April 1, 2015
Professor Julie Goldscheid and Sharon Stapel (’98) are the recipients of the American Bar Association’s 20/20 Vision Awards. The award was created in honor of the important work accomplished by the passage of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and the development of the Commission on Domestic & Sexual Violence (CDSV) at the ABA 20 years ago.
Prof. Goldscheid and Ms. Stapel are among a group of recipients who have played an instrumental role in mobilizing the legal profession against domestic and sexual violence by either creating, supporting, advancing, or advocating for the CDSV or VAWA over the past two decades. The awards honor 20 trailblazers, and an awards reception will be held in the recipients’ honor during the ABA annual meeting in Chicago.
Sharon Stapel (’98) and Prof. Julie Goldscheid
Prof. Goldscheid is a nationally recognized expert on gender equality, whose decades of work on behalf of survivors of gender violence has included arguing before the U.S. Supreme Court, directing programs, and authoring numerous articles and other publications to advance survivors’ rights and gender equality.
Ms. Stapel is the executive director of the New York City Anti-Violence Project (AVP). The Anti-Violence Project is the nation’s largest organization dedicated to eliminating hate violence, sexual violence, and domestic/intimate partner violence affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ) and HIV-affected communities. AVP provides direct client services in New York City and engages in advocacy and public education locally and nationally. Ms. Stapel began her legal career at the Legal Aid Society, where she directed domestic violence legal programs at South Brooklyn Legal Services and the Legal Aid Society, and created Legal Aid’s first dedicated domestic violence project. She is the former chair of the New York City Bar Association’s Domestic Violence Committee and the New York City LGBTQ Domestic Violence Task Force.