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I grew up in a very violent home, in a constant state of fear. You learn very young to read your environment,anticipate changes in mood. I used to bring my younger bother to another room & sing to him to distract from the violence being inflicted on our mam /1
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe https://twitter.com/Womens_Aid/status/1296341195103170561
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe https://twitter.com/Womens_Aid/status/1296341195103170561
I loved school, it was an escape to a space of learning & safety. Of praise & positive reinforcement. Because even playing in the garden you could hear something kick off in the house. There was no attempt to hide it. I dreaded wkends we weren't with my nana/2
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe
I didn't sleep much. I used to read & repeat in my head that every hour was closer to morning. I cant think of children in those homes through lockdown without it catching in my throat & remembering the intensity of that anxiety. With no school. No escape /3
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe
When I was 7 my mam escaped with us after a particularly violent attack. We stayed in hostels & then a refuge. The only official one in the country at the time. @Womens_Aid were there for us then like they Are for so many families today. /4
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe
There has been progress But not nearly enough. Organisations need so much more support and funding from government. More refuges. More practical and financial supports. The judicial system needs reform to treat violence in the home as seriously as any other/5
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe
Covid has shown us that its the people most marginalised & at risk being impacted the hardest. This is one reason it's important to get schools open in some capacity. To increase refuge beds. & to keep the most at risk people centred in every decision made
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe
#WhenHomeIsNotSafe
We spent yrs moving yearly often more. By 11 we'd lived in at least 13 or 14 different places before moving in with my nana.I shared a bed with my nana into my teens & seen family members live on the streets.All of it gave me such a strong sense of the importance of a safe home
I just want to add that this violence wasn't perpetrated by my Dad, who I posted had died a few months ago. He lived in the UK most of my life. & the man who did died many years ago. My mam held his hand in hospital, her capacity for compassion & forgiveness endless
