Gender-based violence affects women of all backgrounds and in all communities, and Sadia Khan of the Central Alberta Sexual Assault Support Centre (CASASC) said there are gaps in our local systems that need to be filled to help these victims. 

Earlier this month, Khan took part in a webinar that focused on gender-based violence against non-status, refugee and immigrant women. 

She said there are many women among these groups who turn to CASASC or other community organizations for help, and said organizations should work together to help address the emotional needs of these women through a cultural lens.

“We know that intimate partner violence does not only affect one community; it affects everyone, no matter what language you speak or where you’re from. It affects us all,” Khan said. 

Khan explained that organizations such as Central Alberta Refugee Effort (CARE), Urban Aboriginal Voices Society (UAVS), and the Red Deer Native Friendship Society (RDNFS) are vital in working with clients of CASASC, because they can provide additional support to people who have experienced the trauma of sexual assault. 

“There’s always a gap in services that are not met. We can always have more money for more services. We really need to look at our funding model, look at the services we have and see how we can work the best within what we have,” she explained, adding that it is important to work together to identify and minimize the gaps in services.

One example of a gap is the language barrier sometimes faced by an immigrant or refugee women, and if the local agencies can work together with each other to overcome that language barrier, it helps those women from having to repeat their story over and over. 

“We don’t want those disclosures having to happen multiple times and go through different people. It’s very, very difficult and we can not ask individuals to share their story over and over again because it loses information and some of the meaning,” Khan explained. 

Part of her role at CASASC is for Khan to engage with other community agencies, see what services they provide and then develop relationships within the community to help  meet the needs of people who turn to CASASC for support. 

By joining with groups like UAVS and RDNFS, Khan said she can help women to feel more supported by using cultural healing methods or learnings as part of that person’s road to recovery.  The same can be done by connecting victims who turn to CASASC with CARE, because the Refugee Effort might have more resources to help a woman feel comforted and understood if she can be helped by people who understand her culture. 

Khan said one of the best ways to support all women is to understand what they have in common - their intersectionalities of emotional needs, physical health, mental or spiritual needs, and more. 

“That cultural component is very big, as well as keeping in mind the intersectionalities that occur with individuals who come to us for services,” she said, continuing, “Those could be mental health issues, [adjustment for] newcomers, refugees, someone in the Indigenous community - it’s about recognizing that more than one issue affects all of our lives, and we have many, many intersectionalities within us as a person as well.”

CASASC is still offering in-person and online supports to victims of sexual assault in our community. Their services are open to people of all genders, and Khan said they work alongside each individual on their road to recovery. 

Khan said CASASC welcomes community partners, agencies and supports to come together and work alongside each other to provide the best support they can to victims of sexual assault and other intimate partner violence.