Direct service Volunteer at
Call to safety
TRIGGER WARNING: This page contains information about domestic violence, sexual assault, sex trafficking, stalking and/or violence which may be triggering to survivors.
Welcome to my Weebly page!
My name is Nara Gerelt-Od, and I am a student at Portland State University, taking a Senior Capstone, Effective Change Agent course for Summer 2019. I am volunteering at Call to Safety , a nonprofit organization in Portland that provide resources and support for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assaulting, stalking, and sex trafficking to give hope and support for the survivors who are hurt, broken and scarred, and to give them the tools they need to get to a better place. I am a survivor of domestic violence and I strongly believe that every survivor of domestic violence, sexual assault, sex trafficking, and stalking deserves a safe place to thrive and an unconditional support to heal, so I am really glad and happy that I've had the opportunity to volunteer at Call to Safety.
In this Weebly page that I have created, I will go through the history and background of Call to Safety, how the organization see and feel about the survivors, how I became a volunteer for their direct services advocacy, and how I feel about volunteering at Call to Safety. You might be seeing that I am calling folks who experienced domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and sex trafficking "survivors" instead of "victims" because this is a term that I feel like is more empowering and attaches strength to people who experienced violence. Call to Safety also uses the term "survivors" in their advocacy.
My name is Nara Gerelt-Od, and I am a student at Portland State University, taking a Senior Capstone, Effective Change Agent course for Summer 2019. I am volunteering at Call to Safety , a nonprofit organization in Portland that provide resources and support for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assaulting, stalking, and sex trafficking to give hope and support for the survivors who are hurt, broken and scarred, and to give them the tools they need to get to a better place. I am a survivor of domestic violence and I strongly believe that every survivor of domestic violence, sexual assault, sex trafficking, and stalking deserves a safe place to thrive and an unconditional support to heal, so I am really glad and happy that I've had the opportunity to volunteer at Call to Safety.
In this Weebly page that I have created, I will go through the history and background of Call to Safety, how the organization see and feel about the survivors, how I became a volunteer for their direct services advocacy, and how I feel about volunteering at Call to Safety. You might be seeing that I am calling folks who experienced domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and sex trafficking "survivors" instead of "victims" because this is a term that I feel like is more empowering and attaches strength to people who experienced violence. Call to Safety also uses the term "survivors" in their advocacy.
I really hope that this page is going to be helpful in making awareness of the violence that are happening in our society, leave a space to think about what we as the members of the society can do to support others who are experiencing violence and provide a list of resources that can be helpful for those in need.
About Call to safety
Information listed below are from CalltoSafety.org
- Founded in 1973 by a group of women concerned about the prevalence of sexual assault in the community, the Portland Women’s Crisis Line (PWCL) was one of the first five sexual violence crisis lines in the United States. After more than 40 years of service as PWCL, the organization started to embrace a new identity as Call to Safety.
- The organization's new identity as Call to Safety reflects who they are and what they do:
- Call to Safety supports individuals of all genders;
- The 24/7 crisis line is just one of the core services along with sexual assault services, follow-up advocacy, and community outreach and education.
- Call to Safety is not just a social service agency – they were founded as a social change organization. They are dedicated to support those who experience violence in empowering themselves while working to end the oppressions at the root of violence (like racism, sexism, transmisogyny, and ableism).
CALL TO SAFETY's core values |
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EMPOWERMENT
Call to Safety believe survivors and work to support individuals in empowering themselves as they seek safety and healing. Call to Safety's approach centers on supporting individuals in gaining power and control over their lives in ways that draw on their experiences, trust their instincts, and build on their strengths. The outreach and education programs dispel misconceptions and empower community members to dismantle societal and institutionalized oppression. The organization acknowledges the impact that vicarious trauma has on the organization’s members and community partners. So they celebrate the exposure to vicarious resilience and sustain themselves by bringing humor, love, and a joyful spirit to each other on this journey.
SURVIVOR-LED SERVICES
Call to Safety advocates work from empowerment, trauma informed, and strengths-based models. Through these models, the advocates meet survivors where they are and trust that they know the best path for themselves towards safety and well-being. The services offer individuals a safe, non-judgmental space to be heard and heal from trauma. The advocates believe that each survivor is the expert of their own life and they support survivors in making decisions they identify as the right choices for their individual needs. The staff and volunteers, many of whom identify as survivors themselves, play a vital role in the way they interact with the community around us.
SOCIAL JUSTICE
As advocates for oppressed communities they align our actions with intersectional feminist, anti-oppressive, and economic justice principles. The organization is committed to putting equity at the forefront of the work by becoming an anti-racist organization that values inclusive programming, recognizes complex barriers, and values diverse individual and community strengths. The advocates encourage the organization’s members to be mindful of their intersecting positions of privilege and oppression. They recognize the importance of developing critical thinking and taking action. Regular staff members are required to use paid time to participate in racial justice community work. With an economic justice lens they acknowledge the need for improved staff compensation and benefits.
COMMUNITY EDUCATION
Call to Safety is committed to ending oppression by mobilizing our community toward activism for a thriving future. Whenever possible, they provide prevention and outreach information to the community at large. By building relationships with others, the organization nurture learning opportunities and inspire positive change within the organization, institutions, and communities. They recognize the importance of fostering relationships with the media to raise awareness about violence against all people.
MUTUAL SUPPORT & UNITY
In solidarity with domestic and sexual violence organizations, government programs, and other community organizations, they work toward a common goal of ending violence and oppression. They realize that we are all imperfect, well-intentioned human beings trying to make a difference. With this in mind, they agree to take risks, work outside of their comfort zones, listen deeply, ask questions, and support each other in this difficult work.
Call to Safety believe survivors and work to support individuals in empowering themselves as they seek safety and healing. Call to Safety's approach centers on supporting individuals in gaining power and control over their lives in ways that draw on their experiences, trust their instincts, and build on their strengths. The outreach and education programs dispel misconceptions and empower community members to dismantle societal and institutionalized oppression. The organization acknowledges the impact that vicarious trauma has on the organization’s members and community partners. So they celebrate the exposure to vicarious resilience and sustain themselves by bringing humor, love, and a joyful spirit to each other on this journey.
SURVIVOR-LED SERVICES
Call to Safety advocates work from empowerment, trauma informed, and strengths-based models. Through these models, the advocates meet survivors where they are and trust that they know the best path for themselves towards safety and well-being. The services offer individuals a safe, non-judgmental space to be heard and heal from trauma. The advocates believe that each survivor is the expert of their own life and they support survivors in making decisions they identify as the right choices for their individual needs. The staff and volunteers, many of whom identify as survivors themselves, play a vital role in the way they interact with the community around us.
SOCIAL JUSTICE
As advocates for oppressed communities they align our actions with intersectional feminist, anti-oppressive, and economic justice principles. The organization is committed to putting equity at the forefront of the work by becoming an anti-racist organization that values inclusive programming, recognizes complex barriers, and values diverse individual and community strengths. The advocates encourage the organization’s members to be mindful of their intersecting positions of privilege and oppression. They recognize the importance of developing critical thinking and taking action. Regular staff members are required to use paid time to participate in racial justice community work. With an economic justice lens they acknowledge the need for improved staff compensation and benefits.
COMMUNITY EDUCATION
Call to Safety is committed to ending oppression by mobilizing our community toward activism for a thriving future. Whenever possible, they provide prevention and outreach information to the community at large. By building relationships with others, the organization nurture learning opportunities and inspire positive change within the organization, institutions, and communities. They recognize the importance of fostering relationships with the media to raise awareness about violence against all people.
MUTUAL SUPPORT & UNITY
In solidarity with domestic and sexual violence organizations, government programs, and other community organizations, they work toward a common goal of ending violence and oppression. They realize that we are all imperfect, well-intentioned human beings trying to make a difference. With this in mind, they agree to take risks, work outside of their comfort zones, listen deeply, ask questions, and support each other in this difficult work.
Survivors evaluation: The advocates at call to safety are good at...
- Give each caller space and listen deeply.
- Use a soft, caring tone of voice that is not scripted.
- Encourage survivors to call back any time, 24/7.`````
- Engage in creative problem solving to help survivors find direction even when resources are unavailable.
- Be honest about the availability of potential resources.
- Use the ‘warm handoff’ technique whenever possible to connect survivors to other resources.
- Use a soft, caring tone of voice that is not scripted.
- Encourage survivors to call back any time, 24/7.`````
- Engage in creative problem solving to help survivors find direction even when resources are unavailable.
- Be honest about the availability of potential resources.
- Use the ‘warm handoff’ technique whenever possible to connect survivors to other resources.
The process of becoming a volunteer at CALL TO SAFETY
As a student majoring in Psychology and trying to get into a PsyD program to become a psychologist, I knew that I needed some field experience. So I Googled some volunteer jobs that are useful towards goal of getting into a graduate school, and I found the online application for individuals wanting to become a crisis line volunteer. After I submitted my application, the volunteer coordinator at Call to Safety reached out for an interview. During the interview, I was asked about my own understanding of domestic violence, sexual assault, my own life experience with domestic violence, and why I wanted to become a volunteer. After I got accepted, I went on to start my Basic Advocacy Training, a training that is required for all volunteers to volunteer at Call to Safety.
Starting from the basics: Basic advocacy training
As someone who came from another country and trying to be a volunteer at a crisis line, I needed to learn things from the scratch. It was important to learn the differences between the community-based definitions and legal definitions of domestic violence and sexual assault, and how prevalent these types of violence are in our society. By listing definitions, myths, and prevalence of domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking, I really hope that it will help make people become aware that these are huge issues in our society, and these types of violence are perpetrated by victim-blaming, male-dominant, and toxic-masculine culture that we live in.
The information listed below are from Oregon Coalition against Domestic and Sexual Violence.
Domestic violence: definitions and myths
MYTH: Domestic violence is not very common
FACT: 1 in every 4 women will be victims of DV in their lifetime. 3 women are killed by a current or former partner each day in the U.S. Approximately 37% of women seeking injury-related medical treatment in hospital emergency rooms were there because of injuries inflicted by a current or former spouse/partner.
MYTH: Men are just as likely as women to experience abuse and women are just as abusive as men.
FACT: Women are much more likely than men to be victimized by a current or former intimate partner. Women make up 84 percent of spouse abuse victims and 86 percent of victims of abuse at the hands of a boyfriend or girlfriend. Meanwhile, men make up 75 percent of the persons who commit family violence.
MYTH: Domestic violence only happens in low-income families.
FACT: Domestic violence happens in all kinds of families, rich and poor, urban, suburban and rural. Domestic violence happens in every part of the country and in every racial, religious, and age group.
MYTH: Alcohol and drugs cause domestic violence.
FACT: Alcohol and drugs do not cause domestic violence. Domestic violence is a choice. Many abusers will make sure they have alcohol or drugs on hand, in order to use them as an excuse for their actions. Abusers will also claim their actions resulted because they could not have the alcohol or drugs.
MYTH: Domestic violence is an anger control issue.
FACT: Domestic violence has nothing to do with anger. Anger is a tool abusers use to get what they want. Abusers are very much in control. They can stop the abuse when someone knocks on the door or the phone rings; they often direct punches and kicks to parts of the body where the bruises are less likely to show; and they are not abusing everyone who makes them angry, but they wait until there are no witnesses and abuse the ones they say they love.
FACT: 1 in every 4 women will be victims of DV in their lifetime. 3 women are killed by a current or former partner each day in the U.S. Approximately 37% of women seeking injury-related medical treatment in hospital emergency rooms were there because of injuries inflicted by a current or former spouse/partner.
MYTH: Men are just as likely as women to experience abuse and women are just as abusive as men.
FACT: Women are much more likely than men to be victimized by a current or former intimate partner. Women make up 84 percent of spouse abuse victims and 86 percent of victims of abuse at the hands of a boyfriend or girlfriend. Meanwhile, men make up 75 percent of the persons who commit family violence.
MYTH: Domestic violence only happens in low-income families.
FACT: Domestic violence happens in all kinds of families, rich and poor, urban, suburban and rural. Domestic violence happens in every part of the country and in every racial, religious, and age group.
MYTH: Alcohol and drugs cause domestic violence.
FACT: Alcohol and drugs do not cause domestic violence. Domestic violence is a choice. Many abusers will make sure they have alcohol or drugs on hand, in order to use them as an excuse for their actions. Abusers will also claim their actions resulted because they could not have the alcohol or drugs.
MYTH: Domestic violence is an anger control issue.
FACT: Domestic violence has nothing to do with anger. Anger is a tool abusers use to get what they want. Abusers are very much in control. They can stop the abuse when someone knocks on the door or the phone rings; they often direct punches and kicks to parts of the body where the bruises are less likely to show; and they are not abusing everyone who makes them angry, but they wait until there are no witnesses and abuse the ones they say they love.
Sexual assault: Definitions, myths, PREVALENCE
Community based definitions of sexual violence
- Sexual Assault includes a wide range of victimization, distinct from rape or attempted rape. These crimes include completed or attempted attacks generally involving unwanted sexual contact between the victim and offender. Sexual assaults may or may not involve force and include such things as grabbing or fondling. Sexual assault also includes verbal threats.
- Rape is forced or coerced penetration of a person’s vagina or anus no matter how slight, or any forced or coerced contact between the mouth, genitals, or anus.
- Incest is sexual contact between family members.
- Sexual Harassment “includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature in the workplace or learning environment, according to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Sexual harassment does not always have to be specifically about sexual behavior or directed at a specific person.
Oregon legal definitions of sexual assault, sexual abuse, and consent
- Sexual assault: Any unwanted sexual contact.
- Sexual abuse: Sexual contact with a) a person who does not consent to the sexual contact or b) a person who is considered incapable of consenting to a sexual act
Prevalence of sexual violence
- Sexual Assault includes a wide range of victimization, distinct from rape or attempted rape. These crimes include completed or attempted attacks generally involving unwanted sexual contact between the victim and offender. Sexual assaults may or may not involve force and include such things as grabbing or fondling. Sexual assault also includes verbal threats.
- Rape is forced or coerced penetration of a person’s vagina or anus no matter how slight, or any forced or coerced contact between the mouth, genitals, or anus.
- Incest is sexual contact between family members.
- Sexual Harassment “includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical harassment of a sexual nature in the workplace or learning environment, according to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Sexual harassment does not always have to be specifically about sexual behavior or directed at a specific person.
Oregon legal definitions of sexual assault, sexual abuse, and consent
- Sexual assault: Any unwanted sexual contact.
- Sexual abuse: Sexual contact with a) a person who does not consent to the sexual contact or b) a person who is considered incapable of consenting to a sexual act
Prevalence of sexual violence
- In the U.S., 1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men report experiences of rape in their lifetime.
- Most studies reveal that approximately 50% of people who identify as trans* experience sexual violence at some point in their lives.
- Oregon has the second highest percentage of adult women who report being survivors of sexual violence.
- The majority of sexual violence perpetrators are male, regardless of the sex of the victim, and the majority of survivors are female.
- The majority of perpetrators, 80-90%, are known to their victims.
Sex work: definition and Call to safety's mission
Call to Safety believes it is essential to offer non-judgmental services to people who work in the sex trade and the communities in which they live. The advocates support sex workers where they are at and use a harm reduction and empowerment model. They affirm that sex workers themselves are the primary agents of reducing the potential risk of their trade and the advocates seek to empower them to share information and support each other in harm reduction strategies most relevant to their current situations.
The advocates use terms like Sex Work, Sex Trade, Commercial Sex Industry, Prostitution and Survival Sex to mean exchanging sex for need or money. This occurs in many situations, including prostitution, pornography, stripping, escort services, lingerie modeling, massage parlors and any other venue in which sex is exchanged or traded for money or survival needs.
The advocates use terms like Sex Work, Sex Trade, Commercial Sex Industry, Prostitution and Survival Sex to mean exchanging sex for need or money. This occurs in many situations, including prostitution, pornography, stripping, escort services, lingerie modeling, massage parlors and any other venue in which sex is exchanged or traded for money or survival needs.
stalking: definition and PREVALENCE
Stalking is a pattern of behavior directed at a specific individual that would put a reasonable person in fear. The term “stalking” is commonly used to describe specific kinds of behavior directed at a particular person, such as harassment or threats.
Stalkers might:
Stalkers might:
- Follow the victim and show up wherever they are.
- Send unwanted gifts, letters, cards, or e-mails.
- Damage the victim’s home, car, or other property.
- Monitor the victim’s phone calls or computer use.
- Use technology, like hidden cameras or global positioning systems (GPS), to track where the victim goes.
- Drive by or hang out at the victim’s home, school, or work.
- Threaten to hurt the victim, their family, friends, or pets.
- Find information about the victim by using public records or online search services, hiring investigators, going through the garbage, or contacting friends, family, neighbors, or co-workers.
- Post information or spread rumors about the victim on the Internet, in a public place, or by word of mouth.
Prevalence:
- 7.5 million people are stalked in one year in the United States.
- Over 85% of stalking victims are stalked by someone they know.
- 61% of female victims and 44% of male victims of stalking are stalked by a current or former intimate partner.
- 25% of female victims and 32% of male victims of stalking are stalked by an acquaintance.
- About 1 in 5 of stalking victims are stalked by a stranger.
- Persons aged 18-24 years experience the highest rate of stalking.
- 11% of stalking victims have been stalked for 5 years or more.
- 46% of stalking victims experience at least one unwanted contact per week.
Since I was young, I was taught about the idea of "Stranger danger" from my parents. Strangers can be dangerous; however, my life experience and the information above told me that I could be in an unsafe situation because of a person that I know, I knew, or even I love. Also, regarding the statistics that are presented above, the numbers are fully NOT representative of the actual numbers of violence that are happening because these kinds of violence are UNDER-REPORTED.
Training: shadow shifts, online webinar
After 40+ hours of in-person Basic Advocacy training, a few shadow shifts with staff and survivors on the crisis line ,and online training, I started taking calls directly from the survivors on the line.
What an ideal crisis line call looks like: Things that I have to do on the crisis line
1. Making sure that the caller is in a safe place to talk
It is important to ask whether the caller is in a safe space to talk because it is dangerous to speak on the phone when there is the abuser or a person, that is making the caller unsafe, in the same space with the caller. If so, the advocates on the phone ask the caller to call back when it is safer for the caller, or ask the caller to call 911 if the situation is dangerous.
2. Active-listening and providing emotional support (paraphrasing, validating, reframing, normalizing)
We have to hear what the callers are saying without making judgments because it is important for them to feel listened to and validated. It is usually helpful in deescalating the emotions and feelings.
3. Providing resource information and referrals
Most of the callers call the crisis line for resources. At Call to Safety, we provide shelter spaces, motel and transportation vouchers, support groups, information regarding legal documents like protective orders, housing related information, hospital response, and follow-up advocacy. However, it sucks that we have very limited resources and not everyone that calls us receive the resource that they need. Therefore, it is important to safety-plan and validate the caller when resources are unavailable and encourage them to call the line back.
4. Safety planning
We engage in creative problem solving to help survivors find direction even when resources are unavailable. It's important to make plans together so that the caller have plans to stay safe and move to a safer space.
5. Making self-care plans
We also ask the callers about their self-care plan because it is really important to take care of ourselves when in difficult situations. Sometimes we help them to think about some ideas of self-care.
As I have mentioned, these are the list of things that the advocates on the line usually do, but depending on the caller and the situation that the caller is in, the call can go in a different direction. It would be lying if I say that every call ends with a positive result. The advocates do get hung up by the caller due to frustration, and there are times where we get yelled and sworn at. That's why we as advocates also have to take care of ourselves after calls and each shift.
How I feel about this volunteer work
Taking calls on the crisis line could be nerve-wracking for me sometimes especially when the caller is frustrated or really emotional. I also feel like I have the responsibility to make the caller feel better by validating and deescalating the emotions and feelings, but it doesn't always go as I would like it to. So by doing this volunteer work, I am not only doing an external work that supports survivors, but also an internal work to myself by learning to accept the reality, not taking the frustration of the caller personally, and taking better care of myself mentally, emotionally, and physically. I was never confident in the way that I speak in English, in the way advocate for others; however, through a lot of practice and constant exposure to crisis calls, I am slowly improving and getting better than before, which gives me a hope that I can be a good direct services advocate.
Even though the Senior Capstone class is coming to an end, I will still continue to volunteer at Call to Safety until I get into a graduate school. I am really glad that I am doing to this volunteer work while taking Effective Change Agent, Senior Capstone course because it allowed me to process what I am going through with other empathetic students and instructor and get validation from them, and I was able to help make awareness about domestic and sexual violence and discuss what we can do about them.
Even though the Senior Capstone class is coming to an end, I will still continue to volunteer at Call to Safety until I get into a graduate school. I am really glad that I am doing to this volunteer work while taking Effective Change Agent, Senior Capstone course because it allowed me to process what I am going through with other empathetic students and instructor and get validation from them, and I was able to help make awareness about domestic and sexual violence and discuss what we can do about them.
Resources
Call to Safety- Local: 503.235.5333 or 1.888.235.5333 Call the crisis line 24/7. Always free and confidential.
Portland Metro Resources- https://calltosafety.org/resources/portland-metro-resources/
Domestic Violence: National Resources for More Information-
- National Coalition to End Domestic Violence
- National Domestic Violence Hotline
- Incite!
- National Online Resource Center on Violence Against Women
- RAINN (Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network
- National Sexual Violence Resource Center
- NW Network (resources for Bi, Trans, Lesbian, and Gay survivors)
- WomensHealth.gov
- Stalking Protective Orders in Multnomah County
- STROLL PDX: A by-sex worker, for-sex worker, sex worker run organization dedicated outreach, education, and harm reduction. For information on sex worker support groups, click here.
- Portland Bad Date Line: Created to share and circulate descriptions of harmful people. A bad date is a violent and/or abusive customer in the sex industry. Our hope is that someone would refer to the PBDL as an option to reduce risk for violence, abuse, rape, unwanted pregnancy, and hepatitis/STD and HIV transmission
- Sex Workers Outreach Project, USA: Offering a confidential community support line 1.877.776.2004 – option #1
- Red Light Legal: Provides direct legal services, legal representation, community education, and policy advocacy to sex workers in all corners of the industry. Utilizing harm-reductionist and anti-oppression methodologies,