This policy is in effect as of: May 14, 2026.

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Content Warning: This document contains terminology and subject matter related to sexual assault and therefore could potentially be triggering for Survivors of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence. We ask that you take care of yourself while reading the document. We suggest that Survivors who need to opt-out of reading this policy wholly for their wellbeing, defer to the Plain Language Summary and Code of Care for overviews of the policy. The Safe Space Policy also carries a matched policy standpoint. 

 

The appendix provides readers with quick access to sections of this policy document and guides the reader through the structure and contents of the policy document. 

 

If you, or someone you know is in crisis please utilize the Contacts, Resources, and Services section to find the appropriate and effective Survivor assistance and support. 

 

Plain Language Summary 

 

Forest City Gallery does not tolerate Sexual Assault, Sexual Harassment, or intimidating behaviour, nor does it suggest that this is normal or acceptable behaviour. At our organization, we operate with a zero tolerance policy to ensure everyone is safe in our facility. This includes the Staff, Interns, Board of Directors, volunteers, members, visitors, and patrons of Forest City Gallery. Everyone must follow the policy which states: sexual violence and harassment cannot occur onsite at FCG and within the community we serve. In the event of sexual violence being reported to Forest City Gallery, we will direct Surivors and their allies to effective and appropriate contacts, resources, and services. As a community space, we also have the right to terminate access to our space due to behavior and conduct that violates our Safe Space Policy and this policy. 

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Code of Care

 

Forest City Gallery is dedicated to serving our local arts community while supporting community care and the wellbeing of artists. Through enacting policies such as this one, which reinforces the Safe Space Policy, the organization is doing its due diligence to care about the safety and wellbeing of our staff, Board, Interns, volunteers, Membership, and importantly, the broader community that we serve. Establishing a sexual and gender-based violence policy in conjunction with our Safe Space Policy furthers our commitment to the safety and wellbeing of Survivors in our community, especially those who are included in our mandated focus to serve emerging artists who may not have access to community or legal resources. Our mandate binds FCG to community dialogue: we “serve to foster and support contemporary art, promoting dialogue among local, regional, and international arts communities.” We believe that this dialogue can only happen in a community that is actively working against gender-based violence and the ongoing normalization of this violence. As an organization, we continue to affirm that everyone deserves to take part in arts & culture, within and beyond our walls, without fear of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence and its normalization. 

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Scope 

 

Forest City Gallery is committed to the safety of our entire community, including Survivors of Sexual & Gender-based Violence. Thus, FCG is dedicated to creating an environment in which Sexual & Gender-Based Violence is neither tolerated or normalized. As an organization that has been in operation since 1973, FCG has a responsibility to address Sexual & Gender-Based Violence that is pervasive in society and thus also in the arts sector. FCG recognizes that Sexual & Gender-based Violence has serious and lasting impacts on the physical, mental, and emotional welfare of Survivors and their loved ones. FCG also acknowledges the social reality of limited health care resources compounded by anti-Survivor, racist, cissexist, and queerphobic biases within policing and the legal system. Such systemic barriers prevent many Survivors from accessing sufficient trauma-informed action and care 

 

This policy is in effect to accomplish the following:

1. Recognize and prevent Sexual & Gender-Based Violence within our community and the arts sector 

2. Publish organizational commitments to oppose Rape Culture

3. Articulate procedures in the presence of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence

4. Provide information on appropriate and effective responses to Sexual & Gender-Based Violence and regional Survivor resources
    

This policy applies to the staff, Interns, Board of Directors, exhibiting artists, volunteers, Members, tenant artists, visitors, and patrons of Forest City Gallery. The policy is in effect at all times following its publication and includes conduct onsite at FCG and within the community we serve.

 

In conjunction with our ongoing and binding Safe Space Policy, the Sexual & Gender-Based Violence Policy has the aim to explicitly address and mitigate Sexual & Gender-Based Violence and its normalization in the arts community that FCG has been serving for over 50-years in London. In alignment with our legacy of advocating for the recognition of art as work, this policy also recognizes that FCG is a workplace not only for staff, but also for Interns, exhibiting artists, volunteers, and tenant artists. 

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Preamble 

 

Forest City Gallery initiated its Safe Space Policy four years ago in the wake of the Western student walk-out of September of 2021. This walk-out totaled at 12,000 students and has gone on to shape the campus’ culture and bolster anti-Sexual Violence activism in the Forest City. FCG has recognized the need for arts-informed perspectives on this issue. 

 

Forest City Gallery acknowledges prevalent Rape Culture within the arts, music, and film sectors, post-secondary campuses, sports, workplaces, and in our culture broadly. Our binding Safe Space Policy is broad in scope and includes applicable policies on Sexual & Gender-Based Violence however this document addresses the identified need for expanded policy on Sexual & Gender-Based Violence at Forest City Gallery. 

 

The United Nations Human Rights Commission’s definition of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence follows: “Sexual violence is a form of gender-based violence and encompasses any sexual act, attempt to obtain a sexual act, unwanted sexual comments or advances, or acts to traffic, or otherwise directed against a person’s sexuality using coercion, by any person regardless of their relationship to the victim, in any setting. Sexual violence takes multiple forms and includes rape, sexual harassment, sexual abuse, forced pregnancy, forced sterilization, forced abortion, trafficking and sexual enslavement. Gender-based violence is considered to be any harmful act directed against individuals or groups of individuals on the basis of their gender. It may include sexual violence, domestic violence, trafficking, forced/early marriage and harmful traditional practices. An understanding of how gender intersects, for instance, with race, religion, economic situation, political affiliation and geography is also critical to addressing patterns and forms of gender-based violence. Although men and boys are also targets of gender-based and sexual violence in conflict situations, the victims of such violence continue to be disproportionally women and girls, and gender diverse people.”

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There are large political movements working against the perpetuation and normalization of sexual violence and seeking action and justice for Survivors. These include justice movements for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-spirit People (MMIW2S), and the international #MeToo movement. The work of these movements have foregrounded significant paradigm shifts in the way Sexual & Gender-Based Violence is discussed; for example, the terms “Pre-Me Too” and “Post-Me Too” denote a noticeable cultural change towards believing Survivors’ stories and prioritizing trauma-informed practices in community and recovery spaces in response to this movement. FCG recognizes that the work of creating effective change and ending Gender-Based Violence is championed by Survivor-led efforts.

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Policy Statements 

 

Sexual & Gender-Based Violence is prohibited in all forms, by all persons, and at all times, at Forest City Gallery. In addition, FCG reserves the right to prohibit individuals from participation in any FCG exhibitions, programs, and spaces if they are found to have perpetrated Sexual & Gender-Based Violence and/or offences outlined in section 752 in the Criminal Code of Canada as they pertain to Sexual & Gender-Based Violence. FCG staff, Board, Interns, volunteers, Membership must agree to and sign the Safe Space Agreement. 

 

FCG will take appropriate measures in alignment with organizational capacities to handle issues related to GBV when a disclosure is made and in proportion to the information shared. However, Forest City Gallery is not an investigative body and actions taken are focused on care for survivors, rather than making definitive findings about a given situation. 

 

Forest City Gallery is committed to disrupting the normalization of Sexual Violence and creating a safer space for anyone in the FCG community who has experienced forms of Sexual Violence. We believe that our community should be a safe and positive space where members retain a sense of belonging and ownership over the space. FCG also affirms that all people have the right to live without violence. We believe that our Staff, Interns, Board of Directors, volunteers, Members, visitors, and patrons should feel that they are able to work, learn, create, and express themselves freely. We believe our community has the right to an environment free from offences including Sexual & Gender-Based Violence and incurring cultural harms such as victim-blaming, retaliatory actions, and broadly the normalization of violence. 

 

Survivors and their allies should be free of retaliatory action and intimidation such as: reputational damage, bullying, slander, doxxing, stalking, speech chilling, and profiteering when speaking out about their experiences of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence. As an organization, we affirm Survivors’ right to free speech and commend their bravery. 

 

All reports of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence will be addressed to the best of FCG’s ability and in a manner that ensures due process, an anti-oppression and Survivor-centric framework. FCG hopes to mitigate discomfort, uncertainty, and fear in disclosing around Sexual & Gender-Based Violence that anyone may be experiencing or witnessing that is affecting their experiences in our space. For further policy on all forms of harassment, please refer to the Safe Space Policy. 

 

Sexual & Gender-Based Violence can be understood in the following categories: 

 

• Physical violence

• Verbal violence (including hate speech)

• Psychological violence

• Sexual violence 

• Socio-economic violence

 

Sexual Violence Policy 

 

Forest City Gallery upholds a zero tolerance of Sexual Violence regardless of gender and takes seriously all allegations and disclosures of said violence occurring either onsite and offsite, including online platforms. To Forest City Gallery’s utmost capacity it will address the occurrence of Sexual Violence on-site and at off-site partnership events by providing Survivors (and witnesses and allies) with a Safety Plan inclusive of an internal Action Plan and the resources available within our community. Similarly, to our utmost capacity the organization will provide Survivors with referrals to and offer a clear outline of FCG’s course of action to remove the person acting in non-compliance with the policy from onsite and online participation in programming. 

 

Sexual Violence includes, but is not limited to: 

 

• Psychological violence 

• Stalking

• Unwanted and uninvited sexual advances 

• Physical violence 

• Sexual assault, including rape 

• Genital mutilation

• Forced abortion and forced sterilisation 

• Sexual harassment

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Gender-Based Violence Policy 

 

Forest City Gallery upholds a zero tolerance of Gender-Based Violence and takes seriously all allegations and disclosures of said violence or conduct occurring either onsite or within the community we serve. Furthermore, this is upheld regardless of gender expression, identity, transition, status, and self-identification past or present. 

 

Gender-Based Violence includes, but is not limited to:

 

• Unwanted physical or verbal behaviour that harms, offends, or humiliates

• Gender-based discrimination 

• Misogynoir

• Sexual violence (including attempted sexual violence) 

• Psychological violence

• Obstetric violence

• Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)

• Human trafficking 

• Forced marriages

• Forced confinement 

• Stalking

• Financial abuse

• Reproductive coercion 

• Fetishization 

• Misgendering

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Organizational Commitments 

 

1. Zero tolerance of any form of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence and adherence to Safe Space Policy
    

2. Not condoning or perpetuating the normalization of any form of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence
    

3. Ensuring that survivors are given complete autonomy and are treated with dignity and respect at all times at Forest City Gallery and digital spaces
    

4. FCG recognizes that discussions of GBSV can be triggering for survivors and their allies and commits to helping our community make informed choices about how and when they engage in these discussions. Moving forward FCG will work with exhibiting artists and other programming collaborators to provide content indicators when exhibitions or other programming takes up themes of GBSV so that survivors are able to make informed choices about the content they choose to encounter. As an artist-run centre, FCG understands the important role art plays in beginning and sustaining difficult conversations. In line with this understanding, we will approach these content indicators as a mechanism for extending care to survivors in our community while inviting participants to engage intentionally with discomfort as they are able. 
    

5. Providing our community members (including Survivors and their allies) with referrals to regionally-specific and culturally-specific resources pertaining to sexual violence by request.
    

6. Forest City Gallery will provide Survivors with resources to create a Safety Plan for any occurrences of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence which occurs onsite or at offsite partnership events.
    

7. FCG will view this document as a starting point for continuing work within the organization which will include ongoing policy discussions and reviews. An important next step in supporting the work of this document is through the development of internal policy that will govern the organization’s approach should an accusation be made against a member of staff, the board, or a volunteer. As well as guiding how FCG would support a member of staff, the board, or a volunteer, should they experience GBSV. 

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Procedure 

 

Forest City Gallery will follow the below procedure to the fullest of its labour, resource, and financial capacity. All Sexual & Gender-Based Violence procedures at FCG include timely discussion on a Board level, and the adoption of all actions that ensure the Survivor’s safety is paramount and the organization upholds Canadian, Ontario, and international human rights. 

 

General Procedure: All disclosures and reports of Sexual & Gender-Based Violence will be aggregated into a report delivered at the soonest Board Meeting following the receipt of this information, or in urgent cases the Board will call for a special Board Meeting at a sooner date. All information shared with FCG will be considered sensitive, and follow a strict confidentiality procedure. 

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Enforcement in Non-compliance 

 

Forest City Gallery retains the ability to remove any person or persons from our facilities, onsite events, off-site events, and all web-based platforms such as social media and email correspondence. Quoting from the Enforcement section of our Safe Space Policy: “If any person or persons engage in harassing behaviour, they will be asked to stop and will be expected to comply immediately. If they continue to engage in harassing behaviour, FCG staff and volunteers retain the right to remove any person or persons from an FCG space in order to maintain a welcoming space for everyone. Removal of a person or persons from an FCG space may be temporary or permanent and includes removal from FCG in-person spaces or online in the form of deleting and blocking. In the case of removal from a paid event, no refund will be awarded. All actions and reports will not be discussed publicly” (2021). In contrast with the bulk of the Safe Space Policy’s enforcement course of action by offering correction to behaviours, the Sexual & Gender-Based Violence Policy assumes full compliance of those subject to this policy. 

 

Participating in artist-run culture and attending events at FCG is a privilege. In order to maintain the safety of our community, we retain the right to remove any person or persons on the basis of violating our Sexual & Gender-Based Violence Policy without offering correction. FCG maintains the ability to deny participation in any programming, activities, partnerships, resources, or services offered by the organization on the basis of non-compliance with this policy and the Safe Space Policy. Individuals will be informed of their denial of participation without further explanation, and at that time, individuals will also be informed of the duration of their denial of participation. FCG will keep this information confidential at all times. 

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Glossary

 

This glossary primarily draws from definitions published in the Government of Canada’s Gender-Based Violence Glossary. Please refer to this glossary as you need while you read the Sexual & Gender-Based Violence Policy. 

 

Anti-oppressive Framework: An anti-oppressive framework is the method and process in which we understand how systems of oppression such as colonialism, racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, classism and ableism can result in individual discriminatory actions and structural/systemic inequalities for certain groups in society. Systemic inequalities often operate simultaneously and unconsciously at the individual, group, and institutional levels. Anti-oppressive practices seek to recognize and dismantle discriminatory actions and power imbalances. Anti-oppressive frameworks should guide an organization's work with the goal to identify strategies and solutions to deconstruct power and privilege. 

 

Cisgender: Describes people who identify with the sex they were assigned at birth. 

 

Cissexism: Cissexism refers to the systemic discrimination and prejudice against individuals whose gender identity does not align with the sex they were assigned at birth. This term highlights a cultural bias that privileges cisgender people—those whose gender identity matches their assigned sex—over transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming individuals. Cissexism can manifest in various ways, from social interactions to institutional policies, ultimately perpetuating harmful stereotypes and exclusionary practices.

 

Coercion: The action of making somebody do something that they do not want to do, using force or threatening to use force

 

Consent: Defined in the Criminal Code as the voluntary agreement to engage in the sexual activity in question at the time the activity takes place. This means that all parties must actively, willingly, and continuously give consent to the sexual activity. Consent cannot be assumed or implied, and an unconscious person is not capable of consent.

 

Gender: Gender refers to the roles, behaviours, expressions, and identities that society associates with girls, women, boys, men, and gender-diverse people. A society’s understanding of gender changes over time and varies from culture to culture. Gender influences how people perceive themselves and each other, how they act and interact, the distribution of power and resources in society, and people’s social, health and economic outcomes.

 

Gender-Based Violence (or GBV): GBV is a broad category and is not limited to physical violence. It can include any word, action, or attempt to degrade, control, offend, humiliate, intimidate, coerce, deprive, threaten, or harm another person because of their gender, gender expression, or sexuality. Neglect, discrimination, and harassment can also be forms of GBV. GBV takes place in public spaces, in workplaces, at home, and online. Its negative effects reach far beyond the individuals who directly experience them. Violence can have long-lasting and negative health, social and economic effects that span generations, which can lead to cycles of violence and abuse within families and sometimes whole communities. While violence affects all people, it disproportionately affects women, girls, trans, and gender-diverse folks. Some people are more at risk of experiencing violence because of various forms of oppression.

 

Human/Sex Trafficking: Human trafficking, also referred to as trafficking in persons, involves recruiting, transporting, transferring, receiving, holding, concealing, harbouring, or exercising control, direction or influence over a person, for the purpose of exploitation, generally for sexual exploitation or forced labour. Human trafficking does not require the crossing of international borders and can occur entirely within a single country, including within local communities, cities, and rural areas. It often relies on manipulation, coercion, deception, or abuse of power, making vulnerable individuals—such as migrants, youth in care, Indigenous women and girls, and those experiencing poverty—particularly at risk. 

 

Intimate Partner Violence: Physical, sexual, emotional (psychological) or financial harm done by a current or former intimate partner(s) or spouse(s). Intimate partner violence can happen in a marriage, common-law or dating relationship; in a heterosexual or 2SLGBTQ (Two-Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) relationship; at any time in a relationship, including after it has ended; and, whether or not partners live together or are sexually intimate with one another.

 

Misogyny: Discrimination, hatred, or prejudice against women. It is generally accepted that misogyny is a consequence of patriarchy, and the term may be applied to certain individuals as well as larger cultures as systemic misogyny. 

 

Misogynoir: Misogynoir refers to the negative stereotypes, systemic barriers, and cultural representations that uniquely target Black women, devaluing them in ways that are distinct from the experiences of either Black men or women of other racial backgrounds. This term is important because it highlights that oppression is not experienced in isolation. Misogynoir recognises that the combination of gendered and racial bias produces a distinct form of discrimination that must be addressed explicitly in order to achieve equity.

 

Normalization: The process, often at a community or societal level, of normalizing violence and harmful practices or behaviours. Also often referred to by the similar process called, “hypernormalisation” which normalizes phenomena or practices that are harmful or may be in violation of regional Human Rights Codes or international law. 

 

Rape Culture: Rape Culture is a term coined in the 1970s created to show the ways in which society blames victims of sexual assault and normalizes sexual violence. It allows the social belief to profilerate where it is acceptable to teach sexualized violence prevention as “don’t get raped” instead of “don’t rape” and thus placing the blame on those who are Survivors of sexual violence and those who are more likely to experience sexual violence. Rape Culture includes laws, media, music, language, and imagery, that make sexual coercion and violence seem so normal that people believe rape is inevitable. Rather than viewing the culture of rape as a problem to change, people in a Rape Culture think about the persistence of rape as normal and unchanging. 

 

Safety Plan: The creation of a plan that supports the seeking and securing of safety from Gender-Based and Sexual Violence. This plan will account for the psychological, physical, and social safety of Survivors and allies. Safety Plans cannot guarantee safety but rather strategize towards the best path forward to seek safety in all forms. The working template FCG will be using for Safety Planning is available here.

 

Sex: Sex refers to the biological and physiological characteristics used to classify males, females and intersex persons. There is a large spectrum of variation in the biological attributes that comprise sex and how those attributes are expressed differently which lead to characteristics that do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies.  

 

Sexual Assault: Any unwanted sexual activity involving physical contact (including kissing, fondling, and sexual intercourse).

 

Sexual Harassment: Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favours, and other forms of verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. Sexual harassment can involve an abuse of power and is often used as a way of controlling or intimidating someone.

 

Sexual Violence (or SV): Sexual violence falls under the broader category of Gender-Based Violence. It refers to any unwanted sexual contact, including sexual assault and sexual harassment.

 

Survivor (or Victim): Is a person who has survived Sexual & Gender-Based Violence. Often people who have lived-experience with Sexual & Gender-Based Violence prefer to be referred to as Survivors rather than the legal term victim, due to the term “survivor” emphasizing the characteristics of adaptation, strength, and resilience of the person who survived these events rather than centring violence itself. 

 

Transgender: Broadly describes people who do not identify with the gender identity or expression associated with the sex they were assigned at birth. FCG understands transgender as an umbrella category that includes a variety of identities including but not limited to, transmen, transwomen, and non-binary folk. Transgender people may choose to pursue transition through social identification, legal documentation, and medical support. FCG recognizes the identity of transgender people in our community regardless of the ways they choose or choose not to express their identity. We additionally recognize that transgender people are often targeted specifically because of their identity or gender expression leading to experiences of gender based violence. 

 

Transphobia: Transphobia refers to discriminatory attitudes or actions toward trans and gender-non-conforming people. The term may be applied to certain individuals, as well as larger cultures as systemic transphobia. 

 

Trauma-informed Practices: Expands the concept of trauma-informed care to emphasize the intersecting impacts of systemic and interpersonal violence and structural inequities on a person’s life. This concept acknowledges both historical and ongoing interpersonal violence and their traumatic impacts and helps to emphasize a person’s experiences of past and current violence. This way problems are not seen as residing only in the person’s psychological state but also in social circumstances. A practice that is trauma-informed means approaching a situation or taking next steps with the awareness of the unique difficulties a trauma survivor may face. 

 

Victim: Defined in the Canadian Victims Bill of Rights and the Criminal Code as an individual who has suffered physical or emotional harm, property damage, or economic loss as a result of a crime. Some victims identify as Survivors.

 

Contacts, Resources, and Services

 

Below is a non-exhaustive list of contacts & resources local to Forest City Gallery or at a national service level within Canada. Should you have additional resources we should consider including please email us at board@forestcitygallery.com, or to amend any outdated information listed below. 

 

​Specialized Care in Sexual Violence & Emergency Health Care

• Anova Sexual Assault Centre: 519-642-3000 24-hour Crisis & Support Line 

• Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Treatment Program, St. Joseph’s Health Care London: 268 Grosvenor Street, London, Ontario, N6A 4V2 (specialized health care for immediately after sexual assault, and other realted services) 

• Assaulted Women’s Helpline: 416-863-0511 or Toll Free: 1-866-863-0511 

  • Pour les services en français, veuillez appeler FEM’AIDE: (Ligne de soutien pour femmes violentées) 877-336-2433 et 1 866-860-7082 (ATS) 

• Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse: 1-866-887-0015, 24-hour Crisis & Support Line 

• Atlohsa’s Zhwwanong 24-Hour Emergency Women’s Shelter for First Nations women and their children: 1 800-605-7477

• Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), London Middlesex: 519-601-8055 or Toll Free: 1 844-360-8055

• Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline: 1-833-900-1010, 24-hour helpline if you are in need of support or you want to report a potential case of human trafficking

Community Service Organizations

• Safe Space London’s Bad Date reporting line: 519-868-6477 Call or Text

• Atlohsa Family Healing Services’s 24-Hour Crisis Line: 1 800-605-7477

• PFLAG London: 519-686-7691

• Trans Lifeline: 877-330-6366

 

Campus Survivor Health & Wellness Support

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Western University’s Health, Wellness, and Well-being Services: Offers student support in disclosure, filing a complaint, resources in peer-support, and survivor counseling services. Western has a dedicated Gender-Based Violence & Survivor Support Case Manager you can contact by phone 519-661-3568, email support@uwo.ca, or in-person at 3114-3127 office in Thames Hall, Western University. 

 

Western University’s Legal Remedies and Resources for Survivors of Sexual Violence on Campus: See the legal resource published in 2022, by Western Law here. 

 

Western University’s Gender-based and Sexual Violence Policy: Read here. 

 

Fanshawe College’s Sexual Violence Prevention Coordinator: Provides confidential support to students who have experienced any form of gender-based violence. The violence does not have to have occurred while you are a student at Fanshawe; it can be historical or have taken place off-campus. Sexual Violence Prevention Coordinator’s email svsupport@fanshawec.ca, and phone number 519-452-4465. 

 

Fanshawe College’s Sexual Violence and Sexual Assult Policy: Read here. 

 

Non-Emergency Public Health Services 
 

• Birth Control Clinic, Middlesex-London Public Health: 519-663-5317 to book an appointment in-person at Citi Plaza, downtown or in Strathroy. Serving the following: people needing emergency birth control; Indigenous peoples; people experiencing homelessness; people who use substances intravenously; sex workers; LGBTQIA+ community; pregnant people who would like to discuss pregnancy termination or pregnancy options counselling; people who have experienced sexual assault or sexual abuse (please seek care at the Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Treatment Program at SJHC for services immediately after assault); teens not comfortable seeing their primary health care provider.
   

• Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) Clinic, Middlesex-London Public Health: Book through online booking system, no walk-ins. At the clinic, you'll find a safe, non-judgmental atmosphere where you can have an open discussion about your sexual health, get tested for STIs and discuss treatment options. 
   

Legal Clinics

• Up to 8-hours of free idependent legal advice for survivors of Sexual Assault through the government of Ontario (intake form link) and phone 1-855-226-3904 
   

Law Enforcement

• Emergencies: 911

• Non-urgent law enforcement: 519-661-5670

• Victim Services: 1-888-822-7729, 24-hour confidential support and information regarding the involvement of the police in domestic violence situations
   

Mandate

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Forest City Gallery (FCG) is an artist-run centre founded on artistic autonomy with a commitment to excellence in programming exhibitions and events that reflect and address recent developments in cultural production. FCG serves to foster and support contemporary art, promoting dialogue among local, regional, and international arts communities. FCG represents artists of all disciplines and career levels with a focus on emerging artists and practices. 
 

Acknowledgements 

 

We acknowledge predecessing “Sexual Assault & Harassement Policies” by Modern Fuel and Khyber Centre for the Arts. Both artist-run centres conducted extensive research to address and mitigate sexual violence in their organizations. We extend gratitude to the Dandelion Initiative for providing FCG with education on Survivor-centred policies in the arts sector through an anti-oppressive and trauma-informed lens. This policy document is a result of collaboration and advocacy of numerous FCG staff, Board, and Members. 

 

References

Armstrong, Elizabeth A., Miriam Gleckman-Krut, Lanora Johnson “Silence, Power, and Inequality: An Intersectional Approach to Sexual Violence” Annual Review of Sociology, no. 44 (2018).

 

Beck, Elizabeth; Kristie Seelman, Moon Charania, Susan M. Snyder, Sophie Saffan “Reproductive Justice, Bodily Autonomy, and State Violence”  Affilia: Feminist Inquiry in Social Work 39, no. 3 (2024).

 

Brockbank, Maddie, Saara Greene “Beyond the Carceral/Anti-carceral Binary: Considerations for Addressing Gender-based and Sexual Violence” British Journal of Social Work 52, (2022).

 

Cannon, Martin. “The Regulation of First Nations Sexuality” In Queerly Canadian: An Introductory Reader in Sexuality Studies, edited by Maureen FitzGerald and Scott Rayter, 51-63. Canadian Scholars, 2012.

 

Driskill, Qwo-Li “Stolen From our Bodies: First Nations Two-Spirits/Queers and the Journey to a Sovereign Erotic” Studies in American Indian Literatures 16, no. 2 (2004). 

 

Du Mont, Janice, Daisy Kosa, Sheila Macdonald, Anita Benoit, Tonia Forte “A comparison of Indigenous and non-Indigenous survivors of sexual assault and their receipt of and satisfaction with specialized health care services”  PLoS One 12, no. 11 (2017).

 

Johnson, Holly “Why Doesn’t She Just Report It? Apprehensions and Contradictions for women Who report Sexual Violence to the Police” Canadian Journal of Women and the Law 29, no. 1 (2017).

 

MacLeod, Emily, Jacqueline Galica, Marian Luctkar-Flude, Lenora Duhn “The Barriers to trauma-informed care in Canada: A critical analysis of health system characteristics and implications for individuals who have experianced sexual violence” The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality 32, no. 1 (2023). 

 

McQueen, Karen, Jodie Murphy-Oikonen, Ainsley Miller, Lori Chambers “Sexual assault: women’s voices aon the health impacts of not being believed by police” BMC Women’s Health 21, no. 217 (2021).

 

Owens, Emily “Consent” In Keywords For Gender and Sexuality Studies edited by Keywords Feminist Editorial Collective. NYU Press, 2021.

 

Palmer, Jane E. “How Do We Get There From Here? Toward an Anti-Carceral Future in the movement to End Gender-Based Violence” Violence Against Women 31, (2025).

 

Paradies, Yin “Colonisation, racism and indigenous health”  Journal of Population Research 33, no. 1 (2016). 

 

Pascoe, C.J. “Compulsive heterosexuality: Masculinity and Dominance” In Dude, You’re a Fag: Masculinity and Sexuality in Highschool. University of California Press, 2011.

 

Sit, Victoria and Lana Stermac “Improving Formal Support After Sexual Assault: From Survivors Living in Poverty In Canada” Journal of Interpersonal Violence 36, no. 3-4 (2017).

Szczygiel, Pamela “On the Value and Meaning fo Trauma-Informed Practice: Honoring Safety, Complexity, and Relationship” Smith College Studies In Social Work 88, no. 2 (2018).