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NEWS FROM THE HOMEFRONT |
FAMILY VIOLENCE PREVENTION FUND |
| SPRING/SUMMER 1999 |
Contents |
Caught at the Public Policy Crossroads
New Report Discovers Welfare Reform Poses Threat to Battered Immigrant Women
What happens when a battered immigrant woman seeks public assistance to help her escape from a violent partner? All too often, she is faced with complicated and unhelpful welfare and immigration laws, as well as resistance from social service providers and some domestic violence advocates, according to a new study released by the Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF). The report, "Caught at the Public Policy Crossroads: The Impact of Welfare Reform on Battered Immigrant Women," was produced for the National Network on Behalf of Battered Immigrant Women, and was conducted by Network co-founders the FVPF, the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild, Inc., and AYUDA, Inc.
"We wanted to create a baseline report on the impact welfare reform has had on battered immigrant women," says FVPF Associate Director for Rights and Social Justice Leni Marin. "We were looking for indicators of problem areas, hoping to identify barriers immigrant women face in accessing benefits." The results are based on interviews with advocates in 34 states, who returned more than 200 questionnaires. In-depth interviews were also conducted with a subset of respondees.
In addition to the hardships any woman confronts when trying to leave a violent relationship, a battered immigrant woman faces further hurdles, including cultural, linguistic, social and legal obstacles, as well as fears about deportation if she is undocumented. Recent reforms to welfare and immigration laws, the study found, have made a bad situation even worse. The study sought to:
Many best practices were uncovered by the report, and can serve as models for other caseworkers, advocates and policymakers. Recommendations and successful case studies address each problem area uncovered in the report. "We can learn a lot from the more than 100 organizations out there on the frontlines," says Marin, "ensuring that battered immigrant women are able to exercise their legal rights, and have access to justice."
To order a copy of "Caught at the Public Policy Crossroads," call the FVPF at (415) 252-8089 or order it from the online catalog.
Plan Now for Work to End Domestic Violence Day '99
Start planning now for this October's Work to End Domestic Violence Day. Last year, hundreds of employers ran articles about abuse in their company newsletters, held brown bag lunches, hosted community volunteer efforts, distributed educational material, and more on this important day.
The Family Violence Prevention Fund's Work to End Domestic Violence Organizer's Kit is available now, and is filled with tools you can use to create a powerful workplace response to abuse. The Kit includes a reproducible employee brochure, sample articles, email scripts and paycheck inserts, posters, fact sheets, suggested activities, guidelines on working with the community, sample policies, workplace safety tips, and much more. To order, call the FVPF at (415) 252-8089.
The Kit costs $20 for advocates and $35 for businesses, plus shipping and handling.
The FVPF would like to thank last year's Work to End Domestic Violence Day financial sponsors: Verizon Wireless, Blue Shield of California, Gap Foundation, Hit or Miss, Levi Strauss and Co., The Limited, Inc., Marshalls, Inc., Working Assets Long Distance, Liz Claiborne, Wells Fargo, Polaroid, Pitney Bowes, and Time Warner.
Economic Independence: Turning the Key to Freedom
BY ESTA SOLER
We know that domestic violence affects every one of us. It doesn't matter if we are grandmothers or teenagers, what neighborhood we live in, or what race or class we belong to -- domestic violence pervades our society. Women in poverty, though, face hardships and challenges that can exacerbate the trauma that domestic violence causes, and can find it even more difficult to escape from abuse.
While women of all economic backgrounds experience domestic violence, the U.S. Department of Justice has noted a significant link between poverty and increased incidence of domestic violence. The DOJ reports that in 1992-3, "women with an annual family income of under $10,000 were more likely to report having experienced violence by an intimate that those with incomes over $10,000." Studies have also found that abuse increases the length of time and number of times women return to welfare. Economic dependence itself is an often-cited factor in why women remain in violent homes. Abusers also often harass and injure their victims to the point that they miss work, hindering their job success as well.
In 1996, "welfare reform" made a bad situation even worse, with the passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, and with it the threat that welfare benefits would be cut off for those victims who do not make a rapid transition into employment. Twenty-eight states have adopted the Family Violence Option, which allows them to waive or reduce these restrictions for victims of domestic violence, but few parallel service strategies exist to aid these women in their transition.
This link between poverty and domestic violence is an emerging program area at the FVPF, and we are exploring several ways to help women reach financial independence. The FVPF is launching a four-year Economic Independence Project to demonstrate how communities across the United States can develop programs and policies to assist abused women transition successfully into the workforce and achieve economic independence. In collaboration with Cindy Marano, Senior Organizer for Wider Opportunities for Women, we will partner with a diverse range of experts and advocates. Together, we will work to identify the services and supports that exist, educate caseworkers, assist employers and build on resources that are available.
In addressing the issue of economic independence as it relates to domestic violence in your community, keep in mind that women in abusive relationships or who have recently left one may need a plethora of services tailored to their situations. They may need:
Economic distress does not cause domestic violence. But there is no question that economic self-sufficiency is a vital key to enabling women's freedom from violence. Look for updates in future issues of News from the Homefront on this important emerging program area.
Community Health Clinics Join the Frontlines in the Fight Against Domestic Violence
For as long as women have been beaten and injured by their partners, doctors have set their broken bones, sutured lacerations, and sent them home, usually without any exploration of the underlying problem. For more than twelve years, the Family Violence Prevention Fund has provided training, model programs and protocols to help improve the health care system's response to domestic violence, with the critical support of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Now, the FVPF is launching an exciting, new pilot project to explore ways that community-based health clinics can work to prevent domestic violence, called The California Clinic Collaborative on Domestic Violence. The project is working with community health clinics throughout the state, helping them to implement comprehensive domestic violence prevention strategies for the populations they serve. The California Collaborative project was generously funded by the California Endowment.
"Community clinics are an ideal place for prevention to occur," according to Associate Director Debbie Lee, who directs the FVPF's National Health Care Initiative on Domestic Violence. "Community clinics take a holistic view of an individual's health and try to involve the entire community in delivering health care."
Twenty community health care clinics were selected to participate, representing a broad spectrum of service providers. "The Watts Foundation in Los Angeles is huge, in a very urban setting," says Lee, "and the Hill Country Clinic in Shasta County is small and very rural. We wanted to learn from that diversity."
The project aims to institutionalize a comprehensive health care system approach to domestic violence identification, treatment and referral, and create the understanding among patient populations that the health care system is a safe place to come for help.
The Clinic Collaborative project is also building support for domestic violence prevention among policy makers and health care leaders through statewide advocacy efforts.
Project components include the development and distribution of domestic violence prevention materials to health care clinics, as well as intensive training and technical support to the 20 selected facilities. "Each site is on two of our three decision-making committees to help shape the programs: clinical intervention and evaluation, public education and prevention, or policy and advocacy," says Lee.
"It's very exciting to form relationships with the other participants and have the opportunity to gain from their experiences," says Dr. Moira Shannon, Associate Director of the Watts Health Foundation and a program participant. "We're trying to address domestic violence, just like we have other health issues such as substance abuse, by putting programs in place. This really is a huge public health issue."
"Community health centers really do care about people," Lee adds. "They know the characteristics of their community, and are in a great position to provide prevention. The materials and strategies they create here can be a model for the rest of the country."
It's Your Business!
New Radio Micro-Drama Reaches Out to the African American
Community
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| The innovative radio micro-drama encourages community members, including men, to speak up against domestic violence. |
Step into the world of It's Your Business, the FVPF's new radio series that offers culturally-specific responses to address domestic violence in the African American community. The latest phase of the FVPF's There's No Excuse for Domestic Violence campaign, It's Your Business uses "edu-tainment" to reach out to its audience, in the form of a 12-part radio micro-drama.
It's Your Businessfollows a soap opera-like format centered around a fictional domestic violence trial, as reported and discussed on a popular African American radio call-in show hosted by "Ma B." With pointed commentary and dare-to-air tactics, Ma B makes no topic taboo and speaks out on the sensitive issue of domestic violence against African American women. "What makes It's Your Business so effective is that it uses culturally-specific approaches to help people overcome their fears of speaking up against domestic violence," says Senior Program Specialist Kelly Mitchell-Clark, who manages the project.
The Advertising Council was a major partner in the program's development, as was the Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community. A talented team of writers, headed by Maisha Hazzard, created the series, and UniWorld Group, Inc., the nation's largest ethnic advertising agency, produced the spots pro bono.
Research commissioned by the FVPF and conducted by the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania has shown that while a high percentage of African Americans say they are willing to reach out and help solve the problem of abuse, many say they don't know what to do to stop it. "It's Your Business is an exciting way to package information on how people can make a difference," says FVPF Associate Director Marissa Ghez, who directs the There's No Excuse initiative, "because it entertains them while it educates. It also gives them social models to follow, since listeners learn about the problem and ways they can help through the actions taken by characters in the storyline."
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The program is a lively drama that features the powerful, Grammy-nominated hit single about abuse How Come, How Long by popular recording artists Stevie Wonder and Babyface. The voice of Ma B is played by Broadway actress Lynne Thigpen, known for her Emmy-nominated performance on the television show Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego. Each It's Your Business episode is self-contained, but as a whole, the series develops the story of the characters Charlise and James, fictional listeners to Ma B's show. As the episodes progress, Charlise acknowledges and escapes from James' violence, and the couple's friends and family help ensure her safety and let James know in no uncertain terms that "twenty eyes are watching" him and "twenty feet will come" to protect Charlise and her children.
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| IN THE STUDIO: Actress Shelita Birchett plays Charlise, a vicim of abuse who is helped by her family and friends to get safe and stay safe in It's Your business. |
American Urban Radio Networks, which syndicates programming to approximately 250 African American-owned radio stations, is packaging and distributing the program to its member stations nationwide and is helping convince local affiliates to air the series. Dozens of major radio stations have made airtime commitments to It's Your Business, including those in Chicago, IL, Cincinnati, OH, Jacksonville, FL, and Detroit, MI, among many others.
The Annenberg School is independently evaluating the effects of the program on listeners throughout the country. Four pilot communities will be evaluated: Dayton, OH, Kansas City, MO, Charlotte, NC and Louisville, KY.
More than a media outreach campaign, It's Your Business is also designed to spur grassroots activity to end domestic violence in the African American community. An It's Your Business Community Action Kit is available that takes listeners one step further, providing background information on the issue, tips on talking with someone who is abused, ways to raise awareness in the community, and special advice for men who want to reach out and help. Window signs that proclaim "Domestic Violence Has No Place in Our Community," posters, bumper stickers, a men's brochure, and other materials are also available to support the campaign.
A guide for advocates on how to use the It's Your Business micro-drama as an organizing tool is also available. It includes tips on placing the PSAs on local African American-oriented radio stations, suggestions for media outreach, including a sample news release and sample newspaper column, and ideas for activities in the community. Already, the guides have been distributed to hundreds of advocates nationwide.
In anticipation of the launch, the FVPF participated in a Capitol Hill briefing about It's Your Business on March 22, 1999 for staff of Congressional Black Caucus members. At the briefing, Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-Oakland) issued a letter that included a "call to action" to her colleagues, urging them to ensure that It's Your Business is airing in their districts. The radio series was launched on March 29, 1999.
Says Mitchell-Clark, "We're excited about the opportunity It's Your Business offers to galvanize African Americans nationwide against abuse, and in support of healthier families and a stronger Black community."
To order a cassette of It's Your Business and a companion media and community outreach guide, contact the Family Violence Prevention Fund at (415) 252-8900. To order the community awareness materials, please call our publications hotline at (415) 252-8089.
CANADA - To help stop domestic violence, the British Columbia Royal Canadian Mounted Police have issued updated guidelines that make it more difficult for people to receive gun permits. People requesting guns must now provide the names and phone numbers of spouses, former spouses, and people with whom they were emotionally involved over the last five years. Authorities are reviewing the new guidelines as a possible model for the country.
LONDON - Shortly after cricket commentator Geoff Boycott was convicted of abusing his ex-girlfriend, Britain's top-selling daily newspaper, The Sun, announced that it will no longer feature Boycott's column. A spokesperson for The Sun stated: "Our readers would find repugnant the idea of us employing someone with a conviction for violence against a woman. We will not turn a blind eye to violence against women." The British Broadcasting Corporation, which had previously hired Boycott as a commentator, also announced that it did not plan to employ him in the future. A French court found Boycott guilty of battering and he received a three-month suspended sentence and 5,000 pound fine.
CONNECTICUT - Annette LaFrancis is suing the federal government, claiming the Navy failed to protect her from her abusive husband, who was a Navy officer. LaFrancis' attorney claims that the suit has the potential to be a groundbreaking case for abused spouses of military personnel.
DELAWARE - On January 17, Thomas Capano, a former state prosecutor and wealthy businessman, was found guilty of murdering Anne Marie Fahey. Fahey, a scheduling secretary for Governor Carper, was last seen June 27, 1996 having dinner with Capano. Prosecutors claimed Capano killed Fahey because she wanted to end their three-year affair. Although he previously denied knowing what happened to Fahey, Capano admitted during his highly publicized trial that he dumped Fahey's body into the Atlantic Ocean. However, he claimed that another of his mistresses had accidentally killed her.
CALIFORNIA - This winter, actors put on aprons and waited tables at The Palm restaurant in West Hollywood for the Fifth Annual Celebrity Server Dinner to benefit Victory Over Violence. Guests paid $250 to be served their meals by such actors as Brooke Shields, Judd Nelson, Carrie Fisher, Kevin Nealon, and Victoria Principal.
INDIANA - Eleven Indianapolis-area companies have joined together to form Greater Indianapolis Employers Against Domestic Violence. The coalition will provide domestic violence trainings for human resources and security department personnel, as well as provide employees with information on domestic abuse and available services. Safe Haven Foundation, a local domestic violence organization, will oversee the coalition's efforts and is encouraging other employers to help stop domestic violence.
NATIONAL - Starting November 30, 1998, instant federal background checks must be done on all individuals purchasing handguns, rifles and shotguns, as mandated by the Brady Act. Twenty-seven states have chosen to conduct portions or all of their background checks themselves, while the remaining states will rely on the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System. Under federal law, individuals convicted of felony charges, domestic violence misdemeanors or who are under domestic violence restraining orders are prohibited from owning or purchasing guns.
Please consider making a charitable contribution of an outright gift, a gift of securities or a planned gift to the FVPF. Besides feeling good about taking action against family violence, a charitable gift can provide you with a tax deduction. For example, a gift of appreciated securities may provide income tax and capital gains tax savings.
Example:
Mrs. Green purchased stock in 1985 for $250. The stock is now worth $1,000. If Mrs. Green gifts the stock to the FVPF instead of cash, we receive a gift of $1,000 (the fair-market value of the stock) and she can claim a $1,000 charitable deduction on her next income tax return. In a 36% tax bracket, that's a tax savings of $360. AND, she avoids $150 in capital gains taxes that would be due if she had sold the stock outright. The result: after considering the tax savings, a gift of $1,000 cost Mrs. Green only $490.
For more information on how you can help, or a free brochure that outlines the benefits of gifts of appreciated assets, please call Sharon Benner, Director of Development, at 415-252-8900, ext. 35.
Global Solutions
International Clinic-Based Program Reaches Out Across Borders
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| A delegation of russian domestic violence advocates and doctors visited California for a week-long medical capacity-building program in April. They returned home to draft a plan for improving the health care response to domestic violence in Moscow and Irkutsk. |
From a bustling urban center in Russia to a rural village in India, too many women share a common experience: being battered by their intimate partners. In an effort to test and implement models for preventing domestic violence in the many settings in which it occurs, the Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF) has launched a new international initiative. The program explores the role of community-based reproductive health clinics in providing domestic violence prevention and early intervention in four pilot countries: Russia, Mexico, India and China. "We think there is a common global agenda," says Leni Marin, FVPF Associate Director and manager of the Mexico, India and China projects. "We want to start a conversation with the entire world on what prevention is and what kind of interventions work."
Lessons from Abroad
Funded by a grant from the Ford Foundation, the programs involve partnerships with community-based reproductive health clinics, since that is where women in these countries tend to receive most health care and women's health-related information. In Russia, program partners are located in Moscow and in Irkutsk, a major city in central Siberia. In Moscow, two women's reproductive health clinics are participating, while in Irkutsk the FVPF is working with the Reproductive Health Branch of the Irkutsk Regional Clinic, the largest reproductive health care provider in the area.
"The goal," says FVPF Associate Director and Russia project manager Marissa Ghez, "is to develop the capacity of the staff of health care clinics to respond to victims, as well as create public education campaigns to let people know that the clinics are a safe place to go for help."
In Mexico, women face the challenges of a developing country in their struggle against domestic violence. "Abused women might live in very isolated areas," says Marin, "with no battered women's shelter, no police, and no crisis lines because there are no telephones." Here, too, local advocates and health care providers will design their own plan to meet the needs of the population they serve. The program will be piloted in two cities in Mexico, Chiapas and Mexicali. Because the Mexicali site is located in the Baja California region, the program there will also examine border issues affecting abused women.
Marin traveled to India in March to meet with program partners and help develop a plan for that region. She visited CEHAT, an NGO working on issues of human rights and violence against women in the slums of Bombay. Marin also met with MASUM, an organization working with reproductive health care centers in several rural villages in Pune. Groups from Delhi will also contribute to the strategic planning process.
A delegation of fourteen women from China visited the U.S. in April for a seminar and series of site visits to discover potential ways to address the problem back in their home cities. The China group, comprised of lawyers, social workers, academics and shelter workers, are coming from the cities of Beijing, Xi'an, Hong Kong and Changsa. Differing in format slightly from the other program countries, they will explore domestic violence responses in the criminal justice, health care, shelter and policy arenas. The FVPF will work with the delegation to develop plans to put into action in China.
Bringing It Home
Each country was chosen with the intention of applying lessons learned to the immigrant populations who reside in the U.S. "Developing culturally appropriate messages that resonate within immigrant communities will strengthen our prevention efforts at home," says Marin.
The FVPF has already commissioned a report that identifies major organizations serving Russian immigrants in the U.S., and each organization has been sent public education materials in Russian that the FVPF has created. In a similar vein, the Russia project is working with the U.S. embassy in Russia, so that when Russian emigrants to the U.S. apply for visas, they get information about domestic violence resources in the States. Already, the embassy in Moscow has agreed to put posters in its waiting rooms and victim safety cards in visitor restrooms.
"Increasingly," says Ghez, "domestic violence is being internationally recognized as a health problem. Using reproductive health clinics as a base, we're experimenting with new approaches to addressing domestic violence, and changing the environment that permits it to continue."