Dam) January is National Stalking Awareness Month and PAVE (Protect. Advocate. Validate. Educate) is using this time to highlight its resources for those affected by stalking and other forms of violence.
Stalking can take many forms, from physical following and unwanted communication to cyber harassment. PAVE provides vital services for victims, including emergency housing, safety planning, advocacy, and bilingual support. The organization also offers educational programs to help people recognize and respond to stalking behaviors.
PAVE also offers tools to educate the public. Such as sextortion interactive films you can access at noescaperoom.org or through PAVE’s Facebook page.
Sylvia Ortiz, a sexual assault survivor advocate with PAVE, implores parents to utilize these tools to better prepare themselves and their kids for these real-world situations.
“I do encourage parents to experience this interactive film, because it’s happening when you’re on gaming. You don’t know who you are speaking to. There’s AI now (artificial intelligence), they can sound like a female talking to a younger male. I encourage the parents to experience this so they can show their children.” Ortiz says.
PAVE has a 24/7 crisis hotline available at 920-887-3810, while their text line is 920-344-0123. For more information go to PAVEDC.org or the PAVE Facebook page.
