At a conference in Sweden, Dr. Allan Wade discusses social responses; particularly, he touches on how a person who has been abused may be further traumatized by the social responses received from people who one perceives as sources of support. Allan discusses how absent positive social responses and the language used to talk about assault can impact the victim in negative ways.

In this clip, Dr. Allan Wade tells the story of a Vancouver Island woman who was taken away as a young girl by “Indian Agents”–colonial agents sent to remove Indigenous children from their families and culture.

He retells their story and therapeutic work together, honouring Charlene’s resistance to colonial power. At the same time, Allan describes how the impacts of being in a prison camp can linger for decades, influencing one’s actions in the present.

In this clip from a counselor-training DVD we see how the response-based approach to therapy exposes violence, clarifies the perpetrator’s responsibility, elucidates and honours the victim’s resistance, and contests the blaming and pathologizing of victims.