Rural Isolation 101
From the hours of 8:30 am - 4:30 pm work has continued as usual. However during this last quarter, my days could not simply end at 4:30. The election season brought many political figures to town for open forums and Q and A sessions. As a state-funded human service provider, I could not remain silent while funding for our citizens' social welfare was being siphoned away; so I became a regular at campaign meetings throughout the community. Because of the willingness of educators, social service providers, corrections officers, and health care workers to share their plights in public forum with prospective and current Iowa public officials, I learned much about state and national politics-especially the causes and effects of insufficient funding for our Departments of Health and Human Services, Education, and Labor.
Although it is often hard for me to feel connected to state and national policy makers, the devastating effects of under-funding resound throughout the offices of human service providers across the country. Since many rural agencies operated on relatively small funds before the national budget cuts, those serving rural America areas are facing especially hard times. As alluded to in my first report, I spend most of my time behind closed doors and windows, fielding phone calls and e-mails from individuals and agencies. Despite often being connected to some form of communication technology, I spend much of my time physically alone. This lone ranger existence is markedly different from the work environment of my predecessor, Matt; but unfortunately due to our current political situation, isolation is becoming the norm for human service providers in rural areas.
VAWA Funding and Victim Services
In 1994, Congress passed the Violence Against Women Act to ensure that issues of domestic and sexual assault are addressed by both the U.S. Department of Justice and the Department of Health and Human Services. Under VAWA, the Department of Justice is responsible for training and improving law enforcement responses to domestic violence and sexual assault; health and Human Services are responsible for everything else (shelters, crisis lines, counseling, medical assistance, etc.) Both departments are responsible for allocating funds to state congresses for local-level law enforcement, victim service organizations, and domestic and sexual assault prevention programs.
While we can be thankful President Bush reauthorized the VAWA in 2000, each year of his term the amount of monies allocated to Department of Health and Human Services for the administration of VAWA programs has been significantly reduced or under-funded. For example, in the 2000 fiscal year congress authorized a combined $729 million for VAWA programs; currently the House and Senate are disputing whether to authorize $562 million or $593 for VAWA purposes. The majority of the missing $167-$136 million in funds is only possible through reducing Health and Human Services programs. (As one may assume, the amount of monies actually paid to VAWA programs by the end of any given fiscal year are usually lower than the amount originally authorized.) These decreases in funding mean staff and program cuts in shelter and transitional housing, professional social and psychological counseling for crime victims, preventative education, Batterers' Education Programs and other rehabilitative services, legal advocacy, research grants, community initiatives, national and local hotlines, quality medical treatment, assistance for immigrant families, and victim outreach services. Quietly these programs are withering, and frequently in rural communities, they are in danger of disappearing altogether.
Given the slow disappearance of confidential, secular, non-discriminatory social services and decreased research funding, it is no surprise that the number of "reported domestic and sexual assaults" remains unbelievably low. Moreover, our current prosecution-incarceration approach to crime does little to encourage domestic or sexual crime reporting, victim/witness cooperation, or healing. There is no way we can obtain appropriate estimates on the nature and the consequences of domestic and sexual crimes without the cooperation of victims, families, and communities. Individuals are NOT likely to cooperate in the absence of programs that are sensitive to the social, material, and psychological needs of the victims and later the rehabilitation of the perpetrator. Without quality research on the effects of current policy, congresses are unwilling to heed our warnings that domestic and sexual assault funding and policies are in need of change. Furthermore, governments may be less likely to give to victim service organizations when we can no longer afford the staff to assist the number of victim/survivors that we have in past years - and thus appear to be providing less of a service to communities.
Consequences of Insufficient Funding
Unfortunately VAWA programs are not the only services coping with budget cuts. In favor of individual tax breaks, more extensive cuts have been made other programs in administered by Health and Human Services and Department of Corrections. What are some of the consequences of budget cuts to rural Iowa residents affected by domestic violence and sexual assault? The consequences are a fragmentation of services, the public's loss of faith in the ability of our government to assist those is need, and the general burn-out of service workers. Currently domestic crime victims who are forced to "start life anew" are put on waiting lists to receive affordable housing, shelter, subsidized childcare, legal aid in civil matters, and social and respite worker assistance. Increased restrictions on welfare and work guidelines make the survival of a single parent family without resources uncertain. Crime victims are still able to access counselors, but counselors too are rapidly leaving under-funded (i.e. rural) areas. As if these obstacles were not enough, the increase in furlough days and budget cuts throughout the legal system have added months of delays to heart-wrenching legal battles, and allow citizens less access to public officials, such as judges.
To crime victims and their families the shortages of service workers to aid in a time of crisis feels criminal. For example, if Poweshiek county parent calls to report the sexual abuse of a child, he or she will be told that the average wait for an appointment with a child protective services investigator is three weeks to one month. (Charges cannot be filed until after an initial investigation.) During this wait the child and family will be cautioned not to discuss the abuse amongst themselves or with anyone else (especially and counselor or social service worker), so as not to taint the child's testimony. As you may imagine in a time of emotional crisis, families can not be expected to simply ignore the crisis until a more convenient time for state workers. If an individual or family feels 'the system' does not care enough to respond to their crisis in a timely manner, they will give up on the system and seek whatever solace is available. Unfortunately 'free' solace often comes in the form of returning to a violent partner or sex offender, taking up residence with 'unsafe friends' or in 'unsafe places,' abusing alcohol or drugs, or emotionally and psychologically "shutting down." [1] Crisis intervention services are designed for workers to intervene in the immediate aftermath of a crisis; our current situation prevents such action. To be effective aid for individuals and families human service agencies must work together to help restore the many affected areas of crime victims' lives; this coordinated effect is impossible when each organization can only act if time and money allow.
The Lone Ranger
The current situation leaves the advocate feeling similarly abandoned by the system. It is our job to assist individuals and families in crisis through the jungle of social and legal systems, while providing them with referrals, literature, and peer counseling to begin their healing process. However budgets cuts coupled with the mass exodus of qualified, experienced workers to more supportive/urban environments, leaves advocates devoid of experienced peers with whom to review difficult situations, or sympathetic individuals working for other agencies willing to take on another case. Frequently, small communities are being forced to hire replacement workers from a much reduced and often less-experienced applicant pool. The mentality that these less-experienced individuals can 'learn the ropes' alone, or that they can do their job in a vacuum of social services, is preposterous. Funding only one lone ranger to heroically rescue society from itself is an act of reckless neglect or self delusion.
P.S. DSART UpdateYou may ask yourselves, "What happened to the DSART grant that both Matt and Helen have been anxiously awaiting?" As I mentioned in my last report, we received notification on August 3rd that we had been awarded the grant. This brought a sense of optimism to the team, but unfortunately, optimism is all we have received. We are still awaiting notification as to when the grant money will become available. In the meantime we continue to hold monthly DSART meetings; however our activities remain limited as we do not yet have a budget.
[1] Note to Mr. Bush: White, middle-class Christianity does not appear in my list of 'free' solaces or social remedies for at least 4 reasons. 1.) Religion is frequently viewed as an option with "too many strings attached." 2.) Religion is viewed as antithetical to a woman's right to make choices about her sexuality or choices that may lead to single mother parenting. Similarly if the victim is male, especially in cases of sexual assault; "moral" or traditional gender expectations will alienate him or cause others to discriminate against him. 3.) White, middle-class Christianity is viewed as uninviting or patronizing in the face of the realities of those who are not already white, middle-class, and Christian. 4.) Religious leaders and counselors are trained in matters of religion; they are not required to study psychology, social justice, drug abuse, gender construction, etc.
