We encourage Island social service agencies, women’s advocates and the Island’s Healthy Community Network to take seriously Debra Boyer’s report about the remarkable scarcity of services for domestic violence victims on Vashon.
Those who have been paying attention will know that it states the obvious: Since Domestic Abuse Women’s Network (DAWN) left Vashon more than a year ago, Islanders who are victims of such abuse have had a tough time finding the help they need.
But Boyer’s report goes beyond a clear statement of the problem. She also puts forward some recommendations and urges Vashon residents who are concerned about this issue to take some immediate steps. Start a crisis line. Create an advocacy program. Team up with other regional service providers.
These are hard things to do in the current fiscal climate. DAWN left because it lost its funding to serve Vashon. There are few untapped buckets of money out there, especially for a community such as Vashon, perceived by funders to be affluent.
But plenty of studies have shown that domestic violence is not the province of the poor or the working class. And when such violence does occur in more affluent areas, it is often a more deeply hidden social ill. Add Vashon’s semi-rural character into the mix, and we likely have an issue that’s particularly invisible.
The Healthy Community Network was re-activated to address three issues on Vashon — underage drug and alcohol use, domestic violence and child abuse and neglect. Thanks to a federal grant it obtained, the network is thoroughly immersed in efforts to address teen drug and alcohol use. This is its first foray into one of its other mandates; we commend it for taking this important first step — an effort to clearly define the problem and put forward some recommendations. And we commend Vashon Youth & Family Services for putting some precious staff time towards creating a working group to begin addressing the issue.
Boyer’s report could gather dust on a shelf. Such reports often do. We hope that won’t be the case here on Vashon.
