National Leather Association:International
National Leather Association:International is a contemporary BDSM organization based in Blacklick, OH. NLA-I is a pansexual organization with chapters all over the United States and Canada. It is an association of leather peoples with a common philosophy. It was founded by Steve Maidhof.
Living In Leather
NLA-I sponsors an annual conference, Living In Leather, held at a different location each year. This conference has been held annually since 1986. Living In Leather I, held at the Seattle Center, billed as a National Conference for Lesbians and Gays of the Leather Lifestyle, was the first conference, and had 99 attendees. The keynote speech was given by Pat Califia. It was the first full fledged leather/SM/fetish conference.
NLA-I MISSION STATEMENT
To maintain our national/international communication, information, education and support network for all members of the Leather/BDSM/Fetish community.
To role model the power and pride of all adults who engage in Safe, Sane and Consensual sexual expression and encourage those who fight for decriminalization of all sexual acts between consenting adults.
To support individual and organized political activism, visibility and education in order to eradicate stereotypical beliefs, misconceptions and media misrepresentation about the Leather/BDSM/Fetish family in the community at large.
To continue providing, through publications, educational material and conferences, a forum for the sharing of knowledge, viewpoints and practices of a diverse network of people.
To promote the success and welfare of individuals, organizations, publications and businesses within our community; especially against threats to their freedom of expression, freedom of the press, rights to free association and right to equal protection under the law.
To welcome women, people of color, transgender, the deaf, the physically challenged and others who have traditionally been discriminated against or poorly represented within the Leather/BDSM/Fetish community.
To attend, promote and support fundraising for deserving defense funds, projects, and clubs, organizations, and/or charities, which have given direct service to the Leather/BDSM/Fetish community.
To continue preserving a record of our history, traditions and culture.
NLA-I Domestic Violence Project
National Leather Association- International was the first SM organization to tackle domestic violence directly. The NLA-I Organization created the National Leather Association International Domestic Violence Project in 1998 and is one of many projects within the NLA-I organization. During its history NLA-I DVP has made it one of their primary objectives to distinguish the differences between SM and domestic violence.
NLA-I DVP has played an instrumental part in providing educational workshops to BDSM groups and mainstream domestic violence programs, shelters, social workers, and law enforcement. One of NLA-I DVP’s tasks during its earlier days was to transcribe their workshops, audiotape them, and send their materials to all of the national mainstream domestic violence groups in the country. As a result many mainstream domestic violence groups started making use of the NLA-I DVP’s materials within their own programs. You can still find these materials in use today.
The vision of the NLA-I Domestic Violence Project is to create a national and international network to provide information, appropriate referrals, resources, and safe shelters for those in the world community who have been subjected to abusive and violent BDSM relationships and who are seeking a way out of those relationships or who require a more extensive support network than is otherwise available to them.
NLA-I DVP Mission Statement
The National Leather Association-International (NLA-I) calls on the leather/ SM/Fetish community to take the lead in reducing domestic violence through education.
No group is free of domestic violence, assault, or abuse; but fear, denial and lack of knowledge have slowed public response to this serious social problem. The NLA-I is committed to reducing this violence by attempting:
1. To show that community action can reduce violence.
2. To hold offenders/abusers accountable for choosing to be violent. To encourage victims to take legal action against the offender/abuser. To use drugs or alcohol as an excuse for domestic violence, assault, or abuse, is unacceptable. To encourage the offender/abuser to seek treatment and the victim to seek support.
3. To listen and support those who have the courage to tell us... to help them end their shame and isolation.
4. To educate the legal and social service system about the difference between consensual SM and domestic violence, assault, and abuse, and to encourage their appropriate intervention.
5. To take the responsibility of educating our community about the forms of domestic violence, assault, and abuse, its extent and severity.
6. To promote information about where to go for help. Domestic violence takes many forms: physical violence, assault, isolation, out right or subtle psychological and emotional abuse, economic control, sexual assault, and abuse as well as the destruction of personal property. Non-consensual manipulation and assault are not part of SM. The NLA-I advocates relationships based in personal responsibility, honesty and integrity...in which power and pleasure is derived from mutual respect.
See also
See also [ National Leather Association International ]
External links
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