Recommended Resources
Women's Services
This is a list of resources that we have come across that may be of interest to those working to support women, youth and children who have experienced violence.
Aboriginal Women
Addressing Violence Against Aboriginal Women (A comprehensive annotated bibliography from Battered Women’s Support Services)
Our Search for Safe Spaces: A Qualitative Study of the Role of Sexual Violence in the Lives of Aboriginal Women Living with HIV/AIDS (A study that gives voice to Aboriginal women living with HIV/AIDS and explores the interplay between gender, culture, HIV and sexual violence, from the Canadian Aboriginal AIDS Network)
What Their Stories Tell Us: Research Findings from the Sisters in Spirit Initiative (Explores the root causes, circumstances and trends of missing and murdered Aboriginal women and girls in Canada, from the Native Women's Association of Canada)
Activism/Advocacy
Implications of the Shrinking Space For Feminist Anti-Violence Advocacy (Discussion of the many factors that may be curtailing anti-oppression advocacy including feminist anti-violence advocacy in Canada, by Mandy Bonisteel and Linda Green, 2005 Canadian Social Welfare Policy Conference)
Reality Check: Women in Canada and the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action Fifteen Years On (A report on the status of women in Canada fifteen years after the Beijing Declaration at the World Conference on Women in 1995, from the Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action and the Canadian Labour Congress)
DisAbilities
Disabled Women and Shelter Access: Early Findings of the National Accessibility and Accomodation Survey (A report of the first phase of a survey that focused on the accessibility of Transitional Housing programs for women with disabilities, from the DisAbled Womens' Network of Canada and presented by Jewelles Smith)
Model Protocol on Safety Planning for Domestic Violence Victims with Disabilities (A resource for offering safety planning that is cognizant of environmental and social barriers, from the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence)
Ethnicity
Empowering Non-Status, Refugee, and Immigrant Women Who Experience Violence (A resource from Battered Women’s Support Services with a woman-centred approach to meeting the challenges faced by service providers and women accessing services)
Violence Against Women: A Network Model for Providing Culturally Competent Services for Intimate Partner Violence and Sexual Violence (A model for culturally competent services for women fleeing violence) Abstract only
Violence Against Women: White Privilege, Color Blindness, and Services to Battered Women. (An article on white privilege in Violence Against Women services, written by Denise Donnelly, Kimberly Cook, Debra Ausdale and Lara Foley) Abstract only
White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack. (An article on white privilege, written by Peggy McIntosh) Available from the author
Gender and Sexuality
Working with Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Trans People in Residential Settings (An introductory resource from the SHARP Access Project and PRISM Alcohol & Drug Services) Posted with permission of PRISM Alcohol & Drug Services
Gender Glossary (A glossary of commonly used terms related to gender and sexuality from Dragon Fly Rising Press)
Our Relatives Said: A Wise Guide Voices of Aboriginal Trans People (Identifies needs of Aboriginal Trans- and Two-Spirit people, from Two-Spirited People of the First Nations)
Transitioning Our Shelters (A guide to making shelters safe for transgender people, from National Coalition for the Homeless)
Government Reports
Honouring Christian Lee - No Private Matter: Protecting Children Living With Domestic Violence (A report by the Representative for Children and Youth with recommendations for various systems that come into contact with families experiencing violence)
Homelessness
Voices: Women, Poverty and Homelessness in Canada (A report based on research with women and organizations serving women in Canada, from the National Anti-Poverty Organization)
“I Built My House of Hope”: Best Practices to Safely House Abused and Homeless Women (A project report exploring best practices and needs for long term housing for women who experience violence, from RESOLVE Alberta)
Immigration and Refugee Women
Assisting Immigrant and Refugee Women Abused by their Sponsor (A guide for service providers who work with Immigrant and Refugee women who may be experiencing abuse by their sponsor, from BC Institute Against Family Violence)
Mothers Without Status: Practical informationfor service providersworking with womenwho have no legal status [PDF] - YWCA Vancouver
This free downloable booklet explains the experiences of mothers without legal status and how service providers can best help them.
Empowerment of Immigrant and Refugee Women Who Are Victims of Violence in Their Intimate Relationships (A report by the Justice Institute of BC based on research with Immigrant and Refugee women about what service factors they find empowering and disempowering) Contact JIBC for a free electronic version or purchase hard copy
Intersectional Feminist Frameworks
Intersectional Feminist Frameworks - A Primer (An introduction to Intersectional Feminist Frameworks, from the Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women) Posted with permission of CRIAW
Intersectional Feminist Frameworks - An Emerging Vision (Provides a deeper discussion about Intersectional Feminist Frameworks and their use in Social Justice agencies) Posted with permission of CRIAW
Policy
Beyond Shelter Walls Discussion Paper - No More Running in Circles (A discussion paper on policy solutions beyond Transitional Housing, from YWCA Canada)
Overcoming the Backlash: Telling The Truth About Power, Privilege, and Oppression (A resource kit for community agencies to call attention to the gendered nature of violence against women, from the Gender Advisory Committee of the Violence Preventing Coordinating Council (Durham Region))
Women Charged with Domestic Violence in Toronto: The Unintended Consequences of Mandatory Charge Policies (A report into mandatory charge policies with recommendations for improvement, from Woman Abuse Council of Toronto)
Women’s Movements and State Feminism: Integrating Diversity into Public Policy (A comparative study that explores opportunities for integrating diversity into public policy, by L Pauline Rankin and Jill Vickers for Status of Women Canada)
Poverty
Walking on Eggshells: Abused Women's Experiences of Ontario's Welfare System (A report detailing the experiences of women who have experienced violence who access the welfare system, by Janet Mosher et al)
Women's Poverty Sheet (Fact sheets on women and poverty in Canada, from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives)
Women’s Poverty and the Recession (An exploration of the impact of the recession on women in Canada, from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives)
Research Methods
Using Intersectional Feminist Frameworks in Research (A resource for organizations and researchers to do research based in an understanding of the complexities of people’s lives and situations. Proposes workable and respectful solution to problems of poverty and exclusion, from the Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women) Available for purchase
Your Rights in Research: A Guide for Women (A guide for women who or current or past drug users who are interested in participating in a research study, from the BC Centre of Excellence for Women's Health, the Women's Health Research Institute, the University of British Columbia and the University of Victoria)
Sex Work
Deadly Inertia: A History of Constitutional Challenges to Canada’s Criminal Code Sections on Prostitution (By John Lowman, SFU)
Transitional House Practices
Understanding Women’s Safe Home Programs in BC [PDF] (BC Housing)
Records Management Guidelines: Protecting Privacy for Survivors of Violence (Third Edition by Gisela Ruebsaat B.A. LL.B., Consultant, BCASVACP and BCYSTH)
Applying Motivational Interviewing in a Domestic Violence Shelter: A Pilot Study Evaluating the Training of Shelter Staff (A study of the usefulness of motivational interviewing in Transitional Housing contexts) Abstract only
Battered Women in Shelters: Internal Resources, Well-Being, and Integration (Study showing that the length of stay in a Transitional House matters) Abstract only
YWCA: Effective Practices in Sheltering Women Leaving Violence in Intimate Relationship (Research based in interviews and surveys with women fleeing violence,l from YWCA Canada)
Disloyal to Feminism: Abuse of Survivors within the Domestic Violence Shelter System (An article by Emi Koyoma on the use of power and control within Transitional Housing)
