The domestic awareness group AIDA, graduated 90 participants as 2024 came to an end.
Co-founder Floyd Collins, who was formerly imprisoned here at San Quentin and paroled in 2023, applauded the graduates for their hard work and commitment to the course.
“For those unaware,” said Collins, “domestic abusers wear many masks. They may show up in the form of physical, emotional, verbal, sexual, financial, and as digital batterers.”
“The Awareness Into Domestic Abuse curriculum is designed to help abusers identify and describe the different types of abuses in a relationship,” said Collins.
One student expressed how AIDA has helped him.
“AIDA helped me identify where I went wrong in my belief system. Especially growing up,” said SQ resident Steven Marrujo Jr.
“The course helped to give me the tools to deal with triggers whenever one arises. Now I have a better way to manage them, because they never go away. I highly recommend this group because it gives you feedback and pushes you in the right direction even when I’m unclear in my understanding,” said Marrujo.
Various guest speakers took to the podium including Dr. Perrilet of Man 2 Man.
Dr. Perreleit shared his experience with domestic violence in the home, and encouraged the graduates to look deep within “because many domestic violence perpetrators were boys who grew up without fathers.”
“Understanding domestic violence and domestic abuse will help you to understand the cycle of violence, and also encourage men and women to break the silence surrounding it,” said Dr. P.
Vanessa Collins, who helped organize the graduation added, “AIDA helps you reorient yourself with values. Rooting oneself in core values will help you understand what you want, and to take a stand for it. Many of our course values include honor, respect, compassion, responsibility, integrity, empathy, honesty and gratitude.”
Collins added “One out every four women is a victim of domestic violence. Maybe you are one of those [people] who lived with family violence. You can’t change your past, but you can change your future. We do this by making a decision, not with our words, but with our actions.”
Rose M., board president of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence spoke about the significance of the purple ribbon.
“The ribbon,” said Garrity, “is used to represent the evolution from decades past of battered women. In the beginning of its induction, it was lavender. However, over the years its signature shade chosen ended up being purple. It’s a color associated with women’s rights throughout the world.”
Here are a few characteristics of domestic abuse:
Physical: Bodily harm including pulling hair, slapping, preventing you from eating, sleeping, harming children or pets and from contacting emergency services.
Emotional (Psychological): Acting jealous, refusing to trust you, isolating you from family, monitoring your activities and humiliating you in different way.
Verbal: Calling you names, insulting you, yelling and screaming, using words to intimidate and causing fear.
Sexual: Force or manipulate you into having sex, especially when you’re sick, tired or physically injured from the abuse. Choke and hold you down during sex, and any sexual advances without consent.
Financial: Providing an allowance and closely monitoring how you spend it, including preventing you from viewing or accessing bank accounts.
Digital: Monitoring your following, or who you can be friends with on social media. Pressuring you into sending unwanted explicit photos or videos, sexts or compromising messages and looking through your phone.
This self-help group gives residents the tools needed for a new outlook on how to deal with important relationships in life.
