The April 1st event includes an on-demand screening of the award-winning documentary At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal, accompanied by a live discussion with survivors of abuse and topic experts.
The Foundation for Global Sports Development (GSD) and the UCLA Anderson Center for Management of Enterprise in Media, Entertainment & Sports (MEMES) are co-presenting a webinar titled, “Finding Courage: Dismantling the Culture of Abuse in Sport.” The panel discussion, which is free and open to the public, will take place on Thursday, April 1at 11:30am PDT via Zoom. Daphne Young, the Chief Communications Officer for Childhelp, will moderate the event. Registration is available on Eventbrite.
The panelists include:
- Jonathan Vaughn – former NFL player and survivor of abuse
- Trinea Gonczar – Sister Survivor featured in ATHOG and advocate
- Chrissy Weathersby Ball – Former collegiate athlete and Sister Survivor
- Professor Amos Guiora – Professor of Law at the S.J. Quinney College of Law and author of the book “Armies of Enablers”
The first panel is titled “The Culture of Athletics,” and will feature Jonathan Vaughn and Trinea Gonczar. The panel will focus on how sports culture, particularly the “win at all costs” mentality, allows abuse to occur and go unnoticed or unreported. The discussion will also offer insight into the warning signs of abuse, prevention tools, and techniques for supporting survivors and healing.
The second panel, “Enablers and Institutional Failures,” will examine the responsibility institutions have to protect athletes and the role enablers have in allowing predators to abuse athletes. Chrissy Weathersby Ball and Prof. Amos Guiora are panelists for this discussion.
Leading up to the event attendees will have the opportunity to watch At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal, the award-winning documentary about the Larry Nassar case. The film reveals a dangerous system that prioritized winning over everything else, including protecting young female athletes. Registration is required to view the film.
“After releasing At the Heart of Gold, we knew our work in this space had only just begun,” said Dr. Steven Ungerleider, producer of ATHOG and board member for GSD. “The abuse of young athletes must end. Working with survivors and solution-oriented groups – like the Center for MEMES – to build awareness and create change is one of our top priorities.”
Jay Tucker, Executive Director for the Center for MEMES, said, “The issues raised by the documentary impact student-athletes, coaches, parents, university administrators and a host of others. The Center typically focuses on the business of entertainment and sports, but all stakeholders in this sector should have an understanding of the responsibility we have as stewards of people.”
He continued, “I’m very excited that we are able to co-host this event, and hope that this is the start of much-needed dialogue. We appreciate The Foundation for Global Sports Development for collaborating with us on this opportunity.”
