2021 Shining Star Gala

2021 Leadership Awardee – Chanel Miller

After experiencing sexual assault in 2015, Chanel Miller’s powerful victim impact statement went viral and was read 11 million times in four days. She later went on to become a New York Times bestseller for her critically acclaimed memoir, Know My Name. Chanel was a 2019 Time “Next 100” honoree and a 2016 Glamour “Woman of the Year” honoree under her pseudonym, “Emily Doe.”

She is a force to be reckoned with, from her clever and thought-provoking illustrations to her continued activism for social change. We are honored to recognize her as our 2021 Leadership Awardee.

Learn more about Chanel and her memoir here, or check out her art debut here!

2021 Visionary Awardee – Kamilah Willingham

Kamilah Willingham is a writer, national activist, and civil rights advocate. Kamilah’s scholarship has been published in Teen Vogue, VICE, Huffpost, and others, and her experience of surviving sexual assault and civil rights violations as a law student at a prestigious university was shared in the award-winning documentary The Hunting Ground.

Kamilah’s work is grounded in advancing the rights of survivors of sexual violence in prisons, schools, and beyond. She currently sits on the board of the Equal Rights Amendment Coalition.

Visit Kamilah’s website to learn more here. 

2021 Shining Star Awardee – Tiffany Davidson, Esq.

Tiffany Davidson, Esq.  joined Victim Rights Law Center as a pro bono attorney in 2019. Her volunteer work with VRLC has included mentoring VRLC staff attorneys on complex cases and representing individual sexual assault survivors.

During the pandemic when volunteer hours were down, Tiffany stayed committed to helping survivors as a pro bono attorney for VRLC. When asked why she engaged in VRLC’s pro bono program, Tiffany pointed to her strong belief that a lack of financial resources should not be a barrier to quality representation. VRLC deeply appreciates Tiffany’s mentorship and pro bono representation of numerous sexual assault survivors in civil protective order matters prior to and through the pandemic.

2021 Superstar Awardee – Jessica Mindlin, Esq.

Jessica Mindlin, Esq., is Victim Rights Law Center’s National Director of Training and Technical Assistance, and Director of VRLC’s Oregon office.

Jessie has been active in the movement to end gender-based violence since the late 1970s. She has trained thousands of lawyers, advocates, health care providers, law enforcement officers, military personnel, and other service providers across the United States, as well as in the Middle East, Latin America, and the Eastern Caribbean. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women, the Office for Victims of Crime, and the U.S. State Department have recognized her expertise in responding to gender-based violence.

Jessie is the recipient of numerous awards, including the National Sexual Violence Resource Center Visionary Voice, American Bar Association’s Sharon Corbitt Award, Transition Project’s Women’s Leadership Award, and the Oregon Daily Journal of Commerce Leader in the Law, among others.