Harbor House Serving Diverse Populations

SERVING DIVERSE POPULATIONS
African American Women \| LGBT \| Hispanic Women \| Hmong Women \| Living In A Rural Community \| Older Women

Harbor House Domestic Abuse programs understand that domestic violence victims often face a number of unique challenges. This is especially true for victims of color, rural victims, victims with disabilities, older victims, or for lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender victims.

African American Women: Black women are reluctant to call the police because they see and may have experienced past racial injustice in the criminal system Because black men have been victims of racism, black women, even when they become victims of abuse, sometimes are hesitant to press charges Some black women may be perceived in her community as a "snitch" if she decides to call the police or press charges Some black women are afraid that the "black community" may be perceived by others as "bad" if she reports the abuse it becomes public

LGBT Lesbians, gay, bisexual and transgender victims (LGBT): • Internalized homophobia and decreased self-esteem can lead to staying in relationship. • Threats of ‘outing’. • Threats of stopping transitions for transgender victims. Messing with hormone medication. • LGBT victims have more difficulty finding support services. • The myth prevails that LGBT violence is ‘mutual’. • LGBT victims may know few or no other LGBT people; leaving the abuser could mean total isolation. (The LGBT community is surprisingly small.) • There is no clear language to talk about abuse and rape in LGBT relationships.

Hispanic Women • For immigrant and undocumented women, in particular, a fear or threat of deportation or separation from children. • Designated role of wife and mother. It is socially unacceptable to be divorced. • Religious beliefs. • The term “Machismo” refers to excessive masculinity, and most machistas believe in conservative gender role ideas. • Studies show that Hispanic/Latinas “are more concentrated in low-paying, semiskilled occupations than the overall workforce.”

Hmong Women Asian & Pacific Islander: • An unwillingness or hesitance to express their victimization even to people inside the close circle of friends and family. • Gender roles established by cultural and social values are often “tightly prescribed and more rigid.” • It is not uncommon for domestic violence in these communities to include homicides that range from “honor killings, contract killings, dowry-related death; killing of family members in the home country; and being driven by one’s husband and in-laws into committing suicide.” • Issues may arise regarding food, undressing in front of others (in shared living spaces), or the informal habits women often display in exclusively female surroundings that can be uncomfortable and alienate them from shelters and housing programs.

Living In A Rural Community For victims in rural areas: • May have limited phone service. • May have limited transportation options. • May experience long response times for emergency services. • May experience isolation and extended periods alone with an abuser because of extreme weather conditions. • May be part of a farm family, often with one income. • May be an integral part of a family farm business and worried the business will fail if they leave their abuser.

Older Women • May have health/functional problems restricting mobility. • May have an abusive caregiver. • May serve as the caregiver to an abusive partner. • May have no independent source of income. • May be isolated from family members and friends. • May have limited or no experiencing dealing with financial or legal matters. • May feel there are no choices.