2019 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 31
BY SENATOR MORRELL
A RESOLUTION
To commend Mary Claire Landry, founder and Executive Director of the New Orleans
Family Justice Alliance, upon her receipt of the prestigious Lifetime Achievement
Award from Alliance for HOPE International.
WHEREAS, at this time the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana wishes to
acknowledge the outstanding leadership of Mary Claire Landry, who has worked tirelessly
to improve the availability of services for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault;
and
WHEREAS, in the United States, according to survey data, one in six females will
suffer some kind of sexual violence induced by an intimate partner during the course of her
lifetime; and
WHEREAS, Ms. Landry is determined to reduce those statistics and create better
outcomes for victims of abuse through empowerment and education; and
WHEREAS, as a licensed clinical social worker with a master's degree in social work
from Tulane University and a master's degree in business administration from the University
of New Orleans, Mary Claire Landry is a relentless crusader for the rights and services
afforded survivors of domestic violence; and
WHEREAS, Mary Claire Landry coordinates local agencies, criminal justice, and
social services into an effective delivery system of alternatives for those individuals who
have been subjected to domestic violence, child abuse, stalking, human trafficking, and
sexual assault; and
WHEREAS, named Director of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Services
within Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New Orleans; she led the revival of the
domestic abuse program in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005; and
WHEREAS, she directed efforts to restore services, and under her guidance, Crescent
House was revived as a haven for domestic abuse victims; the shelter was coupled with the
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establishment of an onsite office of the Domestic Violence Unit of the New Orleans Police
Department; and
WHEREAS, Mary Claire Landry secured much needed federal funding from the
Office on Violence Against Women of the United States Department of Justice to keep the
operation going during this turbulent period; and
WHEREAS, this integration of agencies was the blueprint for a new system of
coordinated services to aid victims of domestic violence that would later become the
New Orleans Family Justice Center in 2007; and
WHEREAS, in 2012, the organization morphed into the New Orleans Family Justice
Center Alliance which had separated from Catholic Charities to emerge as a new agency that
was comprised of a partnership of nine public and private agencies in one central location
to provide a consolidated community response to domestic violence cases; and
WHEREAS, along with community and criminal justice stakeholders, the
New Orleans Family Justice Center Alliance has been on the forefront of updating local
protocols, improving laws, addressing needs, and refining services that empower survivors;
and
WHEREAS, these comprehensive services include a 24-hour crisis line, emergency
housing, trauma counseling for adults and children, civil legal assistance, temporary
restraining order assistance, transitional housing, education and employment services, and
teen dating violence prevention services; and
WHEREAS, in 2006, Mary Claire Landry also served as president of the Louisiana
Coalition Against Domestic Violence, a statewide affiliation of shelters, nonresidential
programs, and individuals working to end domestic violence in the state; and
WHEREAS, inducted into the Louisiana Justice Hall of Fame, Mary Claire was
recognized as an innovator who made a positive impact on the criminal justice system in the
state; and
WHEREAS, on the 20th anniversary of the passage of the federal Violence Against
Women Act (VAWA), Mary Claire Landry was honored with a presentation by Vice
President Joe Biden, who, as a United States senator, authored the landmark legislation that
made domestic abuse an enforceable offense; and
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WHEREAS, in March 2019, Mary Claire Landry received the Lifetime Achievement
Award from Alliance for HOPE International at the 19th Annual International Family Justice
Center Conference in San Diego, California; praised by her peers, "that she is one of the
most transformational leaders in the history of the domestic and sexual assault movements
in Louisiana, but her reach goes far beyond the city of New Orleans and the state of
Louisiana, Mary Claire Landry has inspired Family Justice Centers across the United States
and around the world"; and
WHEREAS, for Mary Claire Landry, the breadth of her work includes the creation
of new pathways of hope for victims of trauma and abuse and positive efforts to break the
generational cycles of victims and perpetrators; and
WHEREAS, Camp HOPE America - Louisiana is a sleep away camp experience and
mentoring program for youth exposed to abusive situations; it provides confidence-building
activities and counseling for children and teenagers; and
WHEREAS, Mary Claire Landry undertakes the social complexities of domestic
violence that include the infrastructure of training on the neurobiology of trauma and the
science of hope, investigation and prosecution strategies, effective Family Justice Center
procedures, and those programs, services, and practices designed to mitigate trauma in adult
and child survivors; and
WHEREAS, Mary Claire Landry is relentless, passionate, and totally inspirational;
she is a champion of those affected by domestic violence and sexual abuse in Orleans Parish.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
does hereby commend Mary Claire Landry upon her receipt of the Lifetime Achievement
Award from the Alliance for HOPE International.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana does
hereby acknowledge the good works of Mary Claire Landry and wish her continued success
in her mission to aid and empower survivors of domestic abuse.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to
Mary Claire Landry.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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