We Are Making a Call to
We depend on our institutions.
Institutions are the building blocks of a civil society. They are crucial to our well-being. We depend on our government, police, and hospitals to protect our lives. We love institutions that give our lives meaning, such as our schools and places of worship. Sometimes institutions really help us.
All too often, institutions betray us.
Sadly, institutions often make our lives worse, not better. They don’t protect us from harm. They are indifferent when we suffer. They focus first on profits and self-protection. The most vulnerable people are the hardest hit. We are in a terrible bind: we depend on institutions that betray us.
Institutional Betrayal: when an institution causes harm to people who depend on it.
Institutional betrayal follows a number of predictable patterns. (We even have a research tool to measure it.) It’s easy to spot one particular pattern—DARVO (Deny, Attack, & Reverse Victim and Offender)—once you know how it works.
For example: a victim is sexually assaulted by a church leader. The victim reports it to the church. Have you ever heard of a church responding in this way?
Deny: The church aggressively denies that the harm took place (“not here!”)
Attack: The church attacks the victim’s credibility (“you’re making it up”) and gaslights the victim (“you can’t be remembering it right…”)
Reverse Victim and Offender: The church treats the offender as the real victim in the situation, and the real victim as the “bad one” (“how could you do this to him?”)
Of course, these insights apply to all types of social problems—not just sexual violence.
Institutional betrayal is bad for everyone.
Institutional betrayal is toxic. Sometimes we experience the pain with eyes wide open. Other times, we can be blind to betrayal: we simply don’t see it, or refuse to see it, because the institution is that important to us. Whether we see it or not, it hurts us—it can even kill us. Institutions, too, can be ruined by betrayal. People disengage and defect from institutions they cannot trust. Over time, we lose faith in the social compact, and in each other.
is the solution.
It is an institution’s commitment to seek the truth and engage in moral action, despite unpleasantness, risk, and short-term cost. It is a pledge to protect and care for those who depend on the institution. It is a compass oriented to the common good of individuals, institutions, and the world. It is a force that transforms institutions into more accountable, equitable, effective places for everyone.
“Institutional courage shows in detail the specific, actionable steps individuals and organizations can take to transform their betrayals and failures into functional successes. The answers and solutions we seek are here!”
- Ashley Judd
Actress, Humanitarian,
Founding member of Time’s Up
The Center for Institutional Courage has an imperative mission:
Research: We discover the keys to institutional courage
Education: We educate the world to bend towards courage