Political Quotes

“today I wish to honor a brave and passionate Oregonian who is an incredible example of a person finding bold solutions to challenging problems. I am proud to boast about my friend, Brenda Tracy, being named a Woman of Impact by Politico at its sixth annual Women Rule Summit. Brenda Tracy survived childhood sexual abuse. She is also a survivor of a brutal sexual assault that happened to her as a young single mother in Oregon. Brenda reported her sexual assault but she didn't speak of it publicly. She says that, at the time, she was saved by the compassion of a trauma nurse who treated her with dignity. Soon, Brenda went into nursing herself, graduating from the Oregon Health and Science University. After 16 years of silence, Brenda courageously decided, in 2014, to share her sexual assault survival story publicly. Going public has exposed her to harsh judgments, disbelief, unwanted publicity, and harassment. But since 2014, Brenda's story of survival also has positively reverberated across the entire country, sparking productive conversations and genuine reforms along the way. In 2016, Brenda began traveling the country to speak to high school and college athletic departments. As the founder of ``Set the Expectation,'' she has spoken to nearly 100 college athletic programs and several high schools, setting the expectation with thousands of athletes that physical assault and sexual violence are never okay.…”