FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 18, 2021
FEMINIST SHIFT SEEKS CARING WATERLOO REGION RESIDENTS TO PARTICIPATE IN NETWORK OF NEIGHBOURS VIOLENCE INTERVENTION TRAINING
WATERLOO REGION, Ontario – The Feminist Shift, a coalition led by YW Kitchener-Waterloo and YWCA Cambridge, has just launched their Network of Neighbours Violence Intervention Training with an open call for caring residents to sign up for free training over the summer months.
The training program aims to help people build the knowledge and skills to notice and support a neighbour experiencing interpersonal violence in the home. The workshops explore themes such as understanding the foundation of abuse, recognizing and understanding isolation and other identifiers of abuse, as well as ways of safely intervening and supporting a victim/survivor.
“While we are in and out of lockdown, we have come to be more reliant on those physically closest to us for support. This training is an opportunity for caring neighbours to empower themselves to feel confident stepping up to support someone experiencing home-based violence”- said Elizabeth Clarke, CEO of YW Kitchener-Waterloo.
Jennifer Gordon, Director of Advocacy with YW Kitchener-Waterloo stressed the growing need for this kind of community intervention in light of alarming increases in gender-based violence worldwide, which the UN has declared to be a “shadow pandemic.”
“We know that isolation is the water that grows abuse. Lockdowns and strict stay at home orders, have made it extremely difficult for victims/survivors to access social services and community intervention points. We know more violence is happening and we are hoping that neighbours, those physically closest to potential victims/survivors, might be able to act as that link between the home and help for victims/survivors of home-based violence.
The program will also deliver a free speaker series throughout the summer, featuring high-profile speakers to explore and educate on the intersections of gender-based violence. Recordings of the talks will be available on the Feminist Shift Podcast.
Kim Decker, Executive Director of YWCA Cambridge hopes the training and speaker series will be especially empowering for individuals living in areas of Waterloo Region where social services are a greater challenge to access.
“The need for more support for victims/survivors of abuse, in the form of perhaps a trained neighbour, is especially true for Cambridge and our surrounding townships where social services and non-profit support is more sparse or a greater challenge to get to.”
To learn more or sign up for the Network of Neighbours program, visit thefeministshift.ca/network-of-neighbours/.
For more information: Jennifer Gordon, Director of Advocacy, YW Kitchener-Waterloo, 519-590-5366, jennifer.gordon@ywkw.ca