By Whitney Marris, Trauma Therapist and Director of Trauma-Informed Practice & System Transformation
NOTE: The enclosed is sample legislation from CTIPP’s 2022 Trauma-Informed Policy Development Highlights. It is meant to be educational and aspirational for trauma-informed advocacy.
Sample Legislation: Hawaii House Bill 2315
CTIPP Policy Dimension: Integrate historical, cultural, racial, and other forms of collective and/or intergenerational trauma (32% of trauma-informed bills ITTIC analyzed were aligned with this dimension)
Summary: This Democrat-led bill, while not signed into law despite seeing movement in 2022, powerfully captures the overrepresentation of the Native Hawaiian community, Pacific Islander communities, and communities of color in the state legal system, among other disproportionate impacts, that trauma and adversity have on such populations, and frames this as a reflection of intergenerational trauma, cultural dislocation, exposure to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), and risk factors associated with poverty as perpetuated by the status quo.
In response to these findings and others cited in the bill that connect behaviors exhibited by younger people in such communities with adaptation for survival and continued cycles of trauma, this measure would increase funding for culturally-focused, trauma-responsive programs to support flourishing and well-being among the groups who are most impacted by existing policies and thus most at-risk for adverse experiences and outcomes, particularly in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.
To support these efforts as led by lived experience, the bill outlines that input from community partners regarding yet-unmet needs will be solicited such that necessary enhancements to support individual and collective resiliency can be made.
Explore CTIPP’s 2022 Trauma-Informed Policy Development Highlights