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Upcoming Events MAI First Annual Domestic Violence Conference October 28 & 29, 2010 Culture and Compassion: Understanding, Serving and Empowering Immigrant Victims of Domestic Violence Location: Wyndham Indianapolis West Hotel 2544 Executive Dr. Indianapolis
To Register online please go to:
For more information please contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Thursday, October 28, 2010 8:00-9:00 a.m. Registration and Continental Breakfast 9:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m. Keynote – Family Justice Center Ann DeLaney, J.D. This session will focus on the importance of developing partnerships and collaborations when serving victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking. The speaker will outline key partnerships within Central Indiana that serve as important resources for practitioners working with these victims. This session will also outline the development of the “family justice center” concept of service delivery. 10:15 – 11:45 a.m. Faith as a Resource against Domestic Violence Bonita McGee and Safaa Zarzour This session will outline how faiths like Islam have been misunderstood within the realm of domestic violence and gender relations. This session will focus on key aspects of different faiths that can help advocates of domestic violence victims fight against abusers who use faith as source of power over victims. Noon – 1:00 Lunch 1:15 – 2:45 p.m. Faith, Culture and Domestic Violence Neha Gill, Shariq Siddiqui and Carleen Miller This session will focus on how Muslim and Asian cultures may affect victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking. This session will provide participants with cultural competency with dealing with Muslims, Sikhs and Burmese victims. The session will also look at issues of “honor” and “shame” and “extended families” within these communities in America. 3:00 – 4:30 p.m. Using the law to empower immigrant victims Michelle Gutierrez, Kerry Hyatt Blomquist and Kavitha Sreeharsha This session will focus on U, T, VAWA and domestic orders for protections. The law provides vital tools for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking. The presenters are practicing attorneys that can educate participants about basic information about these various tools. Friday, October 29, 2010 8:00-10:00 a.m. Continental Breakfast and Networking 10:15 – 11:45 a.m. Public Benefits and Issues of Language Access Katy Berringer and Kavitha Sreeharsha Many immigrant victims are eligible for public benefits. Public benefits available to immigrant victims may include both government and nongovernment assistance. This session will focus on how the participants can assist immigrant victims leverage existing resources in Indiana. 12:00 – 1:30 p.m. Luncheon Banquet Keynote – Faith as a resource in the fight against violence Mufti of Rwanda The speaker was instrumental in fighting against Genocide in Rwanda. He will outline how faith can be used as a tool to fight violence in highly turbulent times. 1:45–3:15 p.m. From Crisis to Collaboration Betsy Whaley, Linda Majors and Shariq Siddiqui This session will outline the process an immigrant victim may go through to receive comprehensive services. This session will also look at ways service providers can develop “complete systems of service” through partnerships and collaborations between various agencies within different communities in Indiana. 3:30 – 5:00 p.m. Stories of Compassion Shariq Siddiqui, Neha Gill, Bonita McGee This session will focus on case studies of immigrant victims. Session will highlight how faith and culture have been used against these victims as well as how service providers leveraged resources to assist these victims in becoming survivors. Meet the Speakers Katy Berringer is currently a bilingual women’s advocate for The Julian Center’s New Life Transitional Housing program. She graduated in 2000 from Calvin College with a BA in English Secondary Education. After graduating, she taught English for 2 years at The International School in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. After this, she moved to Indianapolis and taught English as a Second Language for 3 years to Indianapolis Public Schools middle school students. A growing desire to help the Hispanic community as well as other immigrant communities in a social services setting led her to work at The Julian Center. She has been working at The Julian Center now for 5 years. Before working in transitional housing, she has worked as both a crisis call manager and shelter family advocate. Kerry Hyatt Blomquist, J.D., is the Legal Director for the Indiana Coalition Against Domestic. She started her legal career at the Evansville firm Bowers Harrison Kent & Miller. She then served as a deputy prosecutor in Shelby County. In 2001, she became the first executive director of the Protective Order Pro Bono Project of Greater Indianapolis. Since 2008, Blomquist has taught as an adjunct professor at Indiana University School of Law – Indianapolis. She received a B.A. from Indiana University and her J.D. from Indiana University School of Law. Ann DeLaney, J.D., graduated with a degree in political science from the State University of New York. Ten years later, she earned a law degree from Indiana University. She immediately went to work as a deputy prosecuting attorney for Marion County and spent the next five years as a supervisor in the felony sex crimes and child abuse unit, where she tried more than 60 cases. In June of 1996, she was selected to be executive director of The Julian Center. Neha Gill, B.A. grew up in India, Mauritius, and the United States. She received a B.A in International Relations from Knox College in Galesburg, IL. She then studied International Development in graduate school at the University of Minnesota, where she became interested in the issue of women's rights, after interning for a community-based organization in Nairobi, Kenya. She has been at Apna Ghar since 2003, where she supervises the legal advocacy program. Michelle Gutierrez, J.D., has been a staff attorney with The Julian Center since September 2005. Ms. Gutierrez’s practice focuses on immigration remedies for survivors of domestic violence and crimes of violence. Prior to joining The Julian Center, Ms. Gutierrez worked as a staff attorney for the Hispanic Law Center, a project of Indiana Legal Services, Inc. Ms. Gutierrez received her baclor’s degree in political economy in 1997 from Hillsdale College and her JD in 2000 from Indiana University Bloomington. Linda Majors has extensive experience working in the areas of domestic violence and sexual assault. She has a JD and serves as the Executive Director of Domestic Violence Affairs at the Marion County Prosecutors Office. Sheikh Saleh Habimana Sheikh Saleh Habimana, has served as the head Mufti of Rwanda since 2001. On June 2, 2006 he was reelected for a second, consecutive five-year term. As head Mufti of Rwanda he is focused on both the development of the Islamic Community of Rwanda, particularly the education of Muslim youth, and the larger need for social reconciliation among all the people of Rwanda. Along with Anglican Archbishop Emmanuel Kolini, he currently heads The Interfaith Commission for Rwanda, which was established in 2003. The Muslim community of Rwanda played an important role in saving lives during the Rwandan Genocide. Bonita. McGee, M.A. has extensive experience of outreach and activism in the American Muslim community, as President and Co-Founder of Muslim Family Services and as a counselor in the Domestic Violence Unit of the DC Superior Court. She has served as co-Chair of Domestic Violence Awareness and Conference Program Chair at the Islamic Society of North America and a Board Member of the Islamic Social Service Association of the US and Canada. She has received a number of honors, including the Walter and Marian English Award for social services in 2001. Ms McGee recently received her Masters of Arts in Islamic Studies in the Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences in Leesburg, Virginia. Carleen Miller, MA, LMHC, LMFT is the Executive Director of Exodus Refugee Immigration Inc. a not-for-profit organization that resettles international refugees and asylees to the Indianapolis area. Previously, Ms. Miller served as the Director of Social Services for The Julian Center a non-for-profit organization which provides services to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. Additionally, Ms. Miller maintains a private psychotherapy practice in Indianapolis. Ms. Miller is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with the State of Shariq Siddiqui, J.D., is the Co-Director of The Julian Center’s legal services program and Executive Director of the Muslim Alliance of Indiana. Fluent in Urdu, Hindi and English, Shariq provides legal counseling to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking from many cultures and backgrounds. He received his Doctor of Jurisprudence and MA in Philanthropic Studies from Indiana University, and is working towards a Ph.D. in Philanthropy from IUPUI. Siddiqui has been working on domestic violence related issues since 1999 when he helped establish Muslim Against Domestic Violence while working at the Islamic Society of North America. Kavitha Sreeharsha, J.D., joined Legal Momentum in April 2007 as a staff attorney with the Immigrant Women Program. She works on policy advocacy for immigrant women, focusing on the intersection of family law and immigration law for domestic violence survivors and human trafficking. Prior to joining Legal Momentum, Kavitha was the Domestic Violence Coordinator at Asian Pacific Islander (API) Legal Outreach in Betsy Whaley Director of Housing and Outreach Programs for the . Safaa Zarzour, J.D., holds a Juris Doctor degree from DePaul University School of Law, a Masters in Education from the University of Illinois in Chicago, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics from Arkansas State University. He is currently an adjunct professor at Loyola Law School teaching courses in Education and Islamic Law. For over a decade, he served as a teacher and then principal at Universal School, one of the largest PreK-12 independent Islamic schools in the United States. He is the chairman of the Council of Islamic Schools of North America, CISNA, which claims membership of 50 Islamic schools and educational organizations. As an attorney, Mr. Zarzour is a principal of the law firm of Zarzour, Khalil & Tabbara, LLC. He focuses his law practice in the areas of local government, education and nonprofit law. |