Tuesday, September 12

doooo it... come on now.... DO IT!

Edited to add:
I had to add an update to this post. Sunshine Scribe has written a great post on the same subject. The stats are mind blowing and she really knows what she's talking about. Please read her post also. All I ask is that we educate each other.

On with the post!:

I love a good challenge, especially when I know I will succeed. I mean come on, if you know you could do it (and seriously, everyone can do this request.... honestly, everyone really can!) why wouldn't you do it? Okay, I can only link to the same thing so many times before it gets annoying (whoops, couldn't resist). Honestly though... do it. Now.

Wait! Read this first:

Recently, HBM put forth the request for readers to "write a post about a cause that you are passionate about". Well duh I guess you already knew that. It's not like I haven't left a gazillion links. Heck now, I've provided enough links to sink a ship.

But seriously, I've been meaning to do something about this (no really, I have) and Bad Mom once again was timely in her posting and inspired me to get it out there.

Back in the day, I was one of kids that always tried to do something, anything really, when I heard about global issues that pierced my heart (the forcing of genital mutilation on girls around the world, Father Abe in India asking us to raise money to build a new school so the girls of the village have a place to learn and the famine in Ethiopia are the ones that I remember vividly). Thankfully I was lucky enough to go to a school run by the Sisters of Charity and they were a feisty bunch. In another post I will regale with some marches we went on, lead by Sister Peters and Sister Heff but I will save that for another time.

If there was an issue to be pressed, Sister Heff knew I was the kid to hit to get the word moving. She introduced me to Amnesty International and showed me how little ol' me, at 4 foot nothin' and 70 pounds soaking wet, could make a difference. That's right. Me. I could make that difference.

So when HBM made the call for causes close to my heart, two causes instantly came to mind: violence against women and AI.

I have someone very close to me (well she was, until he came along and quietly, connivingly, isolated her) who is living in hell (the hell he's made for her). She hasn't found the strength (yet) but I'll always be here to hold her when she finally leaves him. I don't want to be identifying her body instead. I'm not joking. I'm sure it will be one way or the other. I'm not comfortable talking about this but I need you to understand how much this cause means to me. Sometimes it's all I can do.

So please take the time to read Amnesty's Stop the Violence campaign. Think of your sisters near and far, the ones right next door and the ones in places you've never been. Go here to find out about ways you can make a difference. Yes. YOU. You can make the difference.

Women in ALL countries are facing violence from so many fronts. They are mutilated, raped, beaten down and so little seems to be done.

Take the time to read about:
  • 10,000 voices they have got 2100 so far, your name will make a difference here.
  • Stolen Sisters how many Indigenous Canadian women must die before someone takes action?
You can do so much from the place you sit right now.

Yes. You.

You can make the difference.

Go make Sister Heff proud.


metro mama said...

Thanks for this.

We missed you last week!

Lisa b said...

That is a great cause. Thanks for letting me know about it. I have signed the petition and passed it on to friends I know will do the same. You are making a difference already!

Mother Bumper said...

YOU ROCK! I hoped to get one more on board and you have helped me succeed. Now let's see if we can exceed (I couldn't resist the poetry of all that).


sunshine scribe said...

GREAT cause ... the post I am putting up tomorrow is on the same issue and I will link to you (I work for a charity that is helping women who experience violence).

If you want some info/resources for your friend - please email me and I'll direct you to some websites and numbers that could be helpful. I'll also send a few of my friends who know much more than I do (I am not a counsellor) to visit here and share some info.

Thanks for writing this! I went and signed up on the Amnesty's site even before I left this comment.

YOU rock!

Bri said...

Thanks for the post. I hope your friend makes it through. This issue means alot to me as well. As it should for all women!

kittenpie said...

You're right, it is all too commonplace, so much so that it is often ignored.

I'm so sorry to hear of your friend - I hope she can draw strength from you to get her through until she can make the move to leave. having someone to go to may be the thing that saves her. Good for you, mama.

Amber said...

Your friend needs to know she has a way out, to get out. help let her know that you can help her, and exactly how that can happen... A place to stay, money to get away, ect. She needs a plan. Most abused women just don't have a way out, and fear freezes them in place. Support is what she needs, and the action you speak of. I wish you and her all the best! It is a horrible thing, I know. My mom and were forced to run and hide from her abusive husband, when I was a child. And I firmly believe that if he hadn't been killed in a blessed accident, he woud have found her and killed us. We needed help to get away, and to hide. Thank God for those people.


something blue said...

I feel for you and your friend. That is a heartbreakingly scary situation.

I forgot to include AI on my list. I should have done a Thursday Thirty instead of Thirteen. Thank you for the reminder of these excellent causes.

vania said...

I agree with what Amber wrote - and i would also add that you too need to take care of yourself. Sometimes friends and families of the woman don't realize what she is going through. There are SO many reasons why a woman can't just leave her abuser; even though people are so quick to say 'she's an adult, she can just leave' this is so not the case. Your friend is lucky to have someone like you, someone who won't give up on her and who won't disappear on her. That's what the abuser wants you to do. Even though sometimes it can be heard on you to watch, take time to care for yourself - that can act as a model for her. Find creative ways to communicate with her - if she needs you she can leave a 'sign' by a window, or you can call her when he's not there, etc. Surviving abuse means being creative and truly knowing the abuser's habits/routine.
Good luck!And thanks for this powerful post.