Circle Core Beliefs
CIRCLE: Coalition for Inclusion, Resilience, Change, and Lasting Equity
Have you been bombarded with radical changes in policy and support for human services coming out of the current administration almost hourly?
Have you been frustrated with so much disinformation and lack of effective opposition?
Are you afraid of losing our democratic values and the civic progress of the last 50 years?
Do you feel overwhelmed and helpless to stop this onslaught, and want to know what you can do?
Then we have a suggestion. Join us. We are the CIRCLE.
The CIRCLE (Coalition for Inclusion, Resilience, Change, and Lasting Equity) is a coalition of child and family serving organizations and individuals promoting safety, health, peace and wellbeing for children, adults, and families across the lifespan by opposing the dangerous new federal policies and programs. IVAT (The Institute on Violence, Abuse & Trauma) and NPEIV (the National Plan to End Interpersonal Violence and Abuse Across the Lifespan) have joined with other interpersonal violence experts and agencies to create the CIRCLE to fight back against the consequences of the retrenchment in human services under the new administration. Our professional careers have been devoted to helping people and families in need and distress. We are stepping forward to preserve a national commitment to service and support.
WHAT ARE WE CONCERNED ABOUT?
1. People who are most in need of government supported services losing them;
2. The unprecedented, and likely illegal and unconstitutional, assault on the values of democracy, American society and the core functions of government;
3. The functional destruction of key federal agencies and withdrawal of social, health care, and mental health services and resources necessary for the health and wellbeing of millions of children, families, and vulnerable people;
4. The firing of devoted federal civil servants who nurture and protect the health and mental resilience of individuals and families, especially children, and promote equity in opportunity for all Americans;
5. The canceling and inhibition of basic social, healthcare and behavioral science research which will provide future pathways for successful and effective intervention and treatment.
As organizations and individuals, we are committed to opposing those initiatives. We find that it is imperative to confront and oppose these policies and advocate for these basic governmental programs to be reinstated in full. The CIRCLE considers the new federal policies and initiatives proposed by Project 2025 to be a substantial threat to the stability, security, safety, health and freedom of opportunity for all Americans and their families. These policies are already producing substantial trauma to children, adults and families and will increase interpersonal and social violence.
OUR OPERATIONAL STRATEGY
1. We must deal with the extensive array of issues presented by the accelerating disruption of federal policies and programs. We will continue joining with other organizations and coalitions to create unified messages and actions;
2. The partners in the CIRCLE will document, describe, confront, and publicize the harms created by these policies and the concurrent disinformation;
3. We will develop strategies to motivate the public to complain, protest, resist and to join in opposition to these dangerous changes;
4. We will adopt positive, constructive messaging and an approach to support parents, promote children’s rights, child, family and community safety, health and welfare.
THIS APPROACH WOULD REQUIRE THREE MAIN COMPONENTS:
1. A broad coalition of child and family welfare advocacy groups, individuals, and agencies with a united front;
2. A research and information group to identify and document the negative changes from the new federal policies and programs, and distill them into simple messages;
3. A marketing campaign and a media group to bring issue awareness to the general public, elected officials, and governmental authorities.
JOIN US NOW: Contactingthecircle@gmail.com
Our Vision is to promote safety, human rights and the opportunity to thrive for all children and families, thus reducing abuse and violence in our nation and communities.
Our Mission is to align our experience, skills, and insights with other individuals, organizations and agencies that recognize the harms of these current civic challenges and collaborate with them to maximize and unify our joint energy and impact.
Statement on Pardoning of January 6th Rioters
The pardoning of individuals involved in the January 6th Capitol riot has sent a dangerous message that undermines the principles of justice, accountability, and the rule of law. These rioters engaged in violent and abusive behaviors that attack the heart of American democracy, breaching the Capitol to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power. The pardons of those who committed these actions directed at law enforcement, which produced significant injuries and trauma leading to suicides, sends a powerful negative message about our support of police. By pardoning them, the President normalizes political violence and signals that there are no serious consequences for undermining democratic institutions and attacks on law enforcement.
Allowing those responsible for such actions to go unpunished not only fails to hold them accountable for their crimes, but also encourages future acts of violent and abusive behaviors, where individuals will feel emboldened to use force to achieve political or personal goals. A pardon effectively condones the idea that disrupting the democratic process through violence is acceptable under certain circumstances—an idea that is antithetical to the very foundations of our republic.
Our democracy relies on the principle that those who break the law, regardless of their political affiliation or position, should be held accountable. Pardoning the January 6th rioters erodes trust in the justice system and weakens the moral authority of our institutions. It is crucial that we stand firm in our commitment to upholding the rule of law and send a clear message that violent and abusive behaviors will never be a legitimate means of political expression or for personal gain. We can only prevent future assaults on democracy through accountability.
If you are concerned about this action, call your Senators and Representative. Write an op-ed in your local media about the dangers of not holding people who commit violence accountable. Create your own local cross coalition with other social justice groups to address issues that may continue to emerge with policy changes.
Look to resources such as Indivisible for guidelines on how to organize and pull resources together for local efforts.
https://indivisible.org/campaign/new-group-orientation
Join the cause. Contact us at contactingthecircle@gmail.com.
The Institute on Violence, Abuse and Trauma (IVAT) is sharing this statement on behalf of The Circle.
The Circle - Community for Inclusion, Resilience, Change, and Lasting Equity
A Coalition of Child and Family-Serving Agencies and Individuals Committed to Ending Interpersonal Violence, Abuse Across the Lifespan
We are a network of organizations and individuals who work with children, families, and communities to promote safety and reduce trauma, abuse and neglect across the lifespan. We seek to coordinate a response to Project 2025 as it relates to our particular focus on family and community welfare issues.