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Sakhi for South Asian Women

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Sakhi for South Asian Women
Founded1989
OriginsNew York City
Area served
New York City
Websitewww.sakhi.org

Sakhi for South Asian Women is an anti-domestic violence organization that works with the South Asian community in the New York metropolitan area.

About

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The organization is the second-oldest organization in the United States that is created for South Asian women.[1] Since it was founded, Sakhi has helped more than 10,000 people experiencing violence.[1] The organization also works with the South Asian immigrant community in New York City to prevent abuse.[1] Sakhi, as an organization believes that it is important to not only advocate for women's safety, but also for their civil rights.[2] Sakhi has consistently recognizes the intersectional nature of gender-based violence, immigration status, and south asian women.[3][4][5]

Sakhi holds an annual benefit dinner in New York called "Celebrating Women's Lives".[6] The dinner is both a fundraiser and a way to inform others about violence against women.[6]

History

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The organization was founded in 1989 by Anannya Bhattacharjee, Mallika Dutt, Tula Goenka, Geetanjali Misra and Romita Shetty.[7] The name "Sakhi" was picked as a way to symbolically connect south asian women because it means "woman friend" in Hindi, Urdu, and Bengali.[7][3][8][9][10] Sakhi received early support from the New York Foundation,[8] The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence,[8] and the New York Asian Women's Center.[8] The New York Asian Women's Center is now known as Womankind and still partners with Sakhi.[11]

In 1993, Sakhi was run as a non-hierarchical group with about 20 women staffers who answered their hotline, referred callers to other services, and hosted survivor support groups.[3] At that time, they had also published their own newsletter and spoke at mosques, temples, and churches with high South Asian populations.[3] They had also started to produce their own video that portrays the specific struggles faced by immigrant South Asian Woman titled ''A Life Without Fear,'' which was published in 1994 and on display at the American Museum of Natural History in 1999.[3][12] As of 1999, Sakhi had a 2 member staff, a board of directors, and around 50 women volunteers.[8]

As of 2000, Sakhi also provides legal advice and language assistance in court cases and when navigating city services.[9] For example, Sakhi has helped women obtain job training and access to housing or shelters.[8] With the assistance of the Columbia University’s Social Intervention Group, Sakhi started to create their own local database.[9] The New York Police department also worked with Sakhi to train police officers on abuse cases involving South Asian families.[9]

Sakhi celebrated their 30th anniversary at the 2019 Women's March.[1] In addition to being an official partner and participant in the 2019 Women’s March in New York, Sakhi was also a steering committee member to the Washington D.C. Women's march.[13]

In response to COVID-19 pandemic, Sakhi created an online directory to COVID-19 information, mutual aid, and access to contraception. Additionally, the group created a texting option for their hotline and a food justice program to address survivors’ food insecurity. [14][15]

In 2021, Sakhi hosted a conversation between domestic violence survivor Tanya Selvaratnam and In Her Words, a newsletter written by Journalist Alisha Haridasani Gupta.[16]

On August 1, 2022, Sakhi was awarded $20,000 from the New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence with support from the Allstate Foundation’s “Moving Ahead” program.[17]

People

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In 2008- 2009, Purvi Shah was the executive director of Sakhi.[18][19] Tiloma Jayasinghe was executive director in 2010.[20] In June of 2015, Shalini Somayaji became the next Executive Director after serving as the Interim Executive Director since February of 2015. She was executive Director until 2017.[21][22] From 2017 into 2022, Kavita Mehra served as Sakhi’s executive director.[22][23]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Sakhi Holds 30th Anniversary Celebration at 2019 Women's March". India -- West. Vol. 45, no. 13. 8 February 2019. Retrieved 25 March 2020 – via EBSCOhost.
  2. ^ Munshi, Soniya (July 2011). "Multiplicities of Violence: Responses to September 11 from South Asian Women's Organizations". Race/Ethnicity: Multidisciplinary Global Contexts. 4 (3): 419–436. doi:10.2979/racethmulglocon.4.3.419. JSTOR 10.2979/racethmulglocon.4.3.419. S2CID 145103293.
  3. ^ a b c d e Hays, Constance L. (1993-12-06). "Enduring Violence In a New Home". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  4. ^ Pham, Loan Anh (2020-10-01). "Domestic violence in Asian American families skyrockets". AsAmNews. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  5. ^ Southall, Ashley (2020-04-17). "Why a Drop in Domestic Violence Reports Might Not Be a Good Sign". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  6. ^ a b Carrillo, Karen Juanita (8 November 2001). "South Asian Network Ties Anti-Terrorist Violence and Domestic Abuse". New York Amsterdam News. Vol. 92, no. 45. Retrieved 25 March 2020 – via EBSCOhost.
  7. ^ a b "Kavita Mehra Named Exec. Director of 'Sakhi for South Asian Women'". India -- West. Vol. 42, no. 37. 28 July 2017. Retrieved 25 March 2020 – via EBSCOhost.
  8. ^ a b c d e f Ocasio, Linda (1999-11-17). "In a New Land, Support From Knowing Sources". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  9. ^ a b c d Crossette, Barbara (2000-10-16). "Amid the Isolation, Finally, a Friend; A Movement to Confront Hidden Abuse in Immigrant Families". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  10. ^ Carvajal, Doreen (1996-02-25). "For Immigrant Maids, Not a Job but Servitude". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  11. ^ Carranca, Adriana (2019-04-12). "She Was Forced to Marry in Bangladesh. In Brooklyn, She Made Her Escape". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  12. ^ "SPARE TIMES". The New York Times. 1999-03-19. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  13. ^ "Sakhi for South Asian Women, which is celebrating 30th anniversary, kicks off 2019 with Women's March". The American Bazaar. 2019-01-29. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  14. ^ Tso, Tiffany (2020-05-22). "In the Heart of New York's Pandemic, This Group Is Fighting for South Asian Abuse Survivors". Rewire News Group. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  15. ^ "Why domestic violence calls are surging for Asian American women amid the pandemic". NBC News. October 2020. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  16. ^ Times, The New York (2018-05-09). "Subscribe to In Her Words: Where Women Rule the Headlines". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  17. ^ "Blog : News & Events : New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence". www.nyscadv.org. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  18. ^ Schwartz, John (2009-07-04). "Study Finds Gaps in Aid for Non-English Speakers in State Civil Courts". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  19. ^ Lipton, Lauren (2008-11-11). "Strapped for Cash, and Worried About a Pledge You Can't Afford". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  20. ^ "Meet New Sakhi Executive Director Tiloma Jayasinghe | Sakhi for South Asian Women". Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  21. ^ "Welcome To Our New ED! | Sakhi for South Asian Women". 11 June 2015. Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  22. ^ a b "Welcome Kavita Mehra, Sakhi's new Executive Director! | Sakhi for South Asian Women". Retrieved 2022-09-15.
  23. ^ Dzhanova, Yelena (2022-08-06). "Sania Khan's death struck a chord with South Asian women because many of them experience domestic violence but rarely report it". Business Insider Nederland (in Dutch). Retrieved 2022-09-15.
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