Stop Prisoner Rape Opens Office in Los Angeles

October 20, 2001

LOS ANGELES - Stop Prisoner Rape (SPR), a human rights advocacy organization dedicated to ending sexual violence in detention, opened their first formal office in Los Angeles today.

Founded by survivors of prisoner rape, the organization has been an outspoken advocate for reform for more than twenty years, but until now, their shoe-string budget has kept them from renting traditional space.

Tom Cahill, a prisoner rape survivor and president of the Board of Directors, explained, "In the past, we've worked wherever we could find the room-in an old beat up camper on the streets of San Francisco, in different leaders' homes, and even inside a barn. Opening a formal office is a momentous occasion for the organization and an indication of our unprecedented growth."

"SPR is experiencing a transformation," adds Lara Stemple, SPR's new executive director. "We are expanding our advocacy efforts every day, and we simply needed more space. As we emerge from this transition, we will be literally much better equipped to make the ideals of our brave founders reality."