Women and children first!
Through time, space and strife, women have existed. In positions of jubilous empowerment, in spaces of unmentionable toxicity and always, always, ingrained in the twists and turns of human evolution. With Ernestine’s Women’s Shelter being an affiliation of IntegraYouth, we wanted to devote our first blog post to the invaluable services offered by Women’s shelters!
What are they?
Women’s shelters are a temporary refuge open to women and children fleeing domestic violence. It’s clients are situationally diverse and can obtain support in instances of:
- crisis housing
- food instability
- children’s recreational programs
- youth or general counselling
- legal or housing education
They procure different stages of temporary housing, from shared transition houses to individual units suited for the success of each woman transitioning out of dependency and dangerous living situations. (Ernestine's WS, 2021) They are the catalyst, the organizer, the resource bank! They provide women with an emphatic ear, a tight embrace and actionable steps to help them and their dependents develop a more prosperous future.
What do they have to do with youth? Or with IntegraYouth?
If there are children present around abusive relationships, they are often caught in the crossfire. Over 100 million children have witnessed violence against their mothers and 30% of all violence initiated against youth is carried out by a close family member. (Government of Canada, 2018) Youth are in fact the most prevalent population living in women’s shelters! That’s why shelters need to be extremely sensitive to the needs of this demographic, of children under the age of 16. For continued education, youth housed in shelter facilities have access to secure learning outlets, school enrolments, all necessary school supplies and homework help.
For healthy self-expression and self-advocacy, there are activities like self-esteem exercise. There’s free play time, camp games, macaroni crafts, slides, swings and vegetable servings at every meal. On top of all the stability offered by the shelters themselves, partnerships with external organizations add to a woman or child’s sense of belonging or community. Nonprofits like ours, IntegraYouth, are an extra resource for social and educational interaction. Our partnership with Ernestine's consists of their advertising our services throughout their facilities so that interested families can sign up!
What do women’s shelters look like now? Can they still keep women safe?
In Covid times, the shelter’s helping hands have been substantially bound. Self-isolation with abusers has exacerbated domestic violence, and women have nowhere to turn. In November 2020, 266 Canadian women’s shelters reported 52% of their clients experiencing increasingly severe acts of abuse, while 71% of those same facilities were required to reduce capacity in keeping with Covid-related health mandates. (National Post, 2020) These nauseating data points are unable to account for new outbreaks of domestic violence against women (brought on by unparalleled situational pressure), or cases of abuse so severe that victims haven’t been able to seek help in the first place.
Women making it to the shelter are also feeling the effects of pandemic precautions. The closeness and emotional support previously afforded through weighty hugs and hand squeezes is reduced to words and expressive eye-contact above masks. Luckily, shelters have showed up in all the ways they can. Still accepting and housing women in emergency cases, locations like Ernestine’s keep their food bank open to previous clients and community referrals. Incoming women are placed in hotel rooms for a 14-day isolation period before safely moving into transition houses. Shelters have also been acquiring more technology (laptops and tablets) to accommodate online learning for their child residents and to keep up with the dawning era of Zoom meets. (Ernestine's WS, 2020) Funding is tight and many cases are turned away for lack of resources, but a sheltered woman and her children remain safe, confidential and cared for.
While Canada as a whole has an appalling reputation with gender-based violence and Indigenous woman-directed violence, we can find comfort in the sensibility and lack of bureaucracy within each individual shelter. (Government of Canada, 2018) As Ernestine’s so loving states on their website, they are an intersectionally femenist, anti-oppressive organization; they are community-run and owned like most other shelters.
This pandemic has got nothing against women-loving frameworks!
Hand over the resources!
Organizations combatting gender-violence and sexual assault are notoriously underfunded. Here are some handy-dandy next steps (donations or otherwise) for all interested readers to pursue!
Ernestine's Women’s Shelter:
Crisis line: 416-746-3701
TTY line: 416-746-3716
Find a shelter near you:
If you are contemplating whether or not to reach out, don’t hesitate! There are varying degrees of contact. You don’t need to be in immediate danger to seek shelter support.
Donations:
Find a shelter near you; donate to your local shelter
Go the extra mile:
Additional Cited/Referenced Sources:
Canada, P. (2018, May 31). Government of Canada. Retrieved March 11, 2021, from https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/health-promotion/stop-family-violence/problem-canada.html
Ernestine's, WS. (Director). (2020, October 16). Ernestine's shelter tour video [Video file]. Retrieved March 11, 2021, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmibCrrDbUg&t=25s
Ernestine's, WS. We are. Retrieved March 11, 2021, from https://ernestines.ca/
Government of Canada, S. (2020, October 28). About gender-based violence. Retrieved March 11, 2021, from https://cfc-swc.gc.ca/violence/knowledge-connaissance/about-apropos-en.html
Khan, F. (2021, January 04). Summaries: Statistics Canada's recent reports On Gbv and public safety. Retrieved March 11, 2021, from https://www.couragetoact.ca/blog/statscansummaries
Press, T. (2020, November 25). Canada-wide survey of women's Shelters Shows abuse more severe during pandemic. Retrieved March 11, 2021, from https://nationalpost.com/pmn/news-pmn/canada-news-pmn/canada-wide-survey-of-womens-shelters-shows-abuse-more-severe-during-pandemic
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