Return-Path: <nifl-womenlit@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.9.3/8.9.0.Beta5/980425bjb) with SMTP id TAA11471; Tue, 13 Jun 2000 19:23:28 -0400 (EDT) Date: Tue, 13 Jun 2000 19:23:28 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <5f.67d32e1.26781bb1@aol.com> Errors-To: alcrsb@langate.gsu.edu Reply-To: nifl-womenlit@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-womenlit@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-womenlit@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: AWilder106@aol.com To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-womenlit@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-WOMENLIT:747] Re: New book X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas X-Mailer: AOL 4.0 for Mac - Post-GM sub 146 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Status: O Content-Length: 1878 Lines: 33 Judy, Marilyn, others-- I am a survivor of domestic violence--from my home when I was a baby and at times after that as I was growing up. I am white. I have had some of the more florid symptoms of PTSD, I am not on welfare, and could reliably be called middle class. I don't mind at bit being in an alliance with other women who have had the same treatment I have had. Yes, there are stereotypes--one of my friends said, "But your parents were educated!" when I told her. It doesn't usually come up in middle class circumstances I think because it is considered "private" and can stay that way because the state doesn't come in via welfare or other kinds of help. I must say I resent receiving stereotypes about why people might not want to mention domestic abuse. One very simple reason is that it is very difficult to figure out how to manage other people's reactions, because there is little place for a conversation to go once the fact is out. And if the abuse has been sexual one can just picture the pictures in someone else's mind's eye. One of my friends has suffered from Multiple Personality Disorder, from sexual abuse, and she has been the subject of a dissertation. She is black and middle class. She is a writer and an academic, also writes children's books, and introduces the fact when it fits in with the conversational topic. So back off with the stereotypes. Just ask us if you want to know. If the figures are correct there are a number of us on this list serv. I write about this stuff in the literacy field to let other people know what is going on, and I really don't know how women in literacy classes stand the discussion, frankly. I also changed my last name, just as Judith Herman reports some women do, fishing a new one out of my New England family past. Regards to all who are in this particular boat. Andrea
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