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June 14, 2002
Confronting domestic violence
New programs in the Jewish community focus on helping victims
of abuse.
JAMIE BONHAM SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH BULLETIN
Sometimes the hardest part of solving a problem is to realize that
one exists in the first place. Such is the case with domestic violence
in the Jewish community, a subject that has been almost ignored
in the past but is coming out in the open due to the work of local
activists.
Contrary to popular myth, the Jewish community experiences the same
incidence of domestic violence as the general population. To address
this problem, Jewish Women Against Domestic Violence (JWADV) has
launched a number of initiatives over the past year to educate the
community about domestic abuse and to offer services to those people
who would otherwise have nowhere to turn.
Recently, several of those initiatives have come to fruition. JWADV
and the Jewish Family Services Agency (JFSA), with the help of funding
from the Women's Endowment Fund, have just finished a series of
training sessions with the wives of Vancouver area rabbis. The women
were taught how to recognize victims of domestic abuse and how to
help them. The sessions not only provided valuable training to important
contact people in the community, but they also raised recognition
and awareness of the issues of domestic violence in the community
as a whole.
The JFSA workshops targeted the wives of local rabbis under the
assumption that women who are victims of domestic violence are likely
to feel more comfortable approaching another woman about their problems
as opposed to the rabbis themselves. The training was geared to
provide the rebbetzins with the tools to identify signs of domestic
abuse and to enable victims to talk about their situation. Once
the abuse has been identified, the rebbetzins are then able to direct
women to the appropriate resources.
According to Selina Robinson, JFSA's co-ordinator of counselling
services and family life education, the sessions were very successful
in achieving the goals that had been set out. The eight rebbetzins
who attended the sessions "scored higher in all of the areas
than we had hoped they would" on a post-session test of their
knowledge about domestic violence, Robinson said.
Hadley Baumol, the wife of Avi Baumol, was one of those who participated
in the sessions. She confirmed their effectiveness.
"The course really taught me about the resources available
to help women in need, so that if I were to need to help a woman
in trouble, I know that there is an entire network to work with,
rather than just the two of us trying to deal with it on our own,"
said Baumol.
The JFSA and the workshop participants were able to acknowledge
the help of the Women's Endowment Fund in making the training sessions
possible at a dessert reception on May 8. More than 200 women were
on hand to hear how the grant from the Women's Endowment Fund led
to the success of the training sessions in raising awareness of
domestic abuse in the Jewish community. The sessions were so successful
that the JFSA is hoping to hold another training event for other
community leaders who want to learn more about helping victims of
domestic violence. Community leaders who feel that they are in a
position where these sessions would prove useful are asked to contact
the JFSA to express their interest.
Clearing that first hurdle of public acknowledgement of the existence
of domestic violence in the Jewish community has paved the way for
further projects to help victims of abuse.
Sara Ciacci, co-chair of Jewish Women Against Domestic Violence
and chair of the domestic abuse committee of Jewish Women International's
B.C. Chapter, said that the workshops were already showing positive
results.
"The sessions for the rabbi's wives have already made a difference
and, like a pebble thrown into a pond, the ripple effect is growing
in an ever-widening circle," she said.
Besides the workshops, another major achievement has taken place
in the struggle to help victims of domestic abuse.
The momentum of community involvement gained from the sessions has
led to the development of a crisis line to serve the needs of women
in abusive relationships. The Domestic Violence Response Crisis
line, or DeVoRa, is being funded by Jewish Women International and
is set to be running by the fall. Trained volunteers will operate
the line and women who are interested in volunteering their time
to the crisis line can contact Robinson or Azima Buell at the JFSA.
"Jewish Women International has been instrumental in making
this project happen," said Robinson. "Their generous financial
support means that we can serve women and children at risk outside
of JFSA's normal operating hours."
Another unexpected result of the sessions was that an anonymous
donor stepped forward and offered the use of an apartment as a safehouse
for Jewish women and children who are in need of emergency shelter.
The JFSA is currently looking at how to maintain funding for the
safehouse and how to involve the Jewish community in its day-to-day
operations. The shelter is also slated for start-up in the fall.
"We are very excited about the domestic violence projects that
are starting to take shape," said Robinson. "People are
finally starting to recognize that domestic violence is a real problem
in the Jewish community and it's great to see the support from members
and organizations in the Jewish community."
If you would like to make a financial contribution or volunteer
your time, or if you have any questions about the services available
to victims of domestic violence, contact the JFSA office at 604-257-5151.
Jamie Bonham is a freelance writer living in Vancouver.
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