Marcia Blackstock was inducted into the Justice Category in 2016.
Marcia Blackstock is the longtime Executive Director of Bay Area Women Against Rape (BAWAR), the first rape crisis center in America. Her work has led the criminal justice system – including police, prosecutors and the courts – to be more accountable to victims of sexual assault. In her 35 years of leading BAWAR, Marcia has provided unyielding support to victims of sexual assault. She also has spearheaded efforts to expand funding for BAWAR, as well as rape crisis centers in every California county. Her inspirational leadership has helped in the recruitment of thousands of volunteers to serve as Rape Crisis Advocates who assist victims through times of crisis. She also has been instrumental in changing laws to improve responses and protections of sexual assault survivors. Marcia has shown herself to be especially effective in working with law enforcement agencies, prosecutors and victim-witness advocates to ensure appropriate and humane treatment is provided to victims of sexual assault. Through Marcia's steadfast leadership, BAWAR has stayed true to its purpose over the decades, supporting hundreds of thousands of survivors by providing a place where survivors can receive quality counseling and advocacy and educating the broader community about issues surrounding sexual assault.
