Neighborhood Nonprofit Spotlight: Matt Johnston, Domestic Violence Safe Dialogue

Patch talks to Matt Johnston about his work with Domestic Violence Safe Dialogue (DVSD).

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Patch: Tell Patch a little about you and your organization!

Matt: At DVSD, our mission is to stop the cycle of domestic violence by facilitating safe, supervised conversations between survivors and offenders who have never met before, which help both parties foster transformative change inside themselves and others.

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Patch: How does your organization help to strengthen the local community?

Matt: Survivors have expressed afterwards that they have left gaining specifically what they needed from the program- whether that be answers about manipulation, children, their roles in the relationship or even just to acknowledge their inner strength by the act of telling an abuser to their face what has happened to them. Offenders have come to the program stating that they feel very good about giving back to the community they have harmed. Further, they are really able to hear - sometimes for the first time - the effects their violence has had on a survivor.

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Patch: When did you open?

Matt: Domestic Violence Safe Dialogue (formerly known as Domestic Violence Surrogate Dialogue) was founded as a pilot program in 2000 in Hillsboro, Oregon. DVSD became a non-profit in 2006 and is currently housed in Portland, Oregon.

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Patch: What is the biggest struggle your organization faces?

Matt: Advocates fear that survivors will be re-traumatized by the process even though survivor testimony repeatedly states that it was a very powerful healing experience.

Patch: What do you hope for the future of your nonprofit?

Matt: We hope to gain greater acceptance by the wider domestic violence community and to expand our survivor impact panels into all counties in Oregon.

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