2.3.2 ms shifrah blustein
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2.3.2 ms shifrah blustein
- 1. ‘Our Community, Our Rights’: empowering refugee women through human rights education
- 2. Our Community, OOuurr RRiigghhttss About Women’s Health West • Health Promotion • Family Violence Service Our approach • Social model of health • Gender equity, health promotion and community development
- 3. Our Community, Our Rights Background and development Why do we need a project centred on human rights, advocacy and civic participation? “Women need to know their rights so they can bring about change.” Rumia Abbas, Ethiopian Community Leader, 2011
- 4. Examples of heath and human rights linkages
- 5. Our Community, Our Rights “If you don’t understand your rights, you can’t speak up or make things right.” “We don’t know our rights so we stay home because we’re scared of doing the wrong thing.” “If we know our rights, we will have confidence; when we don’t know our rights we feel scared and stressed.” “Although we are born with human rights, we need to know how to demand them.” “We need to understand our rights so we can stand up with confidence.”
- 6. Our Community, Our Rights To make progress on the social determinants of health for refugee and migrant women: • Build understanding of human rights; • Enable women to undertake advocacy around their rights; and • Enable participation in community life.
- 7. Our Community, Our Rights Goal: To deliver advocacy training within a human rights framework to enable women to participate in civil society and to facilitate change.
- 8. Our Community, Our Rights Our approach: • Gender equity • Community development
- 9. Our Community, Our Rights Background and development • Expert Advisory Group • Choosing the population group • Community Consultations •Funding applications
- 10. Our Community, Our Rights Designing the model: • Series of capacity-building workshops; • Support for women to implement their own advocacy projects.
- 11. Our Community, Our Rights Evaluation • Human rights • Advocacy • Civic participation • Participant projects • Evidence base • Partnerships
- 12. Our Community, Our Rights Workshops •Introduction to human rights •Racism and discrimination •Health •Employment •Education •Violence against women •Tenancy and consumer issues •Advocacy and project planning
- 13. Our Community, Our Rights Project Planning “A human rights-based approach to addressing the social determinants of health means supporting the collective action of disadvantaged groups to analyse, resist and change social structures and policies, assert their shared power and alter social hierarchies towards greater equity.” (WHO, 2002)
- 14. Our Community, Our Rights Project Planning • Human rights issue important to your community • Providing support and fostering independence • Grants process
- 16. Our Community, Our Rights Project Planning •Hope for a New Beginning
- 17. Our Community, Our Rights “I can help others become more independent. Teach them that it “You have knowledge – you gain confidence” “All of the topics and information I didn’t know about Stories of change is okay to question” “This project will help me become a voice within my community” before... It’s my voice, it’s my body and to learn the importance of an education” “I feel stronger and happier” “It gave me the confidence to change issues in this country through knowledge of how the law and our rights work, especially because I come from a country where people don’t have rights”
- 18. Most Significant Change stories: findings from iteration one Our Community, Our Rights
- 19. Our Community, Our Rights Where to now? •Continue evaluation •Continue workshops •Support women in development of projects •Identify 2014 community
- 20. Our Community, Our Rights Questions? Contact: Shifrah Blustein Health Promotion Worker Women's Health West Phone: (03) 9689 9588 Email: shifrah@whwest.org.au
Editor's Notes
- My name is Shifrah, I’m the project worker on a project called Our Community Our Rights.
- Located in Footscray Delivers services to the western region of Melbourne
- The World Health Organisation identifies that “promoting and protecting health and respecting, protecting and fulfilling human rights are inextricably linked” (WHO, 2002). That is because, as Mary Robinson, the then UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said in 2000: “Respect for human rights… is an important tool for protecting health. It is those who are most vulnerable in societies who are most exposed to the risk factors which cause ill-health. Discrimination, inequality, violence and poverty exacerbate their vulnerability. It is therefore crucial not only to defend the right to health but to ensure that all human rights are respected and that the root economic, social and cultural factors that lead to ill-health are addressed.”
- According to WHO: • Violations of human rights can have serious health consequences; and • Vulnerability to ill-health can be reduced by taking steps to respect, protect and fulfil human rights. The diagram shows some examples of those links. That applies as much in Australia as it does in the home countries of the refugee women we work with. For example, discrimination on the basis of race is a common human rights violation experienced by the communities we work with, and is acknowledged as a key social determinant of health. For Indigenous people and other minority groups in Australia, racism can impact negatively on health in a number of ways, including through unequal access to the resources required for health (such as employment, education, nutritious food, healthcare and transport), poor mental health, and harmful responses to racism such as smoking and alcohol and drug use.
- From the perspectives of refugee women from Burma we consulted for the second iteration of this project, human rights education is important for these reasons. They clearly linked confidence around knowledge of their rights with increased ability to advocate for themselves or others and to participate in civic life. The women we spoke to almost all identified that their lack of understanding of the law and their rights leads to fear and isolation. Women described being scared, anxious and overly acquiescent in a range of situations, including in the workplace, in street encounters, in interactions with services, and in education settings.
- We recognise that in order to effectively make progress on the determinants of health for vulnerable groups of women in the west of Melbourne, it is critical to: Engender an understanding of human rights among vulnerable populations; Enable vulnerable groups to enforce their rights, advocate for their rights to be respected and work towards long-term structural change; Enable vulnerable groups to participate in community life. This project, Our Community, Our Rights seeks to do exactly this with three groups of refugee/migrant women over three years. ____________________________ If needed…. Defining human rights, advocacy and civic participation… Human rights are the principles that enable us to live a dignified and rewarding life in which our freedoms are respected, protected and fulfilled (WHW 2009). Advocacy – our working definition of advocacy is again WHO A combination of individual and social actions designed to gain political commitment, policy support, social acceptance and systems support for a particular health goal or program. WHW recognise that advocacy is necessary to structural change required in a social model of health. Participation Civic participation is inextricably linked to both human rights and advocacy. Participation in society, or civic life, is the concern of civil and political rights (such as the right to vote or free speech), yet is also influenced by economic, social and cultural rights (for instance, it is more difficult for someone to participate in society if their living situation is precarious or they have poor access to education). Participation is critical to health.
- In 2012, WHW worked with a group of South Sudanese women. This year, we are working with a group of women from ethnic minority communities from Burma. The third community we plan to work with will be identified later this year. I am the project worker for the second iteration of the project – with women from minority communities from Burma. The project worker from the first iteration, Kirsten Campbell, is on maternity leave. So I will attempt to draw together our experiences of working with these two different groups.
- As with all WHW’s work, we start from these two principles: Our work should provide sustainable and culturally sensitive support for the empowerment and self-determination of individuals and communities to manage their own affairs; 2. We recognise the disparities in power, resources and responsibilities between men and women, and undertake our work in a way that attempts to rectify gender inequity.
- Some key aspects in developing this project were: Expert Advisory Group: we invited people skilled in the areas of advocacy, human rights and participation, as well as those who are strongly connected with the target communities, to join our expert advisory group. EAG members include: MRC NW, MCWH, YouthLaw, DoH, VEOHRC, CEH, WRHC, and Sudanese Elders in the first iteration, women leaders from Burma in the second iteration. Choosing a Population Group: After consultations with communities in the western suburbs, South Sudanese women were identified as a group who were likely to benefit. They had experienced human rights violations prior to and since their arrival in Australia. They expressed a readiness to engage with content, as well as strong connections and organisations within the community. After consulting with the community, an age group of women between 25 and 35 was identified because they are often isolated and have limited opportunity to participate in community life. For the second iteration, our Expert Advisory Group recommended communities from Burma. We consulted widely with women from a number of ethnic minority communities from Burma, who expressed a desire to work with other ethnic groups. Due to different operative cultural factors, it was appropriate to work with a wider age group of women, aged 20 to 45. Consultations: Extensive community consultations were conducted with community women, leaders and service providers as to all aspects of the project – the model, the content, learning style, women’s experiences of human rights violations and human rights education, the best ways to promote and recruit, etc. We visited women in their homes and met with them at convenient places, to ask questions and listen to ideas and needs. Community leaders were critical in promoting the project to interested women and generating community discussion. Funding: In 2011, lots of funding applications were submitted, until finally we were funded for three years by Federal AG’s Dept, plus HMST for the first iteration. – 3 iterations of the project with separate groups, and resource development.
- We spent a lot of time consulting and thinking into the model and how best to achieve our aims of building skills, knowledge and confidence in vulnerable communities around human rights and advocacy. Women told us the more practical the better. So we came up with a series of practical workshops to prepare women to plan their own advocacy projects on issues that matter to them. This model provides a concrete opportunity for women to put new skills into practice, and we hope it makes the project more sustainable in that it builds capacity of communities to undertake ongoing advocacy around structural issues that affect them.
- Through a rigorous external evaluation of the processes and outcomes, we aim to assess whether the project has met its goals and objectives, which centre on these concepts. We have appointed an evaluation consultant to assess how effective the workshops are, in terms of whether and how women’s understanding, confidence and skills are developed in human rights, advocacy and civic participation. Then we assess whether and how these same women developed and implemented advocacy projects to address human rights issues their communities face. The evaluation takes as its starting point how women themselves identify their aspirations, hopes and strengths, and how they see confidence, assertiveness, empowerment, civic participation and human rights, and the relevance of these concepts to them. The evaluation employs a narrative-based approach where women articulate their aspirations and achievements, and the evaluator tracks the women's journeys through the program. To do this, we use a qualitative approach employing semi-structured interviews and focus groups, and utilising the ‘most significant change’ technique. Because women told us the evaluation process could be confronting and alien for them, in the second iteration we have employed a community woman to facilitate interviews and focus groups with participating women. So far we can see the participating women are more comfortable to engage with the evaluation process because we have a community insider using a culturally appropriate approach to this work. _____________________________ Women’s Health West plan to achieve the following outcomes: Capacity Building: Increase the understanding, confidence and practical skills in human rights, advocacy and civic participation. Human Rights: Increase the ability of participants to recognise and exercise their human rights in everyday interactions. Advocacy: Increase the understanding, confidence and practical skills of participants in advocacy, both at an individual and community level. Civic Participation: Increase confidence and skills of participants to participate more assertively in Australian civic Participant Project Implementation: The supported development and implementation of community advocacy and human rights projects by participants. Evidence Base: Contribute to a growing evidence base regarding human rights, civic participation and advocacy capacity development of newly arrived communities. Partnerships: Develop sustainable partnerships with community organisations and human rights, advocacy and civic participation specific organisations.
- These were all topics that women said were important to building their capacity and confidence to take up human rights advocacy work. We worked closely with facilitators to make sure the content and style are tailored to the group’s specific needs. The sessions are highly interactive and practical, incorporating skill development in identifying rights breaches and realistic options for action, confidence building activities encouraging women to practise their skills through role plays and other activities, engaging with a number of civic institutions and community organisations who delivered the sessions, and developing skills in project planning. There were lots of highlights, including funny role plays, passionate debate and tasty lunches.
- In many ways, women designing and implementing their own projects is the key to this project. Throughout the workshops, we encourage women to analyse the structural causes of a range of problems that affect them, and then women take that analysis deeper in order to develop projects which address those structural factors.
- We are currently part-way through the workshops for iteration 2, so the lessons around project planning are drawn from last year’s work with South Sudanese women. Women worked in small groups, and met regularly to plan their projects. The process mimicked a grants process, with women devising objectives, action plans and budgets. The idea was that these are important skills if women are to be empowered to continue their advocacy work after this project had ended. It was important to provide women with support and structured planning guides and templates, but also to encourage them to take ownership of the projects and do the work themselves. This was a tricky balance. Women lead busy lives and maintaining motivation and commitment in this phase was more of a challenge. In order to meet this challenge, we: Provided weekly support to the women in groups Created realistic timelines Acknowledged women’s achievements; and
- Women identified violence against women as a huge issue for South Sudanese women. This is the flyer produced by one of the groups – they worked on raising awareness and discussion of violence against women through a one-day practical workshop for community women. Women met with community leaders to foster support for the project. They designed the flyer, developed a communication strategy, make logistical arrangements, designed the workshops and arranged for presentations from a range of women. They evaluated their project by distributing evaluation questionnaires to women who attended.
- One scenario vigorously discussed by women who attended was around difficulties in negotiating contraception within relationships, and how this often leads to violence against women. They said: ‘In Australia, Sudanese women say “Hallelujah!!”, if threatened with family violence they know the law is on their side…’ and ‘It’s my body! It’s my right!’ Leaders were keen for similar workshop to happen with men.
- The Most Significant Change (MSC) technique involves the collection and interpretation of participants’ stories of change experienced during and after a project. This technique employs a wholly qualitative approach. It means that we can gather women’s narratives and understand what is important to them. Participants are invited to articulate stories of 'significant change‘ they have experienced as a result of their participation, first after the workshops, and then again after they have delivered their projects. We see this process as creating a space for participants to reflect on and make sense of the complex changes happening around them, and for the evaluation process to be centred around their priorities, aspirations, experiences and stories.
- “I used to not ask questions if a doctor gave me prescriptions I don’t ask about side effects or what the medication does for me, but now I got that confidence. I don’t care if it’s a silly question or not I need to know, before I was scared to ask questions.” “I was waiting to catch a bus after work and in one week this bus driver did not stop for me. I was alone and he would slow down like he was going to stop but he would see me and then keep driving. This happened 3 times, the same driver. Then one day I catch the bus in the morning and it was the same man, I say nothing, sit down and I had some tea from my bottle. I did this because he had a sign that said no drinking on the bus and I wanted to see what he’d say. He said to me “can you read? No drinking on the bus!”, I just kept quiet, he said it again and then I said “Listen, the law in Australia says when you see someone waiting at the bus stop you have to stop, and for me I have to drink this tea and I’m not going to stop, if you want take me to the police” and then he say “You have to stop” and I said no. Then I say to him “Do you remember on Monday at 10 past 3, you indicate that you want to stop and then you saw me and you go straight away, that was really mean”. Then he say “I’m really sorry” and I keep going, I say “I have a right to say that because you leave me at the bus stop and you don’t take me, you see me and go” and then he say again “I’m really sorry” and I said ok and then I just put my tea down. And then when he saw me on Friday he say “Ooh, this African woman, she’s strong”.
- As we continue to undertake evaluation, those findings will influence how we work with the next community.