YWCA seeks to curb domestic violence through intervention
Oklahoma continues to lead the nation in female incarceration in 2018 — a dubious distinction the state has owned for more than 25 years, according to The Bureau of Justice Statistics.
In 2015, more children were abused or neglected by foster parents in Oklahoma than any other state in the nation, according to a child maltreatment report released by the federal government.
A 2014 study ranks Oklahoma fifth-worst among states in the percentage of children under 18 who are homeless, according to the American Institutes for Research, a nonpartisan research group based in Washington, D.C. And the list goes on. YWCA Oklahoma City CEO Jan Peery believes these statistics can improve if Oklahomans address the root problem of domestic violence in the state.
“In Oklahoma we rank the worst — whether that’s top or bottom — we’re at the worst of the spectrum. And yet, we’re still not dealing with the systemic cause of most of those, which is domestic violence,” she said. “It is seen as the major precursor for child abuse and neglect and the best predictor of juvenile delinquency and adult criminal behavior. Even if we don’t want to think about the adult side of the equation … we need to start looking at the impact on the children.”
The YWCA seeks to intervene in the cycle of domestic violence through trauma services, an emergency shelter, forensic exams, transitional housing, children’s services, career counseling and numerous other programs.
“Our mission is eliminating racism and empowering women. In Oklahoma City, most of what we do around those issues is services to victims of domestic violence … sexual assault and stalking. And we also do some training around social justice.
But probably the majority of our services are victim-centered. We know the impact of that in our state,” Peery said.
“When you look at it, this has an impact on almost everything else in our society. Knowing that, we try to get the services and the messaging out to the community and let them know that this is impacting child abuse and neglect. It impacts our mental health and substance abuse and incarceration of women.”
And the numbers are increasing.
“We’re seeing our numbers grow. Two years ago, we opened our new shelter where we more than doubled, almost tripled the number that we can house, and we still stay pretty full. On almost any given day, we are full,” Peery said.
“We also are part of the family justice center, Palomar, (a consortium of agencies that provide services to victims of domestic violence). We’re one of the founding partners of that,” she said. “In November alone, the numbers showed there were 600 people who came to Palomar, and our agency saw 500 of those 600.”
To accommodate growing numbers, Peery said the organization is looking for partnerships that can help augment staff and provide services to more women.
“We are looking at how to expand staffing, because that is an issue. But we also are looking at how to expand capacity … so we’re looking for partnerships. We’re working with a group of law students to help us with some services like writing VPOs and things like that. So, we’re always looking for those opportunities,” she said.
“We also are working very hard on educating the community. We have a director of specialized training who goes in and trains businesses. We create a safe space for victims, and we know that the more communities create that safe space, the better the opportunity we’ll have to reduce (domestic violence and abuse). I believe that’s our next step. And so for the last two years, we really have focused on trying to gain the attention of business owners.”
Fundraising
To help fund its efforts, the YWCA recently hosted its Fearless K running event. Held during Sexual Assault Awareness Month, the annual event seeks to show support for survivors of this domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking.
The organization’s chief fundraiser, the Purple Sash Gala is set for 7 p.m. June 23 at the Criterion Event Center, 500 E Sheridan Ave.
The black tie optional event features a dinner with auction, silent auction and a New York-style runway fashion show. Individual tickets are $250 are include admission to the After Sash after party beginning at 9:30 p.m.
The organization will host its Engaging Men breakfast in August, designed to involve business leaders in learning about the effects of sexual and domestic assault on their employees, friends and family members.
And in December, it will sponsor the Women Who Care Share luncheon, which provides an opportunity for community leaders to come together in support of survivors and victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking.
YWCA Oklahoma City is the only certified provider of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking services in Oklahoma County.