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Council Member Ayala acknowledges survivors' resilience and shares personal experience

1:51:21

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66 sec

Council Member Diana Ayala expresses gratitude to the survivors for sharing their stories and acknowledges the resilience and power in the room. She reveals that she and her colleague Farah are also survivors of domestic violence.

Ayala emphasizes the importance of using personal tragedies for a greater good
She mentions that sharing her own story, though difficult, has had a positive impact on other women
The council member acknowledges the vulnerability required to share such personal experiences

Diana Ayala

1:51:21

Thank you.

1:51:23

And we allowed you extra time because I did I wanted to be sensitive to your stories and wanted to make sure that you were able to express what you wanted to express.

1:51:33

And I just wanna say thank you.

1:51:35

I think, you know, when we talk about domestic violence month and, you know, the topics of conversation, they're very somber.

1:51:41

Right?

1:51:42

But I also see a lot of resilience and a lot of power in this room, and you took your power back.

1:51:49

Farah and I, our colleagues in the city council, and we were both survivors as well.

1:51:53

And and I think that it's a beautiful thing when we can take those tragedies and flip them and use them for, you know, a greater good.

1:52:02

I never think that people are watching this channel when they're watching, you know, from home.

1:52:07

You can actually watch it's just a there's a channel where you can watch city council hearings.

1:52:11

But you'd be surprised at how many women actually have stopped the industry and have thanked me for sharing my story, which was hard to do.

1:52:18

It's hard to share and be vulnerable and and kind of, you know, stand naked in a room when you feel judged and and you don't want people feeling sorry for you.

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Testimony by Stephanie Woodbine, Co-chair of Advisory Council at Mayor's Office to End Gender-Based Violence (MOEGBV)

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Council Member Ayala emphasizes the importance of sharing stories and advocacy