“The essence of ending sexual trauma is to make the world a better place for all people.”
– Mark Primeaux
1. What is your connection to STAR?
My wife, Lisa, has been a longtime volunteer for STAR and got me interested in working with their 3-D Peer Educator program as well as participating in their Hunks in Heels fundraiser.
2. How did you come to volunteer with STAR or in the field of sexual assault prevention/response?
When my wife introduced me to to STAR, I was a little hesitant to get involved because I felt like I did not have a lot to offer. However, I realized that in my day job as an educator, my primary motivation was to improve the lives of young people by equipping them with the tools that help them navigate a complex world. The work that STAR was doing was a perfect extension of that very mission.
For that reason, I wanted to be involved with the 3-D Peer Educator program to equip promising young leaders to be the people who carry on that mission to their peers.
3. What do you find most rewarding about your involvement with STAR?
Perhaps most rewarding is the feeling that I can make a proactive impact on unhealthy sexuality. STAR provides services to people who are struggling with the results of sexual trauma, but when I can reach a young person in a way that empowers them to make choices that can prevent sexual trauma from happening, then I feel as if I have made a difference. The most rewarding part of STAR is being involved with an organization that hopes to one day rid the world of sexual violence.
4. What motivates you to keep going when things get difficult or discouraging?
Thinking about the young people who will or have become the voice of change for their peers motivates me when others seem to have missed the message.
5. What are some other ways you promote positive change in your community?
Voting in local elections and speaking up in-person when I see things that I question are concrete ways to incite change. I also promote positive change by considering the implications that my actions have beyond myself. It’s more than not being selfish, it’s considering things in a global perspective; as in, “Will this action affect someone else in a way that I haven’t considered?” It’s being intentional about the choices I make by considering if they add value to my life, the lives of others, and/or the world.
6. What advice would you give to someone who is hesitant about becoming an active member of the movement to end sexual trauma?
I’d like to direct this statement at other men who are hesitant to become involved. I think that the message of healthy sexuality is sometimes construed as a “slander against men” (as one pundit put it). I’d like all men to distance ourselves from our ideologies, our in-group biases, and even our personal relationships, and consider that the essence of ending sexual trauma is to make the world a better place for all people.
It’s important to realize that even for a man who hasn’t been touched by sexual violence directly, our lives and our relationships are negatively impacted because unhealthy sexuality exists. Making the world a safer and healthier place without sexual violence or trauma has the potential to improve all of our lives.
Get involved and make change with STAR:
- Join our mailing list
- Donate to support our work
- Request a training or outreach presentation
- Volunteer with us!
Click here for more ways to get involved.
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