24 Hour Hotline:
803-771-RAPE (Richland and Lexington counties)
1-800-491-RAPE (Newberry county)
Newsletter - Volume 1, Issue 1
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Volunteer Voice
August 1, 2009
STAFF Genevieve N. Waller, Esq. Executive Director
August2009
Congratulations to our top volunteers this month!
Zoe Griss-Bush (70 on call hours!), James DuBose (67 on call hours!), and Kazumi Byun (48 on call hours!)
Thank you to Julia Doe and Inum Imoh for their hard work in the office this summer!
Joan Amado Director of Crisis Services Sherry Lewis, MA, LPC Director of Therapy and Outreach Katie Reid, MSW Community Education Program Director Mary Dell Hayes Volunteer Services Coordinator Melanie Griffin, MSW Sexual Assault Services Coordinator
August 2009
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 3 10 4 11 5 12 International Paper Event 19 26 International Paper Event 6 13 7 14 8 15 Benedict Family Day
Daphne Pearson, MA, LPC-I Advocate Counselor Jennifer Gantt, MSW Group Services Coordinator Georgina Hance Office Manager
9
16 23
17 24
18 25
20 27
21 28
22 29 Speaker’s Bureau Training
30
31
IN THIS ISSUE
August Calendar What did you do this summer? Ask An Advocate Updates
1 2 3 4
Teach families about Sexual Assault Awareness! Benedict College will hold their annual family day on Saturday, August 15. We need two volunteers to assist with this event from 9am—1pm. Recruit volunteers to share your work at International Paper on Wednesday, August 12 or 26 from 10am-2pm. Learn presentation skills! Share your experiences with STSM with the community! Speaker’s Bureau Training 9am to 1pm or 5pm depending on which level Page 1 you complete. Call for more information.
The Dog Days of Summer
From upper left clockwise: Staff Melanie Griffin and Thomas Snipes in Playa del Carmen, Mexico; Advocate Anna Walton at internship in Virginia (see her article on Page 3!); Staff Mary Dell and her sister in law in Myrtle Beach; Advocate Amy Long and Robbie Ruple on a Caribbean cruise; STSM at the Blowfish Game on July 24; Office Volunteer Inum Imoh and friend at Ice Cream Social on Tuesday, July 14. Send your pictures to be included next month!
Page 2
Ask An Advocate
This month’s column is written by Anna Walton. Anna is a rising senior at USC. She has spent her summer as an intern working with migrant farmworkers in the Southeastern United States. Anna started volunteering with Sexual Trauma Services as a volunteer advocate in November 2007 because she liked the direct, positive effect advocates could have on the lives of survivors of sexual trauma through personal support during hospital and hotline calls.
“No one should be forced to give up their dignity in order to feed their family.” There are two to three million farmworkers in the United States. Seventy-five percent are from Mexico, close to nine out of 10 speak Spanish, and 20% are women. Currently, in the rural and coastal parts of South Carolina, farmworkers are harvesting peaches, watermelons, tomatoes, and berries. But what does migrant farm labor have to do with Sexual Trauma Services of the Midlands? Sexual assault has certainly been identified as an issue that affects both physical and emotional health. However, it is also a civil rights problem and a work problem, especially for certain vulnerable populations. For example, in one California survey, 90% of female farmworkers said that sexual violence in the workplace is a major concern for them. If that is true, why don’t we hear about those cases? As with any survivor of sexual assault, the women may feel ashamed, judged, or misbelieved, but migrant farmworkers face many additional barriers to reporting a sexual assault case. Migrant farmworkers are very isolated from the rest of the community. The nature of the working and living conditions that the migrant farmworkers experience is characterized by long hours in the fields and living in labor camps with very few amenities and in isolated locations, sometimes up to an hour away from the nearest grocery store. Many of the workers do not have their own cars, so they must depend on a supervisor or crew leader to drive them in school buses or large vans to work, to the store, or to the hospital or clinic. As such, they are very dependent upon others who may be more integrated into the community for knowledge about their rights, services available to them, and how to access them. This relationship between dependence and power creates a precarious situation for migrant farmworkers in which they may be misinformed or uninformed about the legal system and their rights; they may have fear of the police and judicial system, in conjunction with fear of removal (previously referred to as deportation); they may have fear that the perpetrator is going to be removed, either because the perpetrator may have access to the survivor’s children, or the survivor may be dependent on the perpetrator economically or for his/her immigration status; and/or they may have fear of losing their jobs and, thus, not being able to support themselves or their family. Not to mention, there are still cultural and gender nuances that could affect a survivor’s willingness to report, such as the importance of privacy within families (i.e., not showing your “dirty laundry”) and coming from a society very influenced by machismo, the term for the establishment of male dominance in the Hispanic culture. Luckily, there is a legal provision for farmworkers who are survivors of sexual assault that addresses the fear of removal. A non-citizen survivor of rape may apply for a U visa, which will grant the survivor immigration status if he/ she is willing to help law enforcement investigate the crime. After three years, the survivor may apply for permanent residence. In addition, the Bandana Project is a campaign to raise awareness about the prevalence of sexual violence toward farmworker women. The project got its name because many farmworker women wear bandanas to cover their faces while working in the fields to make themselves less of a target for sexual assault. Farmworkers and nonfarmworkers alike are decorating white bandanas as a way to join in solidarity with these women and to bring attention to the community about this issue. For more information, visit http://www.bandanaproject.org.
July Call Totals
Total Hospital Calls: 29 Hospital Calls answered by volunteers: 14 Hospital Calls answered by staff: 15 Total Hotline Calls: 10 Hotline Calls answered by volunteers: 7 Hotline Calls answered by staff: 4
Updates and Other Important Information
We are using a new Advocate Report Form effective July 1.
If you are at Lexington Medical Center on a call, please do NOT forget to remind the registration clerk and check out person that the kit will be paid for by SOVA. Survivors should not be charged at the hospital!
As of July 2009 medical personnel have to perform rape kits at a victim’s request, even if he/she does not choose to report the assault or abuse to law enforcement. STSM will offer a choice of three MANDATORY trainings on the protocol in September. If you do not complete training you will not be able to provide on call coverage.
Upcoming Dates to Remember: Saturday, August 29: Speaker’s Bureau Training 9am—1pm/5pm Monday, September 7: Paid Volunteers for Labor Day! Earn $35! Tuesday, September 15: Continuing Education on Communication Skills September 26—October 1: Fall Volunteer Advocate Training Win a prize if you refer a friend who completes training! Tuesday, October 13: Volunteer Coffee Hour 6pm-7:00pm Tuesday, November 10: Continuing Education on Teen Pregnancy in SC
***You must attend at least two continuing education events each calendar year! Attend early and attend often!***
Volunteer Voice
August 1, 2009
STAFF Genevieve N. Waller, Esq. Executive Director
August2009
Congratulations to our top volunteers this month!
Zoe Griss-Bush (70 on call hours!), James DuBose (67 on call hours!), and Kazumi Byun (48 on call hours!)
Thank you to Julia Doe and Inum Imoh for their hard work in the office this summer!
Joan Amado Director of Crisis Services Sherry Lewis, MA, LPC Director of Therapy and Outreach Katie Reid, MSW Community Education Program Director Mary Dell Hayes Volunteer Services Coordinator Melanie Griffin, MSW Sexual Assault Services Coordinator
August 2009
Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 3 10 4 11 5 12 International Paper Event 19 26 International Paper Event 6 13 7 14 8 15 Benedict Family Day
Daphne Pearson, MA, LPC-I Advocate Counselor Jennifer Gantt, MSW Group Services Coordinator Georgina Hance Office Manager
9
16 23
17 24
18 25
20 27
21 28
22 29 Speaker’s Bureau Training
30
31
IN THIS ISSUE
August Calendar What did you do this summer? Ask An Advocate Updates
1 2 3 4
Teach families about Sexual Assault Awareness! Benedict College will hold their annual family day on Saturday, August 15. We need two volunteers to assist with this event from 9am—1pm. Recruit volunteers to share your work at International Paper on Wednesday, August 12 or 26 from 10am-2pm. Learn presentation skills! Share your experiences with STSM with the community! Speaker’s Bureau Training 9am to 1pm or 5pm depending on which level Page 1 you complete. Call for more information.
The Dog Days of Summer
From upper left clockwise: Staff Melanie Griffin and Thomas Snipes in Playa del Carmen, Mexico; Advocate Anna Walton at internship in Virginia (see her article on Page 3!); Staff Mary Dell and her sister in law in Myrtle Beach; Advocate Amy Long and Robbie Ruple on a Caribbean cruise; STSM at the Blowfish Game on July 24; Office Volunteer Inum Imoh and friend at Ice Cream Social on Tuesday, July 14. Send your pictures to be included next month!
Page 2
Ask An Advocate
This month’s column is written by Anna Walton. Anna is a rising senior at USC. She has spent her summer as an intern working with migrant farmworkers in the Southeastern United States. Anna started volunteering with Sexual Trauma Services as a volunteer advocate in November 2007 because she liked the direct, positive effect advocates could have on the lives of survivors of sexual trauma through personal support during hospital and hotline calls.
“No one should be forced to give up their dignity in order to feed their family.” There are two to three million farmworkers in the United States. Seventy-five percent are from Mexico, close to nine out of 10 speak Spanish, and 20% are women. Currently, in the rural and coastal parts of South Carolina, farmworkers are harvesting peaches, watermelons, tomatoes, and berries. But what does migrant farm labor have to do with Sexual Trauma Services of the Midlands? Sexual assault has certainly been identified as an issue that affects both physical and emotional health. However, it is also a civil rights problem and a work problem, especially for certain vulnerable populations. For example, in one California survey, 90% of female farmworkers said that sexual violence in the workplace is a major concern for them. If that is true, why don’t we hear about those cases? As with any survivor of sexual assault, the women may feel ashamed, judged, or misbelieved, but migrant farmworkers face many additional barriers to reporting a sexual assault case. Migrant farmworkers are very isolated from the rest of the community. The nature of the working and living conditions that the migrant farmworkers experience is characterized by long hours in the fields and living in labor camps with very few amenities and in isolated locations, sometimes up to an hour away from the nearest grocery store. Many of the workers do not have their own cars, so they must depend on a supervisor or crew leader to drive them in school buses or large vans to work, to the store, or to the hospital or clinic. As such, they are very dependent upon others who may be more integrated into the community for knowledge about their rights, services available to them, and how to access them. This relationship between dependence and power creates a precarious situation for migrant farmworkers in which they may be misinformed or uninformed about the legal system and their rights; they may have fear of the police and judicial system, in conjunction with fear of removal (previously referred to as deportation); they may have fear that the perpetrator is going to be removed, either because the perpetrator may have access to the survivor’s children, or the survivor may be dependent on the perpetrator economically or for his/her immigration status; and/or they may have fear of losing their jobs and, thus, not being able to support themselves or their family. Not to mention, there are still cultural and gender nuances that could affect a survivor’s willingness to report, such as the importance of privacy within families (i.e., not showing your “dirty laundry”) and coming from a society very influenced by machismo, the term for the establishment of male dominance in the Hispanic culture. Luckily, there is a legal provision for farmworkers who are survivors of sexual assault that addresses the fear of removal. A non-citizen survivor of rape may apply for a U visa, which will grant the survivor immigration status if he/ she is willing to help law enforcement investigate the crime. After three years, the survivor may apply for permanent residence. In addition, the Bandana Project is a campaign to raise awareness about the prevalence of sexual violence toward farmworker women. The project got its name because many farmworker women wear bandanas to cover their faces while working in the fields to make themselves less of a target for sexual assault. Farmworkers and nonfarmworkers alike are decorating white bandanas as a way to join in solidarity with these women and to bring attention to the community about this issue. For more information, visit http://www.bandanaproject.org.
July Call Totals
Total Hospital Calls: 29 Hospital Calls answered by volunteers: 14 Hospital Calls answered by staff: 15 Total Hotline Calls: 10 Hotline Calls answered by volunteers: 7 Hotline Calls answered by staff: 4
Updates and Other Important Information
We are using a new Advocate Report Form effective July 1.
If you are at Lexington Medical Center on a call, please do NOT forget to remind the registration clerk and check out person that the kit will be paid for by SOVA. Survivors should not be charged at the hospital!
As of July 2009 medical personnel have to perform rape kits at a victim’s request, even if he/she does not choose to report the assault or abuse to law enforcement. STSM will offer a choice of three MANDATORY trainings on the protocol in September. If you do not complete training you will not be able to provide on call coverage.
Upcoming Dates to Remember: Saturday, August 29: Speaker’s Bureau Training 9am—1pm/5pm Monday, September 7: Paid Volunteers for Labor Day! Earn $35! Tuesday, September 15: Continuing Education on Communication Skills September 26—October 1: Fall Volunteer Advocate Training Win a prize if you refer a friend who completes training! Tuesday, October 13: Volunteer Coffee Hour 6pm-7:00pm Tuesday, November 10: Continuing Education on Teen Pregnancy in SC
***You must attend at least two continuing education events each calendar year! Attend early and attend often!***
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