By Lisa Zimmerman, Player Engagement Insider
In 2008, current Baltimore Ravens tight end Benjamin Watson, then with the Cleveland Browns, and his wife, Kirsten, founded the One More Foundation with their faith in God as the driving force and the goal of continuing helping and supporting one more person at a time. Over the years, they have used One More to affect many people in many different situations, with a variety of needs. Watson has also written a book addressing the racial divide in the United States called, “Under Our Skin.”
Watson, who was drafted by the New England Patriots in 2004, most recently played for the New Orleans Satins and maintains ties to each of his previous cities. In conjunction with Sexual Assault Awareness Month, the One More Foundation created its One More Survivor campaign, specifically designed to assist the New Orleans Family Justice Center, which helps victims and survivors of abuse.
The impetus for One More Survivor was a Christmas event where The Family Justice Center arranged a gift-shopping trip, sponsored by Watson’s Foundation. As it turned out, the people chosen for the event all experience sexual abuse in some form. Shortly thereafter, Watson and his wife decided they wanted to go a step further and create a platform to raise money specifically to raise awareness for sexual and domestic abuse. Kirsten had previously worked for a violence prevention organization in Boston so it was already something established as a priority in their lives.
The Watsons set a goal of raising $25,000 for the No More Survivor fundraiser and the totals far exceeded that original number. As important as it is to Watson to raise funds, it’s as important to him to raise awareness to let people know that help is available and to emphasize to men the role they play in helping to end abuse.
“It’s incumbent upon men to put an end to this,” he said. “I have a wife, I have daughters, I have sisters. I want someone to stand up for them. We have to hold each other to a higher standard. I know a couple of people first hand who were either the perpetrator or the survivor.”
And while most of the survivors Watson has known were women, there were men too and he acknowledged as difficult as it is for women to report and talk about their experiences, it can be even harder for men.
“I find that mostly I’m dealing with women being the victims,” he said. “But there were a couple of men who I know who said they were abused when they were younger, by a babysitter or by another man.”
For men, the stigma and shame can be even more pronounced and therefore keeps men from coming forward.
Another element in awareness is not only to make those affected feel more comfortable in coming forward, but to create awareness among people who may make off-handed comments that can be construed as supporting or accepting the idea of abuse.
“It is difficult to speak up (when comments are made),” Watson said. “But I’m in a place in my career where I’m the older guy in the room and I don’t care anymore. If I’m in a conversation with somebody and they say something, I’m ok with saying what’s true. It’s about speaking truth. We all want someone to speak truth to us.”
Watson has seen results up close and knows it is something that with continued and expanded focus can make a larger impact.
“There are people who think they have no hope,” he said. “But I‘ve seen responses where people have spoken up and said, ‘I’m a survivor and I appreciate you raising awareness.’”
For more information: www.thebenjaminwatson.com
Lisa Zimmerman is a long-time NFL writer and reporter. She was the Jets correspondent for CBSSports.com, SportsNet New York’s TheJetsBlog.com and Sirius NFL Radio. She has also written for NFL.com.