October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month

CW: This post talks (in very vague terms) about Domestic Violence. Please read in an environment you feel safe in if you think this may cause negative or unsafe feelings. I know it’s a departure from our usual Records and Music-related blogs, but hey, it’s OUR blog and this is a topic that is very important to both of us, so here it is anyway.
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October is National Domestic Violence Awareness month, and we here at Common Beat Music take this topic (amongst others) very seriously. According to the most recent data from the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men have experienced some form of physical violence by an intimate partner. Growing up in the DIY punk scene as both of us did, did not mean that we were free from the rampant sexism and violence that mainstream culture fostered. On the contrary, being a part of a smaller subculture often meant that proximity to a person who has harmed you, after managing to extricate yourself personally from the situation, was still inevitable. We both support the ideas and practices of Transformative Justice.

Writer and activist Mia Mingus describes TJ as “…a political framework and approach for responding to violence, harm and abuse. At its most basic, it seeks to respond to violence without creating more violence and/or engaging in harm reduction to lessen the violence. TJ can be thought of as a way of “making things right,” getting in “right relation,” or creating justice together. Transformative justice responses and interventions 1) do not rely on the state (e.g. police, prisons, the criminal legal system, I.C.E., foster care system (though some TJ responses do rely on or incorporate social services like counseling);  2) do not reinforce or perpetuate violence such as oppressive norms or vigilantism; and most importantly, 3) actively cultivate the things we know prevent violence such as healing, accountability, resilience, and safety for all involved. “

I (co-owner, Keri) am part of a collective (called the Healing and Trauma Informed Working Group, of HATI for short) working to address Domestic Violence and help foster TJ in the Philly Punk scene, and Carlo (the other half of Common Beat) will be playing a benefit show later this month in support of both HATI & Menergy, a group in Philadelphia that works with perpetrators of Domestic Violence (flyer below).

If you or someone you know is being harmed, we’re including a few links to documents we’ve compiled that have been helpful, including a link to purchase a handbook on how to foster Safer Spaces for venues that provides helpful tips and guidelines on what to do if known abusers enter the space.


About the Author of Making Spaces Safer

Where to buy Making Spaces Safer handbook

Domestic Violence resources in Philadelphia area



To find out more about the Healing and Trauma Informed Working Group, please visit our Facebook or email us at hatiwg.philly@gmail.com