A press conference held in the conference room of the Bahamas Crisis Centre on December 8th.
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(Press Statement) The Bahamas Crisis
Centre would like to address the offensive, malicious and defamatory statements
made by Member of Parliament for Tall Pines Leslie Miller in a newspaper
article published in the Tribune today, “Miller attacks Crisis Centre.”
It saddens us to
realize just how uninformed and vindictive Mr Miller could be given that he is
a national leader with the ability to influence the hearts and minds of people
who so badly need our support. On behalf of the thousands of people who we help
each year – for the past 33 years – we are compelled to respond to his hurtful
and vicious attack because if it results in just one person deciding not to
call our 24 hour hotline; one person not to walk through our doors to speak to
a counselor during our free clinics; one person to feel they have nowhere to
turn, it would have been one too many.
First of all we would
like to say to the Bahamian people, particularly the vulnerable communities
that are victims of violence and other forms of a trauma that our doors remain
open to everyone who needs this safe space to process and heal from life’s stresses.
That is what we do and that is what we will continue to do. Our 24 hour hotline
is 328-0922. And our offices are open daily from 9.30am to 5.30pm. On Tuesday
and Wednesday we have a clinic where you can access free counseling from 4pm to
8pm.
Every single day we
respond to calls and walk-ins from women, men, boys and girls who are victims of
sexual, physical and emotional violence; who are experiencing life stresses;
who have behavioural issues; who are trying to cope with the stresses of
relationships; people who are looking for a safe space to be vulnerable with
trained professionals who can provide a listening ear with no judgment to work through
their stuff. We provide food assistance and clothing to our clients and we
support them in finding emergency shelter.
A press conference held in the conference room of the Bahamas Crisis Centre on December 8th.
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The Bahamas Crisis has
an extensive community outreach programme. We do workshops on all forms of
violence and advocacy with NGOs, churches and pastors, the Ministry of Social
Services, the Royal Bahamas Police Force. In September we hosted 40 pastors in
a workshop on domestic violence awareness and prevention. In October we had a
workshop for NGOS with the Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Organsiation
addressing how best to respond to the needs of vulnerable populations in the
Bahamas. We work hand in hand with the Ministry of Social Services with their
hotline, with their client interventions. We have a bullying programme and a
healthy relationships programme in public and private schools. After 4 pm the
Bahamas Crisis Centre is the only free counseling centre in The Bahamas. Every
Tuesday and Wednesday evening, volunteer counselors see clients in need of
assistance until 8pm at night.
Every year we see at
least 600 clients. In our 33 year history that means we have touched the lives
of over 20,000 people: women who are victims of rape; children who are victims
of incest; men who are victims of domestic violence and sexual violence; women
who have been trafficked; women who have been discriminated against, all
vulnerable groups of our society
Let me emphasize that the
Crisis Centre is a non-profit, ideologically
independent organization made up
of volunteers. Needless to say, the women, men, girls and boys who receive our
support do not need us to profile to demonstrate the value of our contribution.
They feel it every single day they interact with our volunteers.
Mr Miller’s appalling
comments reflect his total lack of respect for what we do here serving
voluntarily the Bahamian community for over 33 years. We demand an apology and
a retraction of his statement. We also invite Mr Miller to participate in our
volunteer training in January so he can become more informed.
We remind the Bahamian
people, particularly vulnerable groups that our doors remain open and we are
here to serve.
About Bahamas Crisis Centre: The
Crisis Centre is a non-profit, ideologically independent organization primarily
pledged to respond to the needs of all victims of sexual, physical and
psychological abuse. The Centre also advocates for legislative and societal
protection of survivors and raises public consciousness through education and
information.
Related:
Minister Griffin responds to Tribune article about Crisis Centre
