LCDA CBLC Meeting
Aug 29, 2002
Participants: Cynthia Tobar, Leah Moses, Lois Pokorny, Lorraine Moore, Sheryl , Bonnie Bella, Maria Aymat, Diadra Dyer, Manisha Reddy,Nina Gonzales, Julie Massie, Claudia Barajas, Madeline Moreno, Sister Elsa Margarita, Marta Arambula, Mauri Vigil, Adolfo Morales, Ahmad Saleem, Tim Brittingham, Maria Miller.
Meeting began at 3:10 pm
I. Welcome
Cynthia thanked everyone for attending the meeting. She stated that there are some new attendees to this CBLC meeting while some of the regular members who are generally in attendance could not make it due to other meetings and conferences. She asked the attendees to introduce themselves in order for the new attendees to get to know the regular members of CBLC and vice-versa.
II. Update on Proyecto Cambio
Cynthia once again thanked the members of attending the meeting. She announced that she had tickets for Oklahoma Red Hawks baseball game for those who might be interested.
1. OU Thanks – Ahmad Saleem from Centro de Evalución at the University of Oklahoma thanked the CBLC council members for their participation in the Concept Mapping Project that was held on July 18, 2002. He announced that the second question regarding the perception of IPV/SV among Latino community of Oklahoma City will be cancelled due to time consuming nature of the process despite attempts by the Centro staff efforts to reduce the time that it takes to conduct the brainstorming, ranking, and sorting sessions. This information will be obtain from the qualitative data analyses of the focus group interviews instead. The results from analyzing data that was obtained from the session held on July 18 will be discussed during the next CBLC meeting. Their input will be valuable to LCDA in developing an IPV/SV prevention curriculum. The participants were thanked for giving their time, their patience, and their valuable input.
Comments: It may have been more time saving if the ideas were typed directly into the computer and printed right away to be cut.
Question: Since the data generated was based on CBLC member’s perceptions, how do you control for stereotypes? How you know it is true?
Saleem: It is hard to control for stereotypes on this type of data based on this question. What we are looking for the perceptions of members of community. One way is to control this is that if an idea is persistently ranked low, then it means that the idea may be based on stereotype that the participants did not agree with.
Other participants commented that the input given during the brainstorming session was based on their own experience as being Latino, not stereotypes. Therefore, that is one way the stereotypical ideas can be controlled.
Question: How would you use the strengths in a curriculum?
Saleem: For an example, one idea that was generated regarding the strength of Latino community of Oklahoma City was “family unity.” Now, if this idea is ranked as being a very important strength, then it shows that the focus of the prevention should be on family unity and making things work, not break the family apart if it can be avoided. This is what the Latinos from this community regard as being an important strength.
Comments: I just came back from a conference examining issues facing Latinos. There is a lot of variation from what is important to Latinos from region to region.
Saleem: The aim here is to build a curriculum to address the needs of the Latino community for Oklahoma City, based on what they see their unique needs are. That is why we are not taking prevention curriculums from other parts of the country and use it in this community because that curriculum may have been developed on needs that may be different from those that exist in this community.
2. Amigos Unidos por la Paz Vigilia (Friends United for Peace Vigil).
Leah: The 2nd Annual Peace vigil will be held at LCDA. (Leah passed around fliers that are being developed for the vigil). The first flier is about the vigil and the second flier is about an art contest because LCDA is incorporating art work and poetry into the vigil this year. The vigil will be held on Oct. 24, from 5:30 pm until 7:30 pm. There will be two speakers at the vigil. First, Teresa Randon will talk about IPV and domestic violence, and provide statistics to inform people about the problem. Next, a domestic violence survivor who is a member of the Latino community is going to provide testimony regarding her experience with domestic violence. She will also becoming a member of CBLC and she will be joining us in this meeting later today. The featured artist is Meredith Black who is a rape survivor herself in domestic violence and her art focuses on sexual violence. She also writes poetry and incorporates it into her artwork. An art competition also will be held where artwork by youth addressing the topic of Intimate Partner Violence will be displayed.
Cynthia: Her artwork is very powerful and hopefully people by seeing her art will empathize with the victims and the problems that they face.
Leah: LCDA will like to invite all the CBLC members to attend the vigil, and to read a poem in either in Spanish or English. Appropriate poems are being searched for this occasion. LCDA also wants to invite the CBLC members to help in judging the art work that will be presented by the participants. LCDA is also looking for assistance with the donation of prizes such as scholarships and such for the winners. Since funding for arts is very limited, LCDA would welcome donations for art material. There has been some donations made but more material is needed. The vigil would involve both the Latino and the extended community since this problem addresses every community.
Comment: It will be great to be able to coordinate media coverage for the event and to have articles on domestic violence for month in a newspaper.
Cynthia: We are trying to organize things using various media outlets. Having the Linkage Council to read poems in English and Spanish will show that people are working together to address this issue.
Comment: When the fliers are complete, the can be posted on the notice board in the parish to inform the attendees.
Leah: Do you like the idea after knowing what you know about the event, would you like to attend.
All the participants acknowledged that they will attempt to attend the event.
Question: What does the word ‘vigil’ means to you?
Leah: It is a moment of reflection.
Comment: How about a moment of silence? That is what people expect.
Leah: That is being worked into the event.
Maria: We are also going to include some songs about violence. A group of Latino singers recorded a song after September 11, and that song may be used. I will bring in the songs for people to hear at the next meeting. These include some instrumental songs. These are songs of hope after violence.
Comment: The whole idea of vigil is good but my concern is that to reach out to community as a remembrance. I don’t see a lot of people coming to remember the victims of domestic violence. Knowing our community, most of the participants will be people like us.
Question: How many people will be there?
Suggestion: In addition to having remembrance, how about having information for those who might seek help. It is hard for women who have just came back home from work and have to make dinner for the husband and the children to attend at the time the event is being scheduled.
Leah: Last year we had the first vigil and people brought their children, husbands, family. We did give out information and we ran out of pamphlets.
Cynthia: Should we change the time?
Comment: It is dinner time. That is my concern. We have to mention that that there will be people to help the participants. The husband may not allow a wife to get information but may allow her to attend if it is a remembrance.
Leah: That is why we use the name that we use.
Question: How about changing the name? How about using a name that is much more meaningful and related to the program.
Comment: Keep the word ‘vigil’ because people will be remembering people but also include providing of information about prevention. Keep the vigil but expand it from just a prayer and candle.
Question: How about a word that empowers?
Comment: How about using ‘Peace Festival: Empowering Domestic Tranquility.’ Something to empower people to domestic tranquility.
Comment: We have to be careful how the name sounds after being translated into Spanish.
Comment: We take a person who is being hurt into being healed. Festival might mean more about a feast, and drinking, and dancing.
Comment: It is good that we are considering this point.
Cynthia: We don’t put something out there that makes people uncomfortable coming to. How about everyone thinking about the idea and then phone me about it?
Comment: How about giving our e-mail to you so we can all discuss the idea.
Everyone gave their e-mail address to Cynthia in order to continue this discussion using e-mail.
Leah introduced a new CBLC member who provides her testimony about being a survivor of Intimate Partner Violence. The testimony is provided in Spanish. It is about the physical abuse that she experienced at the hands of her husband. She called the police for help and insisted that they assist her. Otherwise she told them the next time it will be too late. She also got help from a nun, and enrolled into a 12 step program. She then experienced depression but with the help of everyone involved, she managed to leave her relationship about six years ago.
The CBLC expressed welcomed her and thanked her for sharing her experience.
Cynthia: At this point, what we hope to do is to have a sign up sheet to involve people to volunteer. The focus groups showed that the community wants to get involved. This will provide women a way to come together to address this issue.
3. Year 3 Objectives
Cynthia: On October 1, the project will be entering Year 3. We look to become state certified, work with WAVA, and work with battered immigrant women. It will be a part of our prevention intervention. The men also have reflected interest in this movement. We want your ideas as to what to do once we get the women together. Are we going to do something from the strengths identified, or art or music? Hopefully, once we get everything going, we can get support groups established. We are anticipating in three months to start. The women are hungry now to start something. So if you have any ideas, please share. You can also attach it to your e-mail.
Question: Are you guys certified regarding substance abuse?
Cynthia: We are certified to work with them.
Question: What are the women to do when they come together? What is the difference between that from prevention?
Cynthia: The support group focuses on intervention treatment.
Comment: It will be good to anything to boast their self-esteem.
Comment: It is important to find out the strengths of our community and to work around the strengths to empower them.
Comment: Maybe we can involve children’s groups so they can be taught that this is not a part of our culture. This is not what we do.
III. Announcements
Comment: At the Coalition for Violence Against Women, we have started developing video news release (VNR), and with Cynthia and Leah’s help, trying to get Latinas on VNR and also other cultures and show the VNR in October on television. Our slogan is ‘Violence Against Women is A Crime.’ We are going to develop some billboards and fliers in Spanish. On October 11, at 9:00 am, there will be a free concert at Myriad Gardens on the Floating Stage. At the moment we are trying to get some bands together. We are trying to involve all cultures in Oklahoma City to show that domestic violence happens in all cultures and in all types of age groups. Probably we can get the state attorney general to speak at the event.
Question: How about the Asian community?
Answer: It is very hard to reach into Asian bands or groups. However, Asian community is an area that has been difficult to reach.
Comment: On September 4, there is a training on Integrating Substance Abuse & Mental Health Treatment for Women and it will be held at the U.S. Postal Training Center in Norman.
Cynthia: Women can now come in and get free mammograms at LCDA. The next meeting is scheduled at September 19. We will be contacting you over the phone and e-mail about any ideas that you might have.
IV. Meeting Adjourned
The meeting adjourned at 5:00 pm.