Cristina Damiani, M.A.

(She/Her/Ella)—Cristina has worked for over two decades within nonprofits and government agencies, playing an active role in efforts to end domestic violence, sexual assault, and other forms of interpersonal violence. Cristina is the Director of Safe Homes at the Alliance of Local Service Organizations (ALSO). In this role, Cristina oversees teams on the Underserved and the Serving Our Youth Technical Assistance Projects, funded by the Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women. Cristina joined ALSO in 2015 and since then has held several roles, including Program Manager -STAAR Project, and most recently, providing leadership for ALSO’s Multi-victimization Project, which addresses the intersection of community violence and intimate partner violence experienced by individuals living in predominately Black and Puerto Rican communities in Chicago.

Before working at ALSO, Cristina was the co-director of the Oregon Crime Victims Law Center (OCVLC), a nonprofit specializing in victim rights legal and advocacy services. While at this organization, Cristina managed its budget and operations while providing bilingual advocacy services to crime victims, including those experiencing domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking.

Cristina’s experience also includes working for Puerto Rico’s Office of Courts Administration coordinating program development and implementation to enhance system responses to domestic violence in this jurisdiction. Most notably, this work allowed her to serve in a seminal role in the planning, implementation, and subsequent expansion of Puerto Rico’s first specialized domestic violence court.

Cristina started her professional career at the Vera Institute of Justice in New York City. At Vera, Cristina contributed to the Judicial Oversight Demonstration Initiative (JODI) and the Peer-to-Peer Exchange Projects, national technical assistance projects funded by the U.S. Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women.

Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Cristina holds a B.A. in Law and Society from the School of Public Affairs at American University in Washington D.C. and a M.A. in Anthropology from the Hunter College of the City University of New York.

Cristina is proud of her cultural and linguistic roots, which inform how she perceives and is perceived as she walks through life moments. Cristina’s deep commitment to ending all forms of violence and abuse is supported by three core beliefs, which are that: all human beings are interrelated; everyone should have equal access to what they need to thrive; and violence and abuse will not end until everyone is free from violence and abuse.