The Women Shelter
The years have passed, but the event remained in my heart as though it just happened recently. Unfortunately, couple years ago, I had to run away from my abusive husband. I moved to a women’s shelter with a lawyer’s help. The women’s shelter was the only place I thought would give me a hope, support and after all, protections for vulnerable women like me. However, my impression on the shelter changed after I admitted to it. There were a number of reasons for that. First, I had to share a room with a stranger not knowing the background of that person. The shelter organization assured me that everyone has undergone a screening process and it’s very imperative to keep everyone’s information confidential. Second, I was also cautioned to be careful in meeting new people at the shelter. The reason behind it was some of the women have been under the influence of alcohol and drugs in the past. They might be still under the addiction even though they are in a recovering process. Third, the shelter itself looked as though as a communal building with lots of rooms for women. There were laundry rooms, a kitchen, a small library, a computer room and common living room for everyone to share.
My heart pounded in my ears. As I looked around, I realized I was at the shelter. Everything about life seemed to become to an end. I saw a lot of women from different cultural backgrounds, some with children and women in all age groups. My head was spinning. My thoughts were racing. “What if my husband finds me here! What will happen to me here?” “Who will help me?” “I did not know any of these people here in the shelter”. The first day of the shelter gave me an emotional provoking experience. Grew up in a middle class family, my parent’s wishes better life for their children than their own. Hearing this abrupt situation about their daughter will be detrimental for them. I decided to handle everything by
I can leave this place. They can’t leave this place. This is their reality. Unlike the energetic car ride there, the car was now silent. At this moment I realized why Eden said the seats were stained. After reflecting on your experience you couldn't help but sit there and cry. Crying out of compassion for those girls who - yes, made bad choices, but who had also been hurt, unloved, given up on, leaving them feeling hopeless. Not only crying out of compassion but crying out of thankfulness. Thankful for the grace God has given me by placing me with the family He did, I don't deserve any of it. I could be them.
What are the political, economic, social, and technological factors that would be most likely to affect the clients you will serve? (Make a brief list of these factors.)
54% of women victims of serious sexual assault were assaulted by their partner or ex-partner (Stern 2010). 19% of women have experienced stalking since the age of 16 (Smith (Ed.), Coleman, Eder and Hall January 2011). These statistics help give a picture of the problem but do little to shed light on the solution. There are many programs and shelters offered to victims of domestic violence, Hill Country Cares is one of them. Hill Country Cares is a government funded women’s shelter better known s HCC. This is a place where victims of domestic violence are referred to from many sources. (i.e. local authorities after reporting a domestic violence incident). HCC is a safe place where victims receive many different types of assistance while their situation, as well as the painfully intimate details of their abuse, are kept entirely confidential.
Seeing my parents in the crowd has always been very soothing, especially in stressful situations such as this. My parents and I have always been outwardly enthusiastic with each other, no matter where we are. Whether at a football game while I cheer on the sidelines or at a banquet where I receive an award, every time they catch my eye, they throw their hands up in the air and begin to wave frantically until I wave back. There were only two girls left in front of me. One stuttered as she tried to finish her speech, and the other swayed back and forth unable to keep still. It was at that time that I looked into the crowd and just as I had anticipated, I spotted my parents. As expected, they waved their arms wildly to catch my attention. I smiled and waved back, though my wave was much smaller than theirs as I was doing my best not to draw attention to myself. For a moment, I was at ease because of their presence. But just as the girl in front of me stepped forward to take her place behind the microphone, my heart undeniably started to race once
California currently faces the ominous blessing of the El Nino weather system, which promises to bring desperately needed rains in the form of storms and torrential rains. In preparation for these rains, California also has to address the homeless population, who will be stranded in the rains if adequate shelters are not provided for them. In his article, Sunnyvale: Fast-tracked Emergency Homeless Shelter Set To Open, Eric Kurhi cites expert opinions, utilizes emotional appeal, and employs rhetorical devices such as diction in order to provide information on the new homeless shelter opening in Sunnyvale while discussing the overall problem of homelessness.
Surprisingly, the shelter become the most comfortable place I ever had. I met women in similar situations like me. I saw the glow in their face and the hope in their eyes to move forward in their life. I found courage in me after long time to see the world differently. Counseling and women support groups helped me to focus on my future and helped me to see outside the box. Even though, I did not have much communication with other women in the shelter, I empathized their struggles in life. I saw women coming and leaving the shelter when their goals are met, when they’re physically and mentally cured, when they gain all the strength they needed and most of all, when their past become the past. My entire notion about women shelter changed immensely. I became grateful for people like Adrianna for doing an incredible job of helping women in
I was sitting at my small desk in my room when I saw my dad had come home from who knows what, wearing a sad face. He came up to my room with a big red rose. Right then I knew what was going on. I never spent a lot of time with family members who I was not close with. I acknowledged their presence, but I never talked a lot to or about them.
What to do? The issue of abused and homeless women is one that has recently been brought to the forefront of social issues in Pakistan. Abuse, most often begins after marriage. According to local traditions, once a girl’s baraat (wedding procession) enters the husband’s house, only her janaza (funeral pyre) should leave. Loyalty and devotion to the husband and his family come above every thing else. When family support is pulled away, the girl is then at the mercy of her husband. This total control of the girl’s life sometimes leads to her death. Often times it leads to abuse. The girl cannot return to her father’s house for fear of dishonoring him and so continues to suffer. In some cases she may chose to run away therefore igniting her husband’s anger that then is left with no choice put to pursue and kill her to redeem his honor.
In the “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Gilman and “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, the female characters are confined mentally and physically. In the 1890’s, when these stories were written, women did not have a role in society. A woman’s role in the house involved cleaning and keeping up the house, taking care of the children, and making a meal three times a day. The man’s role was to go out and work to make money for his family. He also took care of his wife. He acted as a leader, ruler, and doctor of his wife. Gilman and Chopin demonstrate how women are confined physically, how they are confined mentally, and how being restricted in these ways affect the women’s emotions, actions, and mental stability.
“One in three women may suffer from abuse and violence in her lifetime” (Nicole Kidman). Abuse has an effect on women that cannot be put into words. It makes women feel lost and ashamed. In their confusion they hide in their abuse without moving forward. In Nicholas Sparks’ novel Safe Haven the author demonstrates the importance of overcoming obstacles when being faced with abuse. Overcoming obstacles is tricky but there are 3 important steps involved, going through hardships, building new relationships, and defeating fears. The main character, Katie is faced with many hardships. She is physically abused by her husband so she tries to escape and fears being found. After moving Katie finds it difficult to trust others but ends up
While volunteering there, I was placed in a local long-term care home for the elderly. This experience was highly beneficial. Working along side, nurses, care aids and other health care professionals was my first view inside the “system”. Volunteering at the Care Home, did not necessarily make up my mind on the field of social work but solidified my desire to work in the field of human services. I learnt from this experience at the hospital how profound my compassion for others truly was. It was not until my first year of college, that I started to volunteer with an organization that I am still with today and absolutely adore volunteering with. That organization is the Vernon Women’s Transition House in Vernon BC. I started off by filling in for employees who met in weekly meetings. While on the floor, I met many women who were in a place of ‘in-between’ and safety. This experience was eye opening. After a brief stay out-of-town, I returned to Vernon and again volunteered with the transition house – this time in another program: Support to Young Parents. This is an incredible housing program where young mothers who have fled abuse (potentially without the resources or parenting skills they truly need) can live long term. This apartment consists of 6 units, with the 7th unit converted into a resource and common space. The program
Around the 1950’s and 60’s, the Civil Rights and Anti-war movements began to lay the ground work for the feminist movement. During the 1970’s, spousal abuse became a public issue and the battered women’s movement was brought to the public eye. At this time there were several movements under way such as, women’s liberation, women’s health, and anti-rape movements. As a results of the success of these agencies and the resources and networking that already was in place, many battered women’s shelters were opened across the United States. The first of these, was the Women’s Advocates shelter in St. Paul, Minnesota which opened in 1973. It was not until 1984 that a bill, The Family Violence Prevention Services Act was passed through Congress. This act would allow the Secretary of Health and Human Service to give grants to States that would assist them in creating, expanding, and maintaining programs and projects that aid in the prevention of family violence.
The purpose of this research project is to see who is considered a feminist, and why, in the eyes of three women and three men. To see what they believe the behaviors, ideologies, beliefs, and values of a feminist is. The participants have been interviewed and given questions towards feminism found in the textbook "The Psychology of Women" by Margaret Matlin. I chose to do this particular study because there seems to be a lot of controversy about just the word feminism. There are so many mixed beliefs about it. This seems like the perfect study to really see what women and men think about it, at least six participants think about it.
Nicholas Sparks’ Safe Haven is a very suspenseful novel written from an anti-feminist perspective, in a way that portrays the belief that a woman cannot survive without a man; Sparks uses the main character of the novel, Katie, to be the female of interest in this area. Initially, Katie’s husband, Kevin, is an alcoholic, abusive policeman that she wishes to flee from. Once she finally gets up the courage to leave him, she runs away to a small town, Southport, on the opposite side of the country; since Kevin is employed as a law enforcement official, he has access to exclusive equipment and information and he is able to stalk and find her. Once Kevin finds her, he realizes that she has already fallen in love with another man, Alex, which infuriates
Over the summer my friend and I decided to join the Coalition for Homeless Women. I learned a lot while visiting the numerous women shelters and I can admit that I too had very stupid and naïve perceptions of some of these women. Even though I was not as “rotten” as some of the girls I attended school with, my parents sheltered me. I will always remember walking down the street one day and as I passed by a homeless woman I handed her my dollar. My father immediately looked at me funny and said “Sonia, you shouldn’t have given her your allowance, she will only use it to buy drugs or alcohol. She will not use it for anything good!” At the age of ten those words resonated in my head for some time. My perception of homeless people was somewhat flawed until I was old enough to understand the world for myself. I was really happy when I visited shelters and spoke to some of these remarkable women. They weren’t on drugs, they weren’t alcoholics, and these are wo...