Redesigning the Sexual Assault Kit 

Please be advised this program contains content related to sexual assault.

In 2021, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum and the National Museum of American History, with support from the Smithsonian American Women’s History Initiative, co-acquired Martha “Marty” Goddard’s “Vitullo Evidence Collection Kit for Sexual Assault Examination.” Goddard engaged a community of collaborators between 1972 and 1978 in Chicago, Il to design a standardized kit that would contain all the tools for evidence collection in one box and provide instructions for collection, documentation, and counseling resources for survivors. More than 40 years later, versions of this same kit are commonly used around the United States to process and prosecute sexual assaults, still the most underreported and occurring crime in the nation.  

In this roundtable discussion, experts from around the country will discuss Goddard’s innovative kit, which helped accelerate successful investigation and prosecution of sexual assault in the United States, as well as strategies for improving the design of the kit. A new generation of advocates, policy makers, and technicians have been calling for adaptations of the kit’s design to expand its approach to trauma informed-care supportive of all those impacted by sexual assault; standardized components; and technologies to improve transparency around processing.   

SPEAKERS:  

Debbie Millman, moderator
Debbie Millman is a writer, designer, educator, artist, brand consultant, and host of the podcast Design Matters. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Joyful Heart Foundation, whose mission to transform society’s response to sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse, support survivors’ healing, and end this violence forever. 

Alexandra Cunningham Cameron is the curator of contemporary design and Hintz Secretarial Scholar at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. She has served as the editor in chief of independent arts journal The Miami Rail, the creative director of the Design Miami fairs, and an independent curator, writer, and advisor whose work has spanned public art, collections, educational programs, and exhibitions engaging an expansive roster of international artists, designers, and architects. Focusing on multidisciplinary practices, Cameron has organized major projects with Yona Friedman, Dozie Kanu, Philippe Malouin, Duro Olowu, and the late fashion designer Willi Smith. She has contributed to publications such as the Financial Times, PIN-UP, Cultured, and Topical Cream in addition to numerous journals, books, and monographs. Cameron’s work has been acknowledged with awards from the Association of Art Museum Curators, the Smithsonian, Wallpaper, and Designboom. Portrait photo credit: Jeremy Liebman. 

Pagan Kennedy is the author of twelve books, most recently The Secret History of the Rape Kit. Her journalism has appeared in dozens of publications, and she has worked as a columnist for The New York Times Magazine and a contributing writer for The New York Times Sunday Review.  Her awards include a Knight Science Journalism Fellowship at MIT, an NEA Fellowship, a Smithsonian Fellowship, and two Massachusetts Cultural Council fellowships.  

Dr. Katherine Ott is a curator in the Division of Medicine and Science at the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution. She is part of the pan-Smithsonian group that is building a research collection on the history of sexual assault and the health impacts of trauma in American culture. Ott has published widely on the history of medicine, the history of disability, and the use of material culture. She has led history exhibition teams on topics such as HIV and AIDS, The Americans with Disabilities Act, Polio, and LGBTQ+. She is also an Associate Professorial Lecturer in the graduate school at The George Washington University. 

Hallie Bongar White is the founder and Dean of the National Tribal Trial College at the University of Wisconsin Law School. Along with Arlene J. O’Brien [Tohono O’Odham Nation] and Cordelia Clapp, R.N. [Pawnee Nation], White created SAFESTAR, a unique model of care for American Indian/Alaska Native sexual violence survivors delivered directly to indigenous communities by trusted and beloved community members themselves.  White is the author of numerous publications including Sex Offender Registration and Notification in Indian Country, Creative Civil Remedies for Non-Indian Offenders in Indian Country, the National Tribal Law Enforcement Sexual Assault Protocol and many others.    

ACCESSIBILITY AND WHAT TO EXPECT

  • Format: The program will be hosted on Zoom.
  • The viewing link will be emailed to you upon registration.
  • The program will begin with a brief welcome, then the speakers will give presentations with slides followed by a moderated Q&A with the audience. 
  • Accommodations: The program will have live closed captioning. If we can provide additional services to support your participation, email us at CHEducation@si.edu or let us know when you register. Please make your request as far in advance as possible—preferably at least ten days before the program date. 
  • Recording: The program will be recorded and may be posted on Cooper Hewitt’s YouTube channel. 

SUPPORT

Museum purchase through the American Women’s History Initiative Acquisitions Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Women’s History Initiative. Acquisition is jointly owned by the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum and the National Museum of American History; 2021-8-1-a/gg