May 29, 2024 • 29 mins
Can financial stress and limited resources turn homes into battlegrounds for those already struggling to make ends meet? Listen as we unravel the complex web linking poverty, domestic violence, and health. We spotlight the heightened risks faced by women in disadvantaged groups and dissect how economic disparities in relationships can be weaponized by abusers. Kristen Beal, our insightful guest, delves into the multifaceted forms of abuse and the compounded hurdles marginalized individuals encounter when seeking help. Our discussion reveals the stark power dynamics at play in poorer communities and the far-reaching impacts on women's health and economic stability.
In our deep dive into support services, we explore the crucial role of culturally competent assistance—from crisis hotlines and emergency shelters to legal aid and healthcare. We underscore the specific vulnerabilities of immigrants and low-income families, shedding light on innovative solutions like discreet mobile apps and the integration of local resources with national hotlines. The conversation pivots to the urgent need for accessible resources, job opportunities for women, and the importance of paid leave. We wrap up by addressing the digital divide in education, proposing practical strategies to ensure equitable access to technology for all students. This episode is a must-listen for anyone committed to understanding and addressing the multifaceted challenges of domestic violence in impoverished communities.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
Welcome to Make the Leap, a podcast focused on the
many economic hurdles facingcollege students, lower-income
individuals and those strivingto move up the social ladder.
I'm Brad Constant here with myfellow host, george Graeb.
(00:27):
George, what is our topic fortoday?
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Today's podcast is on the intersection of poverty,
domestic violence and health.
Two percent of women in the USsuffer from intimate partner
violence annually, with poor andminority women significantly
affected.
Significantly affected.
Existing empirical research hasgenerally found that women who
suffer domestic violenceexperience a host of negative
outcomes, including, but notlimited to, reductions in
(00:51):
earning and poor health.
Most estimates of domesticviolence in the US come from the
National Violence Against WomenSurvey.
Data reveals a lifetimeincidence of 25% and suggests
that intimate partners areresponsible for 75% of all
violence against women over theage of 18.
Disadvantaged women are at ahigher risk of abuse.
(01:13):
Women with income below $10,000annually report rates of
domestic violence that are fivetimes greater than those with
annual income greater than$30,000.
In addition, african Americanwomen are at significantly
greater risk of violence and aresubject to more severe attacks.
Also at a greater risk areyoung women between the ages of
(01:34):
20 and 34, corresponding to thepeak childbearing years.
Finally, data shows thatchildren of women who are the
victim of violence whilepregnant suffer worse health at
birth.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
Thanks, george.
I'm excited for thisconversation Today.
We're again joined by KristenBeal All right, thank you,
kristen.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
So we start with the basic of the conversation today.
What is domestic violence?
Speaker 3 (02:06):
what is domestic violence?
Well, domestic violence reallyincorporates a pattern of
abusive behaviors used by onepartner to gain power or control
over another intimate partner.
There's several types that arecommonly associated with
domestic violence, like physicalabuse, emotional abuse, sexual
abuse, financial abuse.
Digital abuse is one right now,that is that research shows
(02:31):
that is really increasing inrate, along with stalking, and
then spiritual abuse.
But all of those various formsof abuse have serious, really
harmful, harmful effects onwomen's or victims' well-being.
Speaker 1 (02:46):
What are the effects of poverty on domestic violence?
Speaker 3 (02:50):
Well, poverty can impact the dynamics of domestic
violence and really exacerbateit in several ways.
Financial stress can createtension within the household,
leading to increased conflictand arguments between these
partners, and financialinsecurity can also limit access
to resources, for example, suchas housing or food or
(03:13):
healthcare, just reallyintensifying that stress.
Limited resources and optionsalso lead to a lack of
affordable housing, for example,legal aid and counseling
services, and it can make thischallenging then for victims to
escape their situation.
And certainly that powerdynamic should not be downplayed
(03:34):
either, where economicdisparities within a
relationship can be kind ofexploited by the abuser to exert
their control and manipulatethe victim.
And then, certainly when wehave a conversation about
poverty, intersections withother forms of oppression really
seem to exacerbate this as well.
(03:56):
Individuals facing multiplemarginalized identities can
really experience compoundedbarriers to seeking help or even
accessing resources too, sothen they're once again kind of
trapped in that situation, notto mention social isolation or
the mental health impacts oftheir abuse too.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
So, kristen, you know there's the data on domestic
violence is sometimes difficultto get right Because you get a
self-report sometimes.
Sometimes you got to go to thepolice, sometimes you do,
sometimes you don't.
But I think there is a generalconsensus that one out of four
women are going to deal withsome form of abuse in their
(04:39):
lifetime.
There's consensus that womenand minority African-American
women and women who are poordeal with much, much higher rate
of some form of abuse.
And outside of the fact that,yes, there's financial pressures
, financial stress that happensin these communities, you know
what is the the main driver whythey're so susceptible to
(05:04):
violence from, especially, theirpartner.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
Well, I think there's a couple things that increases
their vulnerability to thisviolence, when talking about
poverty especially, but limitedresources, that power dynamic
that I talked about earlier, butalso lack of legal protections
and the risk of exploitation.
So I'll give you an examplewhere women who might be living
(05:30):
in poverty could actually betargeted by traffickers who prey
on that economic vulnerability.
So trafficking victims areoften lured with I'll give you a
job or education or a betterlife, only to ultimately be
exploited then through maybeforced labor, sexual
(05:51):
exploitation or other forms ofabuse.
And something that's, of course, near to my heart is limited
access to education.
Poverty can restrict theiraccess for opportunities for
economic empowerment.
I think that, too, contributesto their social isolation and
inability to really eitherrecognize it as abuse or report
(06:14):
it as abuse.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
So I don't know if you're keeping up with the news,
but today the New Yorkappellate court overturned
Harvey Weinstein's verdict.
And you know, what I was alwaysstruck is what you just talked
about a couple of minutesearlier is the power dynamics.
You know the power dynamics.
You see that in the workplace,you see it at home, you see it,
(06:37):
I guess, with movie stars.
But why is it so much moreprofound in poor communities?
Speaker 3 (06:44):
I believe that it has to do with the economic
disparity really within thoserelationships, so the power, the
one that's in power control,compared to the other partner.
And then that disparity thenkind of generates this financial
dependence on an abusivepartner who can really make it
difficult for that woman toleave the relationship, or even
(07:07):
something simple by taking thefirst step and asserting their
autonomy, because they mightfear losing any more financial
support or even becominghomeless, careerless, several
things, losing their children,even.
Any type of situation like thathas so many varied aspects of
(07:27):
fear from the woman experiencingthe, experiencing that exertion
of power and control.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
George mentioned Harvey Weinstein and that being
a huge part of the Me Toomovement and that raising
awareness of sexual harassmentand abuse in the workplace.
But I feel like the domesticpart, I almost feel like our
culture is just so used to itthat we don't see it.
So how can we start addressingthis problem?
Speaker 3 (07:56):
I think that it requires a multifaceted approach
that looks first to immediateinterventions to support those
survivors who have experiencedabuse and mistreatment, but then
also the long-term strategiesto address the systemic factors
contributing to this kind ofinequality and violence.
(08:17):
So, like my own experience hasbeen involved in a family
shelter, so it's not it's forthe whole family who suffers
through all of these things.
And my initial involvement inthis area was to volunteer at a
respite center, at a familyshelter, because then we gave
(08:40):
mostly women the opportunitythen for to leave and go meet
with support services so that wewatch their children or to go
to find a job or get additionaljob training and we watch their
children that were accompanyingthem at the shelter.
Legal protections as well notjust generating laws against
(09:05):
intimate partner violence orstalking or sexual assault, but
also making sure that they haveaccess to legal aid and someone
that can provide them respite sothat the women can go do those
kinds of things.
And then I myself have been aviolence prevention educator in
my community and that reallystarted with middle school and
(09:27):
high school students.
So we began talking abouthealthy relationships, safe
dating, gender equality andnonviolent conflict resolution
from a very early age.
So those kids that are in afamily that has an abusive
situation really are kind oflacking the foundations on how
(09:48):
to deal with the conflict, bothas a child or being involved in
an adult situation.
So being involved in preventionand education I think kind of
ups the level of their abilityto recognize the signs of
domestic violence but also howto respond effectively.
And I think all of those thingsI just talked about really stem
(10:11):
or should stem from communitycollaboration, which I think
includes law enforcement andgovernment agencies and
healthcare providers, socialservice organizations, even
faith-based groups.
They also provide a lot ofvolunteering in those situations
as well.
So I think learning how tocoordinate responses to domestic
(10:34):
violence and poverty as wellkind of starts at the grassroots
level and brings a uniqueapproach to diverse communities
rather than just one segment.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
So, kristen, when I, when I tried to get prepared for
today, you know, trying to getdata, data, most of the data you
get is through surveys.
So, people, there's there's noreal like database that you can,
you know, look at and feel like, ok, I think I know what the
numbers look like.
But I can maybe play out twoscenarios for you.
So if you are already poor, youlive in an abusive relationship
(11:11):
.
Your intimate partner, yoursignificant other, controls the
money side of things.
You try getting out of thatabusive relationship means
you're going to actually be evenmore poor than when you are
today.
It could even lengthen theamount of time you're poor for
who knows how long, because nowyou're going to be on your own.
(11:33):
Versus the limited resources,do you think there is an element
like the structure is set up inplace for many women not to
report it, not to seek help,because it just sometimes
exasperate their economicconditions?
Speaker 3 (11:48):
Yeah, and I live while I live near a large city,
I really live in a ruralcommunity, and one of the things
that I find in that smallcommunity is that the resources
to help them are limited.
So I've found, if I wanted data, I could at least refer to the
(12:10):
social services agencies that Iworked with directly.
Now, that situation that I'mreferring to was this family
shelter then, and it's unlimitedtime there.
So, in a situation like youdiscussed, many places limit how
long you can stay there andthey don't have the resources to
support the family, additionalchildren, and this place even
(12:34):
has a barn for pets and animalstoo, for you to bring them as a
part of your family.
But with my volunteering, forexample, with that organization,
I appreciated it and was muchmore likely to donate to it,
volunteer for it, because theydid not have limits that were
established on how long theycould stay there.
So if they were kind of liningup some of those criteria even
(12:58):
that we talked about in our lastpodcast, about making sure you
have a safe home, making sureyou have the financial resources
, making sure you've hadeducation and training the
shelter didn't release themuntil those boxes were ticked
off, so they felt a little morecomfortable then accessing those
(13:19):
resources, allowing themselvesto be connected to other
resources and then not feelrushed and, frankly, give up and
go back home because it waseasier, because they couldn't
get through the requirements.
So this really seemed to me toprovide them a little more
safety.
(13:39):
I felt a little more sure abouttheir safety and they're likely
to complete the transition tobeing on their own.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
Look, I don't think being poor automatically make
you prone to abuse your partner,but it seems like you can't
really deal with domesticviolence effectively if you
don't deal with poverty.
What do you think?
Speaker 3 (14:02):
Totally agree.
I feel that the poverty pieceis the key, especially in
abating the violence, because ifyou work on the poverty piece,
you can provide economicindependence for women who need
some financial autonomy.
You can empower them really byboosting their self-esteem and
(14:25):
their confidence and reallycreate a sense of agency.
You know, having a job allowsthem to assert their
independence and make decisionsabout their lives and instead of
relying on someone who hasharmed them who makes decisions
for them.
Plus, having a role in workingon the poverty piece with a job,
(14:47):
for example, then gives themgreater access to resources too,
like an employment positionwill give them healthcare or
housing, allow them to affordhousing or child care, and some
benefit packages include legalassistance.
So something like that isimportant to that poverty piece.
And then financial securitywell, that just really makes
(15:12):
women feel stable in a way thatthey probably hadn't in a long
time.
Speaker 2 (15:16):
Before we dive deeper , maybe, into what can be done.
You know some of the otherpieces that comes with domestic
violence is depression, suicide,human trafficking.
You know 40% of women who gothrough domestic violence suffer
from depression.
You know 2% to 3% commitsuicide.
(15:37):
The majority of the humantrafficking is trafficking of
women.
It seems it all revolves aroundpoverty, lack of resources and
putting people in harm's way.
What are the options andalternatives for people who are
in a difficult place and anabusive relationship and lack
(16:00):
the resources both the financial, economic and the educational
resources to get out of it?
Speaker 3 (16:08):
Well, I would look first to some comprehensive
support services.
So this would include providingaccess and culturally competent
support services for survivors.
So this would include crisishotlines.
Where I worked as a violenceprevention educator, we had a
(16:29):
hotline that was included in theportfolio of services that they
provided Emergency shelters,for example.
But counseling again thatculturally competent topic
really comes into play offeringlegal aid and then bolstering
health care.
(16:49):
On a crisis intervention kind ofperspective, you would want to
train people to be culturallyresponsive when they're
responding to a crisis.
So, for example, we might havegotten calls that were somebody
in need, but we could.
We would also be able to sayhere's the extent of the support
(17:10):
services that we provide at thesocial service agency, but
let's start working on yourconnections to the others.
Because, but let's start workingon your connections to the
others, and I'll give you onesmall example but sometimes
their offender who has harmedthem, has taken away their
driver's license, or doesn'tallow them a credit card, or
(17:32):
takes away their cell phone oruses their cell phone to track
them so that they're stillremain in danger.
So if you have a supportservice team that is meeting
those components of it, they canhelp keep that person safe and
many of the support services areconnected.
So, like my county healthdepartment has several of those
(17:57):
services that I just talkedabout, even, but they're
connected then with the familyshelter and then the family
shelter is connected withanother social service that's
local, but sometimes, becausethey've isolated themselves,
they're not always aware of them.
So if they do come to acomprehensive place or a place
(18:20):
that provides comprehensiveservices, then they can be
directed to those things thatthey might have been kept away
from or sheltered from.
Speaker 2 (18:28):
Do you think you know ?
If you're an immigrant in theUS, if you're poor, if you're
subject to human trafficking, doyou think our system is
actually available to them?
It just seems like they'reinvisible, like we.
Really.
They don't know how to access asystem or how to access help.
They don't know how to get helpand we're not necessarily that
(18:48):
visible in terms of saying, yeah, come to us, we're going to get
you some help.
They just they seem to beliterally out there and they get
to suffer the most with thelittle possible and the safety
net isn't really there.
Speaker 3 (19:02):
I would agree with that.
On the trafficking piece,there's a local organization
here in my county that are thetype of servants that are on the
move.
They're looking for people thathave been trafficked.
They're looking for familymembers who have, you know, kind
(19:24):
of not contracted with thembecause it's a volunteer, but
sent them out to go find theirloved ones.
They don't advertise very much,you're right, but they put in
support networks that they'lladvertise in restaurants,
bathrooms, gas station bathroomsthat say if you're in trouble,
reach out here.
(19:45):
But also even Dr Phil's wifealso has a domestic violence app
that when a woman it on, when awoman installs it on her cell
phone, it looks like youraverage news app.
However, it's been pre-programmed that once the woman
presses the button, it eithermakes a call to a loved one that
(20:07):
says hey, I'm in trouble, or itcalls the 911 authority so they
can trace their phone.
But there are several apps thatare like that.
Speaker 1 (20:16):
Now you've mentioned your county and local resources.
To your knowledge, howintegrated are they with
something like the NationalDomestic Violence Hotline?
Is it a close integration or isthere a disconnect that we need
to, as a society, figure out?
Speaker 3 (20:33):
So how the agency that I worked for it was called
Helpline and they had an 800number.
That was a national number butthat worked like a 911 service,
so that when someone dialed that800 number that it would go to
the most local hotline, forexample, would go to the most
(20:54):
local hotline, for example, thatwas near the caller, and so it
might have to take a step to getthem help.
Might be an extra step or twobecause it would call into the
big one, then be transferreddown to the state and then
transferred to a local number,but I do think that they work
(21:15):
because they're usuallycomprehensive as well.
So, like all those helplineagents that we had I say all of
them, but there are maybe 20 ofthem, but they're all equally
trained to say okay, here's whatyou need to do, safety plan
first.
Then here's who you call.
Do you need a shelter?
Do you have someplace you canshelter?
Do you need transportation toget you there?
Speaker 2 (21:37):
Because they also will do that covertly too to
(22:01):
single moms and minorities to betruly impacted the most, or
severely impacted the most, withall the issues that we've
raised, from education tohealthcare.
We talked about foster kids lasttime you were on, and now we're
talking about domestic abuse,and I still think, to a certain
extent, that the system ignorestheir needs.
People who come from verychallenging backgrounds, really
disadvantaged backgrounds, havea unique set of needs, and
(22:24):
sometimes these needs start withhow to access resources and how
to get to these resources, andit all at the center of it is
poverty, and so when you thinkabout it, can you maybe, as we
wrap this up, talk about howcritical it is not only that the
resources is there, but howpeople can find it and access it
.
And then two job opportunitiesfor women good job opportunities
(22:48):
, critical paid leaves that givesome opportunities to deal with
some of the issues that theyare dealing with without losing
their job.
So wrap it nicely to us aboutyou know how can we do better
getting the resources availableto them and what can society do
in general to give them betterjob opportunities, including
(23:09):
paid leaves?
Speaker 3 (23:11):
I feel that in order for them, in order for women who
have been in the domesticviolence situation, I feel that
their ability to access I'mgoing to put one umbrella under
and that is legal advice, toreally access legal advice in
order to get out of theirsituation.
(23:33):
So it's not just working with alawyer, but actually
understanding their rights andoptions, because a person who is
in a poverty situation andthey're stuck there because of
the power and control that'sexerted over them doesn't always
know their rights and then howto even make decisions about
(23:55):
getting help.
So there are navigating thelegal system is a total, another
situation as well, or anotherdiscussion that's very similar
to when we talked about thefoster care situation, to the
legal advice.
If I throw that big umbrellaover, it will provide guidance
and support for them to navigatetheir way through these, but
(24:17):
they also will provide themopportunities to know how to
file police reports, know how toobtain restraining orders, know
how to seek legalrepresentation, and all of these
, like an 800 number that theymight call, will be able to
provide them with references tothose support networks.
(24:39):
So they may start out not bycalling a domestic violence
hotline, they may start outcalling NAMI, n-a-m-i.
So it's about mental illnessand that's a National
Association for Mental Illness,which their 1-800 number really
(25:01):
starts to filter back to thestate and local level about how
they can get assistance.
So I'll give you an example.
So a family that is caught up inan abusive situation, the
children are witnessing theseadverse childhood experiences
that are trauma.
So they carry their traumathrough their life, which may
(25:24):
start out very young.
They carry it through theirlife and their healthcare
suffers.
They're highly unlikely to beemployed or highly unlikely to
have graduated high school.
Their life is affected.
So it's just a big circle.
So if you start with the legalpart which can protect them, and
then if they turn to a mentalhealth resource like NAMI, for
(25:48):
example, or like Helpline, whereI've worked, then it starts
filtering things down to a locallevel.
Then they become, I don't wantto say in the system, but
working with the system.
So asking for referrals forfood distribution, for clothing
for I know many of our schoolsoffer a clothes closet for
(26:13):
interviewing what careerservices offers.
You know interviewing skillsand other job skills.
So do those social servicesagencies.
So you know, once they startbig, then they start narrowing
down to the places that can helpthem.
And if they go to the legalroute first and then the mental
health route, the legal routereally kind of firms their
(26:38):
ability to get secure emergencyhousing and arranging for child
custody visitation and accessingcommunity resources, but the
legal system then seems to drivethem through to the county
level or local level.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
Thank you.
Thank you, kristen.
I think we all have learnedthat poverty impacts women,
impacts single moms and impactswomen of color more than we know
and more than the generalpopulation.
But really the intersectionbetween domestic violence and
poverty can only exasperate theproblem.
(27:16):
It seems to make it longer,deeper and more painful, and
hopefully we can, as there's alot of nonprofits that work in
the field.
But hopefully one of the wayswould be to give women going
through domestic abuse careeropportunities and the economic
empowerment to get a job wherethey can get themselves not out
of just the abuse part but alsothe economic struggles.
(27:36):
To get a job where they can getthemselves not out of just the
abuse part but also the economicstruggles that they counter.
Thank you so much for your timetoday.
Speaker 3 (27:44):
Pleasure.
Thank you for letting mediscuss this really important
issue.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Thanks for listening to Make the Leap.
Be sure to visit our site,rosspodcastcom or the podcast
platform of your choice tolisten to past episodes as well
as subscribe, so you never missfuture episodes.
We hope you join us two weeksfrom now for our next episode as
we learn more about bridgingthe digital divide meeting
students where they are.
See you then, thank you.
Welcome to Make the Leap, a podcast focused on the
many economic hurdles facingcollege students, lower-income
individuals and those strivingto move up the social ladder.
I'm Brad Constant here with myfellow host, george Graeb.
(00:27):
George, what is our topic fortoday?
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Today's podcast is on the intersection of poverty,
domestic violence and health.
Two percent of women in the USsuffer from intimate partner
violence annually, with poor andminority women significantly
affected.
Significantly affected.
Existing empirical research hasgenerally found that women who
suffer domestic violenceexperience a host of negative
outcomes, including, but notlimited to, reductions in
(00:51):
earning and poor health.
Most estimates of domesticviolence in the US come from the
National Violence Against WomenSurvey.
Data reveals a lifetimeincidence of 25% and suggests
that intimate partners areresponsible for 75% of all
violence against women over theage of 18.
Disadvantaged women are at ahigher risk of abuse.
(01:13):
Women with income below $10,000annually report rates of
domestic violence that are fivetimes greater than those with
annual income greater than$30,000.
In addition, african Americanwomen are at significantly
greater risk of violence and aresubject to more severe attacks.
Also at a greater risk areyoung women between the ages of
(01:34):
20 and 34, corresponding to thepeak childbearing years.
Finally, data shows thatchildren of women who are the
victim of violence whilepregnant suffer worse health at
birth.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
Thanks, george.
I'm excited for thisconversation Today.
We're again joined by KristenBeal All right, thank you,
kristen.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
So we start with the basic of the conversation today.
What is domestic violence?
Speaker 3 (02:06):
what is domestic violence?
Well, domestic violence reallyincorporates a pattern of
abusive behaviors used by onepartner to gain power or control
over another intimate partner.
There's several types that arecommonly associated with
domestic violence, like physicalabuse, emotional abuse, sexual
abuse, financial abuse.
Digital abuse is one right now,that is that research shows
(02:31):
that is really increasing inrate, along with stalking, and
then spiritual abuse.
But all of those various formsof abuse have serious, really
harmful, harmful effects onwomen's or victims' well-being.
Speaker 1 (02:46):
What are the effects of poverty on domestic violence?
Speaker 3 (02:50):
Well, poverty can impact the dynamics of domestic
violence and really exacerbateit in several ways.
Financial stress can createtension within the household,
leading to increased conflictand arguments between these
partners, and financialinsecurity can also limit access
to resources, for example, suchas housing or food or
(03:13):
healthcare, just reallyintensifying that stress.
Limited resources and optionsalso lead to a lack of
affordable housing, for example,legal aid and counseling
services, and it can make thischallenging then for victims to
escape their situation.
And certainly that powerdynamic should not be downplayed
(03:34):
either, where economicdisparities within a
relationship can be kind ofexploited by the abuser to exert
their control and manipulatethe victim.
And then, certainly when wehave a conversation about
poverty, intersections withother forms of oppression really
seem to exacerbate this as well.
(03:56):
Individuals facing multiplemarginalized identities can
really experience compoundedbarriers to seeking help or even
accessing resources too, sothen they're once again kind of
trapped in that situation, notto mention social isolation or
the mental health impacts oftheir abuse too.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
So, kristen, you know there's the data on domestic
violence is sometimes difficultto get right Because you get a
self-report sometimes.
Sometimes you got to go to thepolice, sometimes you do,
sometimes you don't.
But I think there is a generalconsensus that one out of four
women are going to deal withsome form of abuse in their
(04:39):
lifetime.
There's consensus that womenand minority African-American
women and women who are poordeal with much, much higher rate
of some form of abuse.
And outside of the fact that,yes, there's financial pressures
, financial stress that happensin these communities, you know
what is the the main driver whythey're so susceptible to
(05:04):
violence from, especially, theirpartner.
Speaker 3 (05:07):
Well, I think there's a couple things that increases
their vulnerability to thisviolence, when talking about
poverty especially, but limitedresources, that power dynamic
that I talked about earlier, butalso lack of legal protections
and the risk of exploitation.
So I'll give you an examplewhere women who might be living
(05:30):
in poverty could actually betargeted by traffickers who prey
on that economic vulnerability.
So trafficking victims areoften lured with I'll give you a
job or education or a betterlife, only to ultimately be
exploited then through maybeforced labor, sexual
(05:51):
exploitation or other forms ofabuse.
And something that's, of course, near to my heart is limited
access to education.
Poverty can restrict theiraccess for opportunities for
economic empowerment.
I think that, too, contributesto their social isolation and
inability to really eitherrecognize it as abuse or report
(06:14):
it as abuse.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
So I don't know if you're keeping up with the news,
but today the New Yorkappellate court overturned
Harvey Weinstein's verdict.
And you know, what I was alwaysstruck is what you just talked
about a couple of minutesearlier is the power dynamics.
You know the power dynamics.
You see that in the workplace,you see it at home, you see it,
(06:37):
I guess, with movie stars.
But why is it so much moreprofound in poor communities?
Speaker 3 (06:44):
I believe that it has to do with the economic
disparity really within thoserelationships, so the power, the
one that's in power control,compared to the other partner.
And then that disparity thenkind of generates this financial
dependence on an abusivepartner who can really make it
difficult for that woman toleave the relationship, or even
(07:07):
something simple by taking thefirst step and asserting their
autonomy, because they mightfear losing any more financial
support or even becominghomeless, careerless, several
things, losing their children,even.
Any type of situation like thathas so many varied aspects of
(07:27):
fear from the woman experiencingthe, experiencing that exertion
of power and control.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
George mentioned Harvey Weinstein and that being
a huge part of the Me Toomovement and that raising
awareness of sexual harassmentand abuse in the workplace.
But I feel like the domesticpart, I almost feel like our
culture is just so used to itthat we don't see it.
So how can we start addressingthis problem?
Speaker 3 (07:56):
I think that it requires a multifaceted approach
that looks first to immediateinterventions to support those
survivors who have experiencedabuse and mistreatment, but then
also the long-term strategiesto address the systemic factors
contributing to this kind ofinequality and violence.
(08:17):
So, like my own experience hasbeen involved in a family
shelter, so it's not it's forthe whole family who suffers
through all of these things.
And my initial involvement inthis area was to volunteer at a
respite center, at a familyshelter, because then we gave
(08:40):
mostly women the opportunitythen for to leave and go meet
with support services so that wewatch their children or to go
to find a job or get additionaljob training and we watch their
children that were accompanyingthem at the shelter.
Legal protections as well notjust generating laws against
(09:05):
intimate partner violence orstalking or sexual assault, but
also making sure that they haveaccess to legal aid and someone
that can provide them respite sothat the women can go do those
kinds of things.
And then I myself have been aviolence prevention educator in
my community and that reallystarted with middle school and
(09:27):
high school students.
So we began talking abouthealthy relationships, safe
dating, gender equality andnonviolent conflict resolution
from a very early age.
So those kids that are in afamily that has an abusive
situation really are kind oflacking the foundations on how
(09:48):
to deal with the conflict, bothas a child or being involved in
an adult situation.
So being involved in preventionand education I think kind of
ups the level of their abilityto recognize the signs of
domestic violence but also howto respond effectively.
And I think all of those thingsI just talked about really stem
(10:11):
or should stem from communitycollaboration, which I think
includes law enforcement andgovernment agencies and
healthcare providers, socialservice organizations, even
faith-based groups.
They also provide a lot ofvolunteering in those situations
as well.
So I think learning how tocoordinate responses to domestic
(10:34):
violence and poverty as wellkind of starts at the grassroots
level and brings a uniqueapproach to diverse communities
rather than just one segment.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
So, kristen, when I, when I tried to get prepared for
today, you know, trying to getdata, data, most of the data you
get is through surveys.
So, people, there's there's noreal like database that you can,
you know, look at and feel like, ok, I think I know what the
numbers look like.
But I can maybe play out twoscenarios for you.
So if you are already poor, youlive in an abusive relationship
(11:11):
.
Your intimate partner, yoursignificant other, controls the
money side of things.
You try getting out of thatabusive relationship means
you're going to actually be evenmore poor than when you are
today.
It could even lengthen theamount of time you're poor for
who knows how long, because nowyou're going to be on your own.
(11:33):
Versus the limited resources,do you think there is an element
like the structure is set up inplace for many women not to
report it, not to seek help,because it just sometimes
exasperate their economicconditions?
Speaker 3 (11:48):
Yeah, and I live while I live near a large city,
I really live in a ruralcommunity, and one of the things
that I find in that smallcommunity is that the resources
to help them are limited.
So I've found, if I wanted data, I could at least refer to the
(12:10):
social services agencies that Iworked with directly.
Now, that situation that I'mreferring to was this family
shelter then, and it's unlimitedtime there.
So, in a situation like youdiscussed, many places limit how
long you can stay there andthey don't have the resources to
support the family, additionalchildren, and this place even
(12:34):
has a barn for pets and animalstoo, for you to bring them as a
part of your family.
But with my volunteering, forexample, with that organization,
I appreciated it and was muchmore likely to donate to it,
volunteer for it, because theydid not have limits that were
established on how long theycould stay there.
So if they were kind of liningup some of those criteria even
(12:58):
that we talked about in our lastpodcast, about making sure you
have a safe home, making sureyou have the financial resources
, making sure you've hadeducation and training the
shelter didn't release themuntil those boxes were ticked
off, so they felt a little morecomfortable then accessing those
(13:19):
resources, allowing themselvesto be connected to other
resources and then not feelrushed and, frankly, give up and
go back home because it waseasier, because they couldn't
get through the requirements.
So this really seemed to me toprovide them a little more
safety.
(13:39):
I felt a little more sure abouttheir safety and they're likely
to complete the transition tobeing on their own.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
Look, I don't think being poor automatically make
you prone to abuse your partner,but it seems like you can't
really deal with domesticviolence effectively if you
don't deal with poverty.
What do you think?
Speaker 3 (14:02):
Totally agree.
I feel that the poverty pieceis the key, especially in
abating the violence, because ifyou work on the poverty piece,
you can provide economicindependence for women who need
some financial autonomy.
You can empower them really byboosting their self-esteem and
(14:25):
their confidence and reallycreate a sense of agency.
You know, having a job allowsthem to assert their
independence and make decisionsabout their lives and instead of
relying on someone who hasharmed them who makes decisions
for them.
Plus, having a role in workingon the poverty piece with a job,
(14:47):
for example, then gives themgreater access to resources too,
like an employment positionwill give them healthcare or
housing, allow them to affordhousing or child care, and some
benefit packages include legalassistance.
So something like that isimportant to that poverty piece.
And then financial securitywell, that just really makes
(15:12):
women feel stable in a way thatthey probably hadn't in a long
time.
Speaker 2 (15:16):
Before we dive deeper , maybe, into what can be done.
You know some of the otherpieces that comes with domestic
violence is depression, suicide,human trafficking.
You know 40% of women who gothrough domestic violence suffer
from depression.
You know 2% to 3% commitsuicide.
(15:37):
The majority of the humantrafficking is trafficking of
women.
It seems it all revolves aroundpoverty, lack of resources and
putting people in harm's way.
What are the options andalternatives for people who are
in a difficult place and anabusive relationship and lack
(16:00):
the resources both the financial, economic and the educational
resources to get out of it?
Speaker 3 (16:08):
Well, I would look first to some comprehensive
support services.
So this would include providingaccess and culturally competent
support services for survivors.
So this would include crisishotlines.
Where I worked as a violenceprevention educator, we had a
(16:29):
hotline that was included in theportfolio of services that they
provided Emergency shelters,for example.
But counseling again thatculturally competent topic
really comes into play offeringlegal aid and then bolstering
health care.
(16:49):
On a crisis intervention kind ofperspective, you would want to
train people to be culturallyresponsive when they're
responding to a crisis.
So, for example, we might havegotten calls that were somebody
in need, but we could.
We would also be able to sayhere's the extent of the support
(17:10):
services that we provide at thesocial service agency, but
let's start working on yourconnections to the others.
Because, but let's start workingon your connections to the
others, and I'll give you onesmall example but sometimes
their offender who has harmedthem, has taken away their
driver's license, or doesn'tallow them a credit card, or
(17:32):
takes away their cell phone oruses their cell phone to track
them so that they're stillremain in danger.
So if you have a supportservice team that is meeting
those components of it, they canhelp keep that person safe and
many of the support services areconnected.
So, like my county healthdepartment has several of those
(17:57):
services that I just talkedabout, even, but they're
connected then with the familyshelter and then the family
shelter is connected withanother social service that's
local, but sometimes, becausethey've isolated themselves,
they're not always aware of them.
So if they do come to acomprehensive place or a place
(18:20):
that provides comprehensiveservices, then they can be
directed to those things thatthey might have been kept away
from or sheltered from.
Speaker 2 (18:28):
Do you think you know ?
If you're an immigrant in theUS, if you're poor, if you're
subject to human trafficking, doyou think our system is
actually available to them?
It just seems like they'reinvisible, like we.
Really.
They don't know how to access asystem or how to access help.
They don't know how to get helpand we're not necessarily that
(18:48):
visible in terms of saying, yeah, come to us, we're going to get
you some help.
They just they seem to beliterally out there and they get
to suffer the most with thelittle possible and the safety
net isn't really there.
Speaker 3 (19:02):
I would agree with that.
On the trafficking piece,there's a local organization
here in my county that are thetype of servants that are on the
move.
They're looking for people thathave been trafficked.
They're looking for familymembers who have, you know, kind
(19:24):
of not contracted with thembecause it's a volunteer, but
sent them out to go find theirloved ones.
They don't advertise very much,you're right, but they put in
support networks that they'lladvertise in restaurants,
bathrooms, gas station bathroomsthat say if you're in trouble,
reach out here.
(19:45):
But also even Dr Phil's wifealso has a domestic violence app
that when a woman it on, when awoman installs it on her cell
phone, it looks like youraverage news app.
However, it's been pre-programmed that once the woman
presses the button, it eithermakes a call to a loved one that
(20:07):
says hey, I'm in trouble, or itcalls the 911 authority so they
can trace their phone.
But there are several apps thatare like that.
Speaker 1 (20:16):
Now you've mentioned your county and local resources.
To your knowledge, howintegrated are they with
something like the NationalDomestic Violence Hotline?
Is it a close integration or isthere a disconnect that we need
to, as a society, figure out?
Speaker 3 (20:33):
So how the agency that I worked for it was called
Helpline and they had an 800number.
That was a national number butthat worked like a 911 service,
so that when someone dialed that800 number that it would go to
the most local hotline, forexample, would go to the most
(20:54):
local hotline, for example, thatwas near the caller, and so it
might have to take a step to getthem help.
Might be an extra step or twobecause it would call into the
big one, then be transferreddown to the state and then
transferred to a local number,but I do think that they work
(21:15):
because they're usuallycomprehensive as well.
So, like all those helplineagents that we had I say all of
them, but there are maybe 20 ofthem, but they're all equally
trained to say okay, here's whatyou need to do, safety plan
first.
Then here's who you call.
Do you need a shelter?
Do you have someplace you canshelter?
Do you need transportation toget you there?
Speaker 2 (21:37):
Because they also will do that covertly too to
(22:01):
single moms and minorities to betruly impacted the most, or
severely impacted the most, withall the issues that we've
raised, from education tohealthcare.
We talked about foster kids lasttime you were on, and now we're
talking about domestic abuse,and I still think, to a certain
extent, that the system ignorestheir needs.
People who come from verychallenging backgrounds, really
disadvantaged backgrounds, havea unique set of needs, and
(22:24):
sometimes these needs start withhow to access resources and how
to get to these resources, andit all at the center of it is
poverty, and so when you thinkabout it, can you maybe, as we
wrap this up, talk about howcritical it is not only that the
resources is there, but howpeople can find it and access it
.
And then two job opportunitiesfor women good job opportunities
(22:48):
, critical paid leaves that givesome opportunities to deal with
some of the issues that theyare dealing with without losing
their job.
So wrap it nicely to us aboutyou know how can we do better
getting the resources availableto them and what can society do
in general to give them betterjob opportunities, including
(23:09):
paid leaves?
Speaker 3 (23:11):
I feel that in order for them, in order for women who
have been in the domesticviolence situation, I feel that
their ability to access I'mgoing to put one umbrella under
and that is legal advice, toreally access legal advice in
order to get out of theirsituation.
(23:33):
So it's not just working with alawyer, but actually
understanding their rights andoptions, because a person who is
in a poverty situation andthey're stuck there because of
the power and control that'sexerted over them doesn't always
know their rights and then howto even make decisions about
(23:55):
getting help.
So there are navigating thelegal system is a total, another
situation as well, or anotherdiscussion that's very similar
to when we talked about thefoster care situation, to the
legal advice.
If I throw that big umbrellaover, it will provide guidance
and support for them to navigatetheir way through these, but
(24:17):
they also will provide themopportunities to know how to
file police reports, know how toobtain restraining orders, know
how to seek legalrepresentation, and all of these
, like an 800 number that theymight call, will be able to
provide them with references tothose support networks.
(24:39):
So they may start out not bycalling a domestic violence
hotline, they may start outcalling NAMI, n-a-m-i.
So it's about mental illnessand that's a National
Association for Mental Illness,which their 1-800 number really
(25:01):
starts to filter back to thestate and local level about how
they can get assistance.
So I'll give you an example.
So a family that is caught up inan abusive situation, the
children are witnessing theseadverse childhood experiences
that are trauma.
So they carry their traumathrough their life, which may
(25:24):
start out very young.
They carry it through theirlife and their healthcare
suffers.
They're highly unlikely to beemployed or highly unlikely to
have graduated high school.
Their life is affected.
So it's just a big circle.
So if you start with the legalpart which can protect them, and
then if they turn to a mentalhealth resource like NAMI, for
(25:48):
example, or like Helpline, whereI've worked, then it starts
filtering things down to a locallevel.
Then they become, I don't wantto say in the system, but
working with the system.
So asking for referrals forfood distribution, for clothing
for I know many of our schoolsoffer a clothes closet for
(26:13):
interviewing what careerservices offers.
You know interviewing skillsand other job skills.
So do those social servicesagencies.
So you know, once they startbig, then they start narrowing
down to the places that can helpthem.
And if they go to the legalroute first and then the mental
health route, the legal routereally kind of firms their
(26:38):
ability to get secure emergencyhousing and arranging for child
custody visitation and accessingcommunity resources, but the
legal system then seems to drivethem through to the county
level or local level.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
Thank you.
Thank you, kristen.
I think we all have learnedthat poverty impacts women,
impacts single moms and impactswomen of color more than we know
and more than the generalpopulation.
But really the intersectionbetween domestic violence and
poverty can only exasperate theproblem.
(27:16):
It seems to make it longer,deeper and more painful, and
hopefully we can, as there's alot of nonprofits that work in
the field.
But hopefully one of the wayswould be to give women going
through domestic abuse careeropportunities and the economic
empowerment to get a job wherethey can get themselves not out
of just the abuse part but alsothe economic struggles.
(27:36):
To get a job where they can getthemselves not out of just the
abuse part but also the economicstruggles that they counter.
Thank you so much for your timetoday.
Speaker 3 (27:44):
Pleasure.
Thank you for letting mediscuss this really important
issue.
Speaker 1 (27:58):
Thanks for listening to Make the Leap.
Be sure to visit our site,rosspodcastcom or the podcast
platform of your choice tolisten to past episodes as well
as subscribe, so you never missfuture episodes.
We hope you join us two weeksfrom now for our next episode as
we learn more about bridgingthe digital divide meeting
students where they are.
See you then, thank you.
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