Domestic Violence in Canadian Muslim Communities
Publisher: MRCSSI: Muslim Resource Centre for Social Support and Integration
Date Published: 2010
Languages: English
The toolkit emphasizes the recognition of concerns related to children's cultural identities, Westernization, disobedience, and family honor.
It explores how the protective instinct, if misdirected, can lead to violence within the family.
The toolkit introduces the concept of family protection as a cooperative effort, involving negotiation and agreement among family members.
It identifies potential conflicts within families, particularly regarding differing views on family protection, and offers strategies to address and resolve such conflicts.
Main Contribution
This manual has been created to support the work of the Muslim Resource Centre for Social Support and Integration (MRCSSI) by addressing two discrete training needs. First, training is needed by the Muslim community to understand domestic violence from a Canadian perspective. Second, mainstream / Canadian service providers need training to understand the cultural differences and barriers so that their services and resources can be more accessible to Muslim families. Sections 3 & 4 contain great pointers to cultural and religous traditions - Sections 5 and 6 are also great pointers to discussions re cultural resolutions
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This toolkit is designed for a diverse audience, including Muslim families, community leaders, service providers, and mainstream organizations involved in preventing domestic violence.
It can be utilized by individuals interested in understanding the complexities of domestic violence within the cultural context of Muslim families and those seeking ways to intervene and prevent violence."
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Section Two sets out the Canadian legal response to domestic violence. By providing a Canadian context of domestic violence, this section addresses the ongoing barrier of isolation that abused Muslim women face.
Section Three discusses Islamic perspectives and cultural practices regarding domestic violence. This is a great resource for facilitating discussion in mosques, community centres and among religious leaders, community leaders or even awareness raising for families who have deep religious commitments adn concerns.
Section five provides an institutional and cultural overview of the challenges most Muslim immigrant women face when dealing with domestic violence. This section can be used for a discussion and training for service providers who work with Moslem communities.
Section seven provides several opportunities that can be utilized to discuss with families on building trust so that they approach social services and several topics on how to engage men and boys in the conversation.
Section eight discusses a best practice example of The Muslim Family Safety Project (MFSP), which is a community-based
Collaborative project of the local Muslim communities and the London Coordinating Committee to End Woman Abuse
(LCCEWA). This can be shared with service providers and community leaders for a dsicussion on why and how to became a successful initaitive.
GBV Prevention
The toolkit contributes to GBV prevention by addressing specific concerns within Muslim families that may lead to domestic violence.
It highlights the importance of recognizing and acknowledging the cultural and religious values of Muslim families, emphasizing the need for a balanced approach to family protection and safety.The toolkit focuses on aligning the concept of family protection with family safety, stressing the cooperative dynamic involving all family members.
It provides insights into the cycle of victimization that Muslim families may experience when faced with the challenges of integrating into a different culture.The toolkit emphasizes the recognition of concerns related to children's cultural identities, Westernization, disobedience, and family honor.
It explores how the protective instinct, if misdirected, can lead to violence within the family.
The toolkit introduces the concept of family protection as a cooperative effort, involving negotiation and agreement among family members.
It identifies potential conflicts within families, particularly regarding differing views on family protection, and offers strategies to address and resolve such conflicts.
Creating Normative Change
The toolkit proposes an intervention strategy that aligns family protection with family safety.
It highlights the importance of recognizing different types of domestic violence, such as situational couple violence and coercive control, and tailoring interventions accordingly.
The toolkit suggests involving community members, including friends and relatives, in recognizing warning signs and supporting individuals to bridge the gap between family protection and safety.
It promotes open communication, understanding, and negotiation within families to resolve conflicts, ultimately contributing to normative change in attitudes towards family protection and safety.
How it could be adapted to the communities
For example Muslim Wheel of Domestic Violence (p. 19) can be used for group discussion with men and boys or a mixed-gender community discussion. There is another sub section on Men's perception on domestic violence (p. 21).
Keywords
Domestic Violence, Engage men, Canadian Legal Response, Building Trust, Religion
