I have shared information about this topic before and here is more as it is so important for women to leave abusive relationships.
Northern
Rivers Community Legal Centre receives $50 000 Community Sector
Banking grant for Walking Together program helping family violence
survivors regain financial independence.
WOMEN
who are prevented from leaving violent relationships in our region due
to economic and social dependence have just been issued with a get out
of jail card.
Northern
Rivers Community Legal Centre is one of 300 organisations to receive a
$50,000 Social Investment Grant from Community Sector Banking for an
innovative project designed to help family violence survivors regain
their financial independence.
The funds are to be
provided by Community Sector Banking, to fund a three day a week
advocacy service, Walking Together, for women who find themselves with
debts preventing them from moving on with their lives.
The
service will be funded for 12 months and will provide material for a
"procedures manual” that can be used by volunteers in community
organisations helping a potential 20 000 women escape violence across
the country.
Head of relations for Community Sector
Banking, James Barron, congratulated Northern Rivers Community Centre on
their strong application when the cheque was handed over this Thursday
in The Lismore Quad. The announcement coincided with Human Rights week
in the hope of educating the community about financial abuse.
"The
legal centres application was one of the best we received and really
does go to the core and purpose of what our social investment grants
program is all about,” he said.
Northern Rivers Community
Legal Centre has been in existence since 1996 and provides access to
quality legal information, advice, advocacy and education in order to
achieve social justice for all, including animal and environmental
protection.
In relation to domestic and family violence
(DFV) and homelessness, it provides help in liaising with creditors on
behalf of family violence victims, such as banks, energy and
telecommunications providers.
Acting Care Manager at the
centre, Hayley Foster said "80 per cent of women suffering from DFV
suffered economic and financial abuse. Assisting women with their
utilities and putting systems in place with service providers enabled
them to find safety.”
Aboriginal domestic violence
support worker Marie Anne Brown said many women leave "abusive
relationships with nothing and have not a clue as to how to pay a bill.”
"With more talk about it we make sure it does not remain a secret,” she said.
Community
Sector Banking is the not-for-profit banking specialist for more than
13,000 organisations; it's a joint venture between Bendigo Bank and the
Community 21 consortium of not-for-profit organisations.
This story of a woman who survived domestic abuse should be helpful to those who are in such a situation and it would seem that there are quite a few judging by press reports.
Women tend to suffer for far too long before seeking help especially if there are children involved and often it can be too late. I urge anyone who may be in such an abusive partnership to seek help.
This article and Video are good news. Finally women have the courage to leave abusive relationships and if we can go on encouraging many more it will be a blessing. I am sure many women will see a pattern in this story that may be similar to their own.
Alex* was pregnant with her youngest child when she decided things had to change.
For years she had been living in an abusive relationship with her
partner. He was controlling and financially, verbally and emotionally
abusive. He would obsessively read her text messages, isolate her from
friends and family and denigrate her.
“He played on what he knew would hurt me,” Alex told Guardian
Australia. “He would find his angle in and go on and on and on about it.
So, eventually, I started to believe [what he said about me].
“I didn’t have a label for it because, in my mind, domestic violence was physical.
“I thought it was normal.”
When she became pregnant, her partner stepped up the abuse. Alex had
no doubt that, if she had stayed, her partner would have become violent
and dangerous.......Read more:
This article about domestic violence may help other women to seek help and to speak out. The more these stories are shared, the more women realise that they must seek help to stay safe.
Domestic violence can be a soul destroying situation that often results in injury and some time even murder. The more we encourage women to come forward and share their experiences, the more it helps others to open up and ask for help.
Here's a story that gives hope to victims of domestic abuse. The man in question admitted to controlling his wife and beating her.
Domestic violence is the result of insecurity and therefore wanting control over another person. The story is both powerful and very helpful and I hope it helps men and women identify why they have this need to control and abuse. Awareness is the first step to seeking help.
Today at 9 pm UK time BBC2 are showing a film by director Vanessa Engle which highlights a sad statistic that every month seven women in Britain alone are killed by their husband or partner or by their ex. Alarming or what? The website is bbc.co.uk and the film's title is: Love you to Death: A Year of Domestic Violence. It beggars belief how many women or men are killed or injured each year through domestic violence.
It is worth remembering that domestic violence can be a drip feed of emotional abuse as well, over many years that grind down the partner to such a level of low confidence and depression that it is often hard to emerge from.
It is always good to find sites that support women who are facing difficulties. Here is one such site. I hope whoever feels the need to click on this, finds the help and answers they are looking for. Abuse is such a soul destroying crime.
It's always great to learn of these schemes to give women a chance of a better life. Education is so important and more so for victims of domestic violence or domestic abuse.
Building confidence is the most important issue for women who want to step out on their own and create a life of fulfilment. But it is equally important for women who have raised children and want to get back into the working environment or just to undertake training which can lead to amazing possibilities. Exercise and a healthy lifestyle are crucial to building confidence as a fit body already sets the tone for confidence.
Sadly the most destructive state women can experience is domestic violence. This undermines one of the most fundamental human needs which is security. The statistics are alarming.
Any help that can be given and hints on the way will be more than welcome. No one should have to suffer at the hands of someone else, be in physical or mental abuse.
