ABOUT US

VISION

CAASE envisions a community free from all forms of sexual exploitation, including sexual assault and the commercial sex trade.

MISSION

CAASE addresses the culture, institutions, and individuals that perpetrate, profit from, or support sexual exploitation. Our work includes prevention, policy reform, community engagement, and legal services.

VALUES

Social and institutional systems do not adequately serve survivors of sexual violation, which harms marginalized communities at the highest rates. To create the greatest change and best support survivors, our programs seek to break down inequity and focus on those most impacted, including people who are girls and women, of color, LGBTQ+, living with disabilities, experiencing poverty, or immigrants. Our dedication to this work is reflected in our values.

Dignity

We respect the inherent humanity of all people and strive to expand opportunities for personal autonomy.

Accountability

We answer to survivors and collaborate with allies as we seek to hold those responsible for harm accountable.

Progress

We create individual, institutional, and cultural change by using innovative approaches to ending sexual harm.

Equity

We commit to building a world where every person, with consideration for their intersecting identities and unique circumstances, has the same access to opportunity and power.

Our Work

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Community Engagement

We center communities most impacted by sexual harm. These efforts focus on committing time, space, and energy to listening to survivors so their experiences and expertise can inform our work and raise public awareness.

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Legal Services

We provide individualized legal advice, consultation, and representation following and related to sexual harm. Our attorneys assist survivors in criminal and civil matters.

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Prevention Education

We teach innovative, evidence based, and engaging curriculum across Chicago to empower students to become active allies in the movement to end gender-based violence.

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Public Policy & Advocacy

We advocate for local and statewide policies and legislation that expand options for survivors of sexual harm, hold perpetrators and systems accountable, curtail the criminalization of trauma behaviors, and prevent future violence.

LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT

CAASE operates on the homelands of the Council of Three Fires: the Ojibwe, Odawa, and Potawatomi Nations. We recognize the enduring presence of Indigenous peoples in Chicago and honor their ongoing contributions to our community. We also acknowledge the forced removal and displacement of Indigenous peoples from this land and the continued impact of these injustices on Indigenous communities today—particularly the disproportionate impact of sexual harm and exploitation on Indigenous women, girls, and gender-nonconforming people. CAASE commits to working toward healing and justice, and to amplifying Indigenous voices and perspectives in our work to end sexual exploitation.

OUR GENEROUS SUPPORTERS

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CICF Logo
Polk Bros Foundation Logo
Greer Foundation Logo

Additional support from:

Alphawood Foundation, Franklin Square Foundation, Illinois Bar Foundation, Lawyers Trust Fund, The Chicago Bar Foundation

Yearly Reports

You can view CAASE’s 990 financial forms and our annual Year at a Glance, which reviews the impact of our organization over the previous year, here.