Chimine Arfuso Press Pack 2010

CHANGE
STARTS FROM
WITHIN
Changing the Way We Think About Violence
“It is only with forgiveness
that we can begin to
penetrate the hearts of
those filled with pain and
hatred”
Chimine Arfuso was born to be an
orator. At 9 years old,during the Gulf War,
Chimine became deeply impacted by the
stories of her peers and their fathers being
away at war. Wanting change, Chimine
wrote and delivered a speech in front of her
entire school which brought some to tears.
This would only be the beginning of a long
and enlightening journey that has yet to be
completed.
When Chimine was 17 she experienced
the reality of domestic war, rape. A man
broke into her suburban home and shattered
her sheltered world and innocence by brutally
terrorizing and raping her. This same
individual terrified Southern California
residents for 6 months before Chimine
became his last victim. One year later, her perpetrators case
finally came to trial where Chimine, in
addition to her emotional testimony, provided
a powerful and unexpected statement that
shocked even her attacker. She looked him
straight in his eyes and through her tears
forgave him and told him she was going to
pray, not only for him, but for his entire
family.
Over the years Chimine would be asked
to do interviews or speak at different events
but it wasn’t until she was asked to be a
keynote speaker at the inaugural Turning
Negative Into Positive (TNIP) in 2007 that she
truly realized the power in her experience.
Since then Chimine has branched out to speak
at other related events.
Her credits include: TNIP 08, The
California State University Conference on
Higher Education 08, Camp Choice,
Community Service Programs (CSP) National
Victim Rights Week Conference 09,
Transendence 2009 at San Francisco State
University, Society for Anthropology and
Consciousness Conference, 2010 and
Chimine’s message has the power to
touch each and every one of us. Her belief
is that everything happens for a reason and
every challenge provides us with the
opportunity to learn and grow.
University Of Pennsylvania School Of Medicine
- Earlier studies found that one-third of juvenile delinquents, 40% of sexual offenders and
76% of serial rapists report they were sexually abused as youngsters.
Media Coverage
Highlights:
Orange County Register, “Hundred’s
march at ‘victims’ rights march and
rally” by Rob Whitfield April, 2010
<http://www.ocregister.com/video/?
videoId=79157625001>
Marie Claire Magazine, “Real
Women’s Rape Kit Stories” by Jihan
Thompson August, 2010
<http://www.marieclaire.com/worldreports/opinion/real-women-rape-kitstories>
XPRESS Magazine, “Rape on the Rise”
Britany Lueras 11/6/08
“Something needs to be done
differently, and we need to start
changing the way we think about
[rape],” she deems. “We need to
change the way we perceive it…how
we react to it, because otherwise we’re
not going to have different
results.”http://xpress.sfsu.edu/
archives/magazine/011872.html
TNIP 2008, San Francisco State University
Recent Speaking Credentials:
April 2010 -- National Victim Rights Rally and March hosted by D.A. Tony Rackauckas
Orange County Courthouse, Keynote Speaker
March 2010 -- “Dangerous Labels: Breaking the Cycle of Abuse by Shifting the Lexicon of
Sexual Violence.”
UC Berkeley, Presenter at Society for Anthropology and Consciousness
Orange County Register, “Rapist
Sentanced to 101 Years After Victims
Testify” Richard Marosi 10/18/2000
“‘I don’t hate you, because hate
doesn’t create love,‘ she said. ‘Can you
just look at my face for a second? I
forgive you. And I want you to forgive
yourself.’”
April 20th, 2009 -- “Transcendence”
San Francisco State University, Keynote Speaker
April 2009 -- “Rebuilding Lives”
CSP National Victim Rights Conference, Keynote Speaker
June/July 2009 -- “Making SMART choices”
Camp Choice, Educator
April 2008 -- “The Rape You Won’t Remember.”
Cal State University Conference on Higher Education, Educational Track Presenter
April 2007, 2008, 2009 -- “TNIP”
SFSU, Keynote Speaker
TNIP 2010, With the founder of
Create Peace Project, Ross Holzman
Chimine has dedicated her life to understanding the cycle of
violence. She has spent the past decade working with youth at
risk and holds a BA in International Relations with a focus on
International Crime and Law and will graduate with her MA in
Transformative Leadership in the Spring of 2011. As a result,
Chimine has a unique message and worldly perspective to add to
any type of event. Chimine is available to speak at your event in
a myriad of different formats designed to meet the specific
criteria of your particular group function. For bookings, more
information or a resume please email Chimine @
[email protected]