Spotlight On

Sakhi for South Asian Women is a community-based organization in the New York metropolitan area committed to ending the exploitation and violence against women of South Asian origin. Recognizing oppression based on class, immigration status, religion, and sexual orientation, we work to empower women, particularly survivors of domestic violence. Sakhi strives to create a voice and safe environment for all South Asian women through outreach, advocacy, leadership development, and organizing.

Over the past 14 years, Sakhi has responded to more than 4,700 pleas for assistance and mobilized thousands of community members to stand against abuse. From 2001 to 2002, our call volume doubled. In 2003, the average calls per month received increased from 35 to 48. The numbers are shocking since each call represents a woman in need. Sakhi is often the sole sanctuary for women seeking to confront the violence in their lives. Through the support of generous donors and community supporters, Sakhi is able to continue serving women who often have nowhere else to turn.

At Sakhi, we work through an integrated methodology which combines service delivery and referrals, community outreach and education, as well as policy advocacy. Sakhi works through this holistic approach because we believe it is crucial to respond both to individual survivors in need as well as to engage the community and institutions in prevention and intervention work. We believe it is up to the community to end violence. Until that time, Sakhi is here to support individual women and to create community change.

Background:
Sakhi emerged in 1989 through the efforts of five courageous South Asian women. The founding sisters saw a community silent to the struggles of survivors of abuse and institutions unprepared to address the needs of battered immigrant women. From the passion to ensure women's dignity, rights, and the ability to carry out one's dreams, Sakhi crystallized. Sakhi, meaning "woman friend," was established to fill a critical gap - survivors needed to be served and supported, and the community needed to be mobilized. As one survivor in Sakhi's most recent film expressed, "I'm doing this video because what I have been through happens to others as well. And if I found a little bit of courage, then others could also have a little bit of courage and maybe, they could make an effort and also try to stand up for themselves." Our mission is to empower women, particularly survivors of domestic violence, and to build a society where women can live without fear and abuse.

All of the women Sakhi works with are of South Asian origin and hail from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, as well as the larger South Asian Diaspora, such as Guyana, Trinidad, and parts of Africa. Most live within the New York metropolitan area, in addition to New Jersey, Long Island, as well as Westchester and Rockland counties. The women who contact Sakhi are extremely diverse and range in terms of age, religion, years of marriage, ethnic origin, economic and educational background, class, language ability, and immigration status. However, the most vulnerable and the largest number are first-generation immigrant women who are low-income, unaware of their legal rights, have limited resources, and are isolated from family and community support. Their vulnerability and need for Sakhi is even greater for those survivors who cannot speak English.

Sakhi is the only South Asian women's group in New York engaged in coordinated crisis intervention, advocacy, and prevention efforts and one of the select South Asian women's groups with national visibility and leadership. Sakhi provides a safe space for South Asian women to seek emotional support, services, information, and build a network of friendships with others from their own cultural backgrounds who also have experienced violence. Sakhi hosts an annual gala benefit, Celebrating Women's Lives, where community supporters and survivors can rejoice in the strides made to end violence against women individually and across the community. As one survivor commented, "One of the methods of control my abuser would use was to isolate me from people. The gala was a great chance for me to use the communications skills I learnt this summer at the Sakhi Communication Skills Classes. I kept these skills in mind and had such a good time at the gala."

As the sole domestic violence South Asian women's group in New York City, support of our efforts is necessary and critical. Sakhi draws upon public support to conduct our groundbreaking work and we utilize a pool of dedicated volunteers to expand our reach and impact.

Current Programs:
Sakhi is committed to integrating and addressing the issues of women's safety, health, and economic prosperity through our four program areas: Domestic Violence, Community Outreach, Economic Empowerment, and Women's Health Initiative.

The Domestic Violence Program started in recognition of South Asian women's limited access to safety, support, information, and resources. We help women access shelter space, legal representation, medical care, public assistance, and other necessary resources. The program staff, interns, and volunteers assist with court accompaniments, translation, and emotional support. In addition, the program pushes advocacy agendas including the Court Interpreters Project to ensure that limited English proficient survivors of violence can receive fair and accurate interpretation in the courts. In order to achieve justice, women must have a voice in the courts. The Court Interpreters Project works to enable a proper testing, training, and grievance procedures so that survivors can access legal remedies.

Sakhi is fundamentally a social change organization: a significant part of our work includes community organizing and education through our Community Outreach Program. In order to increase awareness, Sakhi conducts workshops on domestic violence; organizes an annual March Against Violence in Jackson Heights, Queens; participates in important events such as the annual India and Pakistan Independence Day parades; produces professional films on domestic violence; publishes a newsletter, Voices of Sakhi (which reaches more than 5,000 individuals); hosts a website (http://www.sakhi.org); and works with the media. Sakhi collaborates with a wide variety of organizations across classes, community constituencies, and gender, including public schools, PTAs, colleges, hospitals, community centers, community leaders, government officials, and corporations in order to spread awareness on abuse and facilitate response.

The primary goal of the Economic Empowerment Program is to enable women to build self-confidence as well as to provide tools to be financially independent and to build a better life for themselves and their children. Sakhi offers basic and advanced computer classes as well as assistance with resume-writing. In addition, Sakhi provides innovative Communication Skills Classes focused on health and financial literacy. Through these courses, survivors of violence learn a range of information such as how to operate computers and programs, sexual health, and budget creation and management. The classes provide a safe learning environment for survivors to build their skills and translate their knowledge into an American context.

The newest of our program areas, the Women's Health Initiative, was started with the recognition that violence against women is a critical public health issue. Survivors of violence have physical and emotional health needs that often go overlooked. The goals of WHI are to educate and inform South Asian women on violence and health and help women to access healthcare as well as to raise awareness about violence against women amongst doctors, health providers, and the community. WHI strives to enable referrals to health care professionals who can provide low-cost or no-cost health services to South Asian women survivors of domestic violence. In addition, WHI conducts health-based presentations which give exposure to the health consequences of abuse.

Funding Needs:
The community must invest in change: Sakhi seeks support from individuals dedicated to ending violence against women and building a safer world. As more women seek Sakhi's assistance, we strive for a parallel increasing community response. Sakhi requests general and program-specific support from foundations and corporations, as well as sponsorships for our annual gala, to continue our innovative work. Sakhi receives matching gifts and United Way contributions. Finally, Sakhi values in-kind donations including professional services and access to computer labs. To learn about how to give to Sakhi and make change possible, please contact us for further information and materials.

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