Weekly Activism Blog #5

Activism

Not much happened for me this week. I wasn’t able to do any work with my community partner. I need to have the “CORE” training, which is offered in November and February. Unfortunately, I don’t think I will be able to do it until February, so it limits my opportunities for volunteering a little bit, but there are still plenty of things I can do. Next week I will probably do some miscellaneous things like tabling or helping out with whatever is lacking in volunteers and basically being open to whatever Harbor House needs me to do. The most activism I have really done this week is simply through choice of clothing. The Dr. Phil show is doing a campaign against domestic violence and I ordered one of the t-shirts and bracelets. The shirts and bracelets say “End the silence on domestic violence.” I finally received my shirt and bracelet this week. I think it’s a really cool way to support the cause and raise awareness at the same time.

**Here is the website for ordering the shirt and bracelet: http://kidsintolivinglife.myshopify.com/collections/frontpage/products/dr-phil-charity-mens-tee

Reflection

This week in class we were talking about how it typically takes a woman nine times of packing up her stuff and deciding to leave before she actually does leave for good. We also talked about the risk of being killed that this puts on the woman. We talked about how “For many women and children, however, home is not a safe place, but one where they experience emotional or physical violence” (Gwyn and Okazawa-Rey 260). This is obviously a very important issue that is very prevalent in our world today, and I am glad I can take part in stopping it.

Reciprocity

Even though it seems like I haven’t been doing much, I have been learning so much, so I am actually getting a lot out of this. I think this is something I will be concerned with for a long time, if not the rest of my life. I have even been considering being a victim advocate for survivors of domestic violence as a possible career in the future. Who knows what the future holds!?

Works Cited

Kirk, Gwyn and Margo Okazawa-Rey. Women's Lives: Multicultural Perspectives 4^th Ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010.

Weekly Activism Blog #4

Activism

This week was an exciting week for me with my community learning partner. I had my Volunteer Orientation training on Thursday night.  It was really exciting because I got to hear about all of the different ways harbor house helps out with issues of domestic violence and all the areas I have to choose from for my volunteering.

Reflection

I knew that victims were most at risk for homicides when trying to leave, but something interesting I learned this week was that if the woman gets a restraining order and the victim and batter have children, there is no restraining order for the children. So the woman still has to meet with the batterer in order to exchange the children for mandated visitations. I learned that domestic violence homicides happen often during this act of child swapping. The more I learn about Harbor House, the more that I appreciate it. Even though domestic violence is primarily a crime against women, Harbor House also provides support for men, while not directly in their shelter, but in other ways. Also, Harbor House doesn’t turn anyone away, even if they show up with a family of nine. It is truly a beautiful and impactful thing they are doing there. In Seely’s Fight Like a Girl, She focuses on ways to take action, one way she says is through volunteering at a local domestic violence shelter (212). So I feel like I am on the right track to making an impact and helping these women and their families.

Reciprocity

I think that the more I learn about this issue, the more and more serious it becomes to me. The host of the training told us example of women who come into the shelter straight from the hospital with broken bones or jaws wired shut.  I feel like to see that sort of thing is very life changing and really puts into focus what is important in life. I am learning to become more accountable in the issue of domestic violence. Many people who hear or see incidents happening do nothing to stop it. I want to be a person who does something, and doesn’t just stand there and let it happen.

Works Cited

Seely, Megan. Fight Like a Girl. New York and London: New York UP, 2007. Print.

Weekly Activism Blog #3

Activism

This week I wasn’t able to do anything with the Harbor House. I have to do two trainings, at least, before I can begin volunteering officially. I attended my first training last week, and my second training is next week. Although I wasn’t able to work directly with my service learning partner I did learn new things about domestic violence. I work as an RA so I have to make bullentin boards, so for my October bullentin board I made a domestic violence awareness month board. I was really excited about that, and being able to share that with my residents. I also went into a bathroom at TJ Maxx and they had these small cards on the mirror about domestic violence so I was very excited that they were recognizing it. The last thing I did was for my Crime in America class. We have to choose an article and evaluate the crime committed using one of the crime theories. I used the feminist theories and chose an article about domestic violence. The article was about how a man killed his ex-girlfriend, so I argued from feminist perspective using the ideas like biological male agression, socialization factors, and patriarchy.

Reflection

It was an interesting second week of domestic violence awareness month.  I am glad there is a month to raise awareness about this issue. I know my community partner is glad to as they are hosting a variety of events throughout the month in recognition. It is a very important issue, especially considering “Every year, as many as 4 million American women are physically abused by men who promised to love them” (Gwyn  and Okazawa-Rey 260)

Reciprocity

I am learning new things everyday and growing more concerend for the issue of domestic violence as a whole.  I am looking especially forward to next week and my volunteer training and then to get started with some more hands on volunteer projects!

Works Cited:

Kirk, Gwyn and Margo Okazawa-Rey. Women's Lives: Multicultural Perspectives 4^th Ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010.

Weekly Activism Blog #2

Activism

This week I went to my first training for the Harbor House. The presenter’s name was Carol Wick, who did a fantastic job. I wasn’t sure if I would really learn anything new because I am enrolled in a domestic violence course currently. I was thinking we would just learn some basic stuff that I probably had already heard. I was very surprised with what I learned. Carol Wick used a lot of real life stories as examples and it was quite shocking. She told us a story about a woman who was put in jail for child neglect because her husband or boyfriend had killed her child. The crazy thing was that in her mug shot, you could see the bruises around her neck from getting strangled. The court punished her for not protecting her child when she couldn’t even protect herself.

Reflection

This past week in class we were talking about how our sexuality is regulated. One example given was adoption. We were talking about how adoption is a process for heterosexuals. Something interesting I learned this week was that for GLBTQ partners involved in domestic violence, a tactic of the batterer to gain control is to threaten to out the other person, which could cause them to lose their children if they had adopted. I had never thought about that before. That is just another thing that makes it harder for victims of domestic violence to get help, because of ignorant societal norms.  In Seely’s Fight Like a Girl, she says that “more than one-fourth of high school girls have been victims of physical or sexual abuse” (191). I have heard this statistic before and at the training learned that it is increasing. Now, one in three high school girls will experience dating violence, and if you are African American, it is one in two. These statistics are shocking and truly disturbing. This week has shown me the increasing importance of educating people and encouraging them to speak up. The Harbor House is really making an impact in so many different aspects of domestic violence, and my respect for their organization has grown immensely.

Reciprocity

Going to this training about domestic violence and being surrounded by others who are aware and see the importance in this cause has increased my desire to make an impact. My drive to help is growing and my passion for this issue. I learned that so many cases of domestic violence are ending in homicides, and neighbors or strangers who heard the yelling and fighting never called the police. This thought was crazy to me, and I thought to myself, “What would I do?” I want to be the person that will call the police when I hear something suspicious. I want to stand up for people who are in these terrible situations.

Works Cited

Seely, Megan. Fight Like a Girl. New York and London: New York UP, 2007. Print.

Women's Heath and Envisioning a Change

The Problem- Fistulas

·         A fistula is a hole or passageway between an internal organ and the outside world (Fistula Foundation).

o   Obstetric fistulas, which occur to the mother during childbirth.

o   Traumatic Fistulas, which typically occur from violent acts, such as rape.

·         “An obstetric fistula develops when blood supply to the tissues of the vagina and the bladder (and/or rectum) is cut off during prolonged obstructed labor. The tissues die and a hole forms” (Fistula Foundation).

o   These fistulas cause women to have no restraint over their bladder and urine or feces will pass uncontrollably.

·         Fistulas can occur in any women, but typically only occur in underdeveloped countries where there is lack of maternal care.

o   Most common in Africa and parts of Asia.

·         It is estimated that over 2 million women are currently living with fistulas (Fistula Foundation).

·         Treatment is available, but most women don’t receive treatment and are instead cast off and shunned from society until they meet their death, through starvation or infection due to the fistula (97 Kristof and WuDunn).

Why this exists

1. Poverty

• In the article “The World’s Deadliest Disease is Poverty,” it is clearly evident that many healthcare issues could be prevented if it weren’t for poverty. (217 Kirk and Okazawana-Rey)

·         Fistulas can be prevented and treated.

·         Due to poverty there is not enough money for:

o   Medical care- general medical care is scarce, so maternal care is even rarer to find in these places.

o   Prevention-Obstetric fistulas could be prevented through cesarean sections

o   Treatment- typically costs about $300 (96 Kristof and WuDunn).

2. Women’s Oppression

• Living in a patriarchal society, maternal care is not believed to be a pressing need.
• The ACJR believes “from the perspective of a Reproductive Justice framework, the key problem for women is lack of power, resources, and control” (245 Kirk and Okazawana-Rey).

·         Educating women isn’t seen as important, so they are in school less, and have babies while they are still young, so their pelvises haven’t fully developed enough to be large enough for childbirth.

·         Women experience marginalization. They are seen as inferior to men and aren’t worth providing treatment for, so most men simply divorce their wives when fistula occurs.

·         Also, traumatic fistulas are occurring because of things like rape.

o   For example, in the Congo, 90% of fistulas are believed to be caused by rape. Due to the fact that rape is used as a weapon of war in the Congo (Fistula Foundation).

Vision

·         Availability of medical care.

·         All women should have access to maternal care.

·          Women would be seen as equals.

o   As the Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice say, “We believe that by challenging patriarchal social relations… we will be able to build te collective social, economic, and political power of all women and girls to make choices that protect and contribute to our reproductive health and overall well being” (245 Kirk and Okazawana-Rey).

·         Poverty would be eradicated.

·         Wars and rebellions would be ended.

·         More emphasis and availability of education for women.

How to change

·         Women need to have more education.

o   More education keeps them in school longer and means they don’t have babies as early

o   More education means they are more qualified for higher paying jobs

·          Training women in maternal care and how to give cesarean sections.

o   This would help prevent fistulas directly, while also giving women more job opportunities, so it would affect poverty as well.

·         The government needs to take a stand for women and against the “rebels,” who are killing men and raping women.

Works Cited

"Fast Facts and FAQs." The Fistula Foundation. N.p., 2010. Web. 3 Oct 2010. <http://www.fistulafoundation.org/aboutfistula/faqs.html>.

Kirk, Gwyn and Margo Okazawa-Rey. Women's Lives: Multicultural Perspectives 4^th Ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010.

Kristof, Nicholas D., and Sheryl WuDunn. Half the Sky. 1st. New York: Vintage Books, 2010. Print.