Criminal Justice Response of Intimate Partner Violence and Visible Minorities May 8, 2008 Workshop on Vulnerabilities and Criminal Justice Processing of Intimate Partner Violence Department of Criminology University of Ottawa Presented by Mohammed Baobaid Changing Ways London Ontario

Identifying the Problem  The complexity of the IPV within visible minority groups  How far is too far in considering ethno- cultural aspects  Balancing between considering ethno-cultural factors and not using them as excuse for IPV

Working Assumptions Intimate partner violence (IPV) is unacceptable behaviour and must be stopped IPV is a universal problem that exists every where regardless of culture, ethnicity, religion etc. IPV is a complex phenomena that needs comprehensive, diverse and culturally competent intervention and strategies

Understanding the complexity of Intimate Partner Violence in Minority Communities Key aspects to consider are:  Cultural aspects  Migration experiences

Understanding the complexity of Intimate Partner Violence in Minority Communities continue…  Cultural aspects:  What does culture do? (Peter Jaffe) Culture shapes an individual’s experience of domestic violence. Culture shapes the batterer’s response to intervention and acceptance of responsibility. Culture shapes access to other services that might be crucial for adult victim, the children and the perpetrator. The culture of the courtroom, the victims and the perpetrator will impact outcome.

Understanding the complexity of Intimate Partner Violence in Minority Communities continue… Cultural aspects:  Gender and family relationships Example: Arab and Muslim heritage is based on shared loyalty and strong family and kinship bonds The family protects both individuals and family and usually provides for their needs by preserving this broad network of family relations One’s self image, esteem, excellence, security and identity are evaluated on the basis of their relationship with family

Understanding the complexity of Intimate Partner Violence in Minority Communities continue… At time of stability and crises, a family’s reputation and honour take precedence over other considerations Denial of family support can damage the individual’s self confidence, causes worry and anxiety about the possibility of coping with the demands of life, and bring exclusion by other members of the family – Inter and intra community interaction The interaction within the community regarding IPV Responses to the intervention of main steam services regarding IPV

Understanding the complexity of Intimate Partner Violence in Minority Communities continue… Migration aspects: – Pre-migration trauma experiences – Post-migration experiences (settlement and integration experiences etc.) – Immigration status

Community Experiences in Building Bridges to better Address IPV Barriers Identified by Muslim Women women view existing social services as being “outside” women fear isolation and being judged within their first community of choice for seeking “outside” help women fear that mainstream service providers may not understand their values, perspectives, and unique needs and dilemmas

Community Experiences in Building Bridges to better Address IPV Cycle of Producing and Reproducing Barriers and Isolation for Muslim Abused Women Prevent Muslim abused women from seeking outside help Negative thoughts about any outreach work of mainstream services Negative feelings among Muslims towards integration Negative Stereotypical attitudes towards Muslims

Community Experiences in Building Bridges to better Address IPV Building Bridges: Working with Muslim Communities to Address Violence Against Women Safe environment for abused women to ask for out help Collaboration and partnership based actions Building Trust Building mutual understanding

The Muslim Family Safety Project Model What is the Muslim Family Safety Project? A project that seeks to address domestic violence in the Muslim communities of London, Ontario It is a collaborative project between local Muslim communities and the London Coordinating Committee to End Woman Abuse (LCCEWA) It is a community development project based on active participation and partnership It seeks to ensure the safety of Muslim women experiencing violence in the home and their children It seeks to develop appropriate and effective preventions and interventions strategies

Challenges the definition and use of culturally appropriate criminal justice responses the working with the family as a site of prevention and intervention the use of different discourses or stories to talk about intimate partner violence Identify representative of minority communities

Final Thoughts and Suggestions for Future Directions Theoretically: * important to employ an intersectional and contextual approach to understanding lived realities and worldviews In Praxis: * important to create spaces for participation, open discussion and listening; to allow for non-stigmatizing dialogue * important to develop approaches that are culturally appropriate/responsive; meaning that they take into consideration the values, experiences, perspectives of visible minorities

Final Thoughts and Suggestions for Future Directions Early identifications of risk factors related to pre-and post migration experiences and associated with domestic violence Integrate public education programs for new immigrants within the settlement and integration programs Build more comprehensive and responsive integration strategies by including representative of minority groups in the process of planning and implementing Developing culturally competent training programs for immigration officers and settlement and integration workers to help them identify warning signs of risk factors associated with intimate partner violence Put more efforts in prevention and early identification and intervention