Letter of Encouragement to a Survivor

Abstract

In the winter 2002 issue, we introduced a new column, Women Creating Change, that focuses on the contributions of women practitioners, activists, advocates, and educators whose work is challenging gender oppression, changing women's lives, and shaping the future of feminism. Through this column, we seek to bring women's stories that may otherwise go untold to our readers. Theresa R.'s story is in the form of a letter to a survivor of domestic abuse. As part of her own process of change, Theresa, a mother of three children, returned to college as a social work student in 1999, where she took a course on domestic abuse. The course created a space of both safety and challenge for learning and dialogue regarding violence against women and for the possibilities for both personal and political transformation. One of her assignments was to write a letter of encouragement to a survivor of domestic abuse. As a survivor of domestic abuse herself, Theresa seized the moment to voice encouragement to herself as a young woman. In describing the experience, Theresa wrote, “I tried to write to myself as if I were my own best friend telling me what she would want me to know. Writing to myself was both healing and empowering. It helped me put to rest some of the unease I have always felt about my experience.” Theresa will earn a bachelor's degree in social work in December 2003 and plans to continue her work in supporting, encouraging, and empowering survivors of domestic abuse.