Centering Survivor Voices: A Community Book Study
“Silence about trauma also leads to death—the death of the soul.”
— Bessel van der Kolk
Dr. Pamela J. Pine had years of experience as an international public health, development, and communication specialist when she stumbled across research that would send her on an unexpected life path. Sitting at her desk at the Futures Group, an international health and development company, in 2000, she came across a request for proposals from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). One of the topic areas was child abuse.
Dr. Pine paused. At the time, she held a PhD in health communication, a master’s in public health, and a master’s in international affairs. Despite all that education, she had never been offered a single course on childhood trauma. When she asked similarly educated colleagues, she heard the same response—none of them had either.
She reached out to her sister, a therapist in California who worked with survivors of child sexual abuse (CSA), for more information and resources. As she learned more about CSA, the numbers affected, and its outcomes, a lightbulb went off: if people couldn’t and weren’t even talking about this, they couldn’t do anything about it.
That realization fueled a major advocacy initiative. In April 2004, to coincide with Childhood Abuse Awareness Month, she launched Race to Stop Silence®, an annual community event during Childhood Abuse Awareness Month. She also founded Stop the Silence®, an organization dedicated to advocacy, education, and training regarding CSA and other adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). In 2021, recognizing the need for a permanent home, Stop the Silence® became a Department of the Institute on Violence, Abuse and Trauma (IVAT), where it now resides.
In 2022, Laura DiFranco, Founder and CEO of Brave Healer Productions, a publisher who had published books in which Dr. Pine’s chapters had appeared, reached out to Dr. Pine to talk about the possibility of a book focused on CSA survivors’ journeys and healing. Knowing the need for such a book, to help give survivors a voice and underscore what helped them heal, Dr. Pine reached out to survivors to contribute their stories of trauma and healing. Stop the Silence® – Thriving After Childhood Sexual Abuse, a collection of personal stories and guidance from twenty-three authors, was published in 2023.
Join the Resilience Learning Community for a powerful six-week book study on Stop the Silence® – Thriving After Childhood Sexual Abuse. Andi Fetzner will facilitate discussions with several contributing authors as they share stories of strength and resilience. Using a trauma-informed approach, each gathering will center survivor voices and explore both the personal and systemic impacts of childhood sexual abuse—alongside what can be done to prevent harm and support healing.
To learn more and register, visit:
https://resiliencelearningcommunity.com/event/stop-the-silence-book-study/2026-03-05/