Domestic Violence: The Trifecta of Failure & The Solutions for Change - Part One

I have never. I repeat. I have never met anyone more educated, experienced, and passionate about advocating against domestic violence in my lifetime.

Meet Dr. Kathie Mathis. She’s a Doctor of Clinical Psychology, CEO of California Cognitive Behavioral Institute. The creator of the most comprehensive 40-Hour Domestic Violence Advocacy Certification. She’s worked with several Governors of California, trained the FBI, police, & state agencies. She’s also the author of Emotional Addiction: A Bittersweet Truth. She’s appeared on Dr Phil 5 times, as well as many other television shows. She provides expert testimony in the court system and still has her hand in the trenches working one-on-one with special cases. She also has a no bull**** attitude when it comes to advocacy, which as a survivor and fellow advocate I totally agree on. But what I respect about her most of all is that she also works with “the other side”. She’s facilitated her version of Batterer’s Intervention in prisons and with people on probation because she understands our work as advocates is incomplete if we don’t also try to prevent people from reoffending. Her program holds them radically accountable while also giving them the opportunity to change their toxic core beliefs, attitudes, and abusive behaviors.

Dare I say, Dr. Kathie Mathis is the TRUTH!

At NDVC, there’s constant dialogue about the inadequacies of advocacy be it at the legislative level or with those who have their boots on the ground. The purpose of my interview with Dr. Mathis is to include her perspective on it.

We all know that in order to reimagine or create solutions, we have to first truly understand the problem. The most important thing to remember is that one person alone doesn’t have all of the answers but their insight is valuable. If we truly intend to and believe we can raise the standard of advocacy it’s going to require a diverse and collaborative approach.

Nonetheless, Dr. Kathie’s insight comes from a legacy of 36 years in the field.

Important Note: This is a 3 part series. The article below is part 1 of the series. You should also know that in the spirit of collaboration, I have turned this interview itself into more of a collaborative approach. What that means is the 3 points Dr. Kathie brought to the table will be addressed with her perspective and the perspective of several advocates we have spoken to in the past who are all echoing the same things. While we do not all agree on everything, we do agree on many things in this article.

The question I asked Dr Mathis to stimulate the conversation around the possibilities for transformation was this.