The Gender and Equity Committee for the Southern Association of Counselor Education and Supervision acknowledges that recent Executive Orders, such as Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government, Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation, and Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling, have generated fear, panic, confusion, and many other emotions among our membership and the marginalized communities that we serve. Although the realities of if and how these Orders will be enforced are yet to be seen, their basic tenets are in direct conflict with both SACES’s Vision, which is to cultivate inclusivity, promote professional advocacy, and respect client equity and well-being, and the American Counseling Association’s (2014) Code of Ethics. Even so, SACES continues to execute its Mission, resolved to support an individual’s freedom to be the expert on themselves, to embrace their diverse identities, and to secure the rights to safety and dignity. 

Your SACES Gender and Equity committee is committed to the development and implementation of professional, educational, and advocacy initiatives to support you and the communities that you serve as we navigate the quickly evolving landscape. We will work in tandem with the SACES executive committee to sponsor educational and advocacy initiatives in the coming years. We encourage you to stay informed through engagement with trusted sources of information, continue your own advocacy work, and to intentionally pursue self-care and connection with your communities. The SACES Gender and Equity Committee joins with our colleagues across ACA and its divisions in our commitment to “promoting social justice” and “honoring diversity and embracing a multicultural approach in support of the worth, dignity, potential, and uniqueness of people within their social and cultural contexts” (ACA Code of Ethics, 2014, p. 3).

Sincerely,

Gender and Equity Committee Co-Chairs and SACES Executive Committee