Battered Women’s Shelters Are Confidential For A Reason
Aunt B. points to a story about a gun store’s posters and how it’s making some folks upset.
That’s not where I’m going with this. The story she links to outs where a battered women’s shelter is and that, my friends, in unacceptable. It’s late in the story, but it doesn’t matter. The information in the piece is blatant irresponsibility and willfully ignorant regarding battered women in crisis. The newspaper should not have put that in the story. Battered women’s shelters are at undisclosed, confidential locations for a reason. Having worked at Nashville’s battered women’s shelter 20 years ago and having been a program coordinator for the battered women’s program here for a few years before I got back into news, I can tell you that women only go to a shelter when they absolutely have to and when safety is key.
Quoting from an email from a concerned citizen where the shelter’s location is disclosed has hurt not only the program, but will make women who need help have to look for other alternatives.
Shelters are confidential for a reason.
UPDATED: Say Uncle has more.
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Dropped a note about the article and the reference to the shelter (paragraph 16) to the North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
Wife and I sent emails last night to the editors of the paper and to the story’s author telling them what they did.
Today’s version of the article no longer gives the location of the shelter.
Ace, that is excellent. I’m glad you let them know that revealing the location honestly put those folks staying at the shelter at risk.
Wonderful.