Thursday, January 21, 1999
AIDS workshops for Asians inform women about pertinent
issues
HEALTH: Cultural norms play role in vulnerability to violence,
leaders say
By Karla Y. Pleitez
Daily Bruin Contributor
The Asian Pacific AIDS Intervention Team ended its two-part
workshop series on Tuesday.
The workshops were the first of their kind at UCLA, geared
specifically toward Asian American women and funded by a grant from
the state that expires this year.
The team developed this series of workshops, titled "Women on
Women" (WOW) to educate Asian Pacific Islander (API) women on
protection against AIDS. They were developed because of the
increasing number of API women who are becoming infected with the
human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
The workshops, which were divided into two parts, had a turnout
of 15 people. The first one dealt with women’s health, and the
second workshop addressed date rape and domestic violence.
"The purpose of WOW is to educate API women on AIDS – an issue
that is dangerously present in our community," said Judy Hsieh, a
prevention specialist for the women’s program.
"Other issues are incorporated, such as domestic violence,
because it makes it easier for our participants to speak out about
issues other than AIDS," she said.
Statistics show 30 percent of women who die in the emergency
room are victims of domestic violence.
WOW coordinators say that API women are especially vulnerable to
domestic violence because of such cultural expectations as
obedience, submissive behavior to men and enduring marriages
through thick and thin.
Participants say that the program made known the uniqueness of
the API community and the dangers women can face if they aren’t
educated about violence issues.
"In one of the workshops, they showed us a connection between
domestic violence and HIV," said Susan Lee, a fourth-year
psychology student. "This was unique because the workshop
coordinators didn’t give us the mainstream media ideas about these
issues; instead, they related the issues to API women."
Participants said that in the mainstream media, HIV-infected
women are ignored and that only gay and promiscuous people are
shown as victims of AIDS.
In order to encourage participation, WOW coordinators set up
ground rules to make participation easier. The ground rules include
maintaining strict confidentiality, encouraging speaking from
personal experience and discouraging judgmental comments.
Coordinators say that some of the women do not have environments
where they feel safe to talk about their bodies or their mental
health.
"Learning then becomes fun, and the women participating develop
a network of friends who support them on issues that they may not
be able to talk about at home," Hsieh said.
Workshop participants agree that API women’s cultural and ethnic
backgrounds can make them susceptible victims to sexually
transmitted diseases (STDs) and other health problems.
"The workshops encouraged all women to try to break taboos that
face the API community, and by doing so, participants can be more
open to discussing health issues that might affect them," said
Phyllis Feng, women’s programmer for the Asian Pacific
Coalition.
The workshops also addressed the issue of rape. Recent
statistics show that 85 percent of rapes go unreported and that
attackers often do not rape for sexual pleasure, but rather to gain
power and control.
WOW workers said that rape is not usually addressed or reported
by the Asian community because there are so many negative stigmas
attached to it.
"Victims of rape, specially in the API community, have to deal
with the feeling of shame," Hsieh said.
"WOW lets women know that they should not fear or feel shame.
Those who have been sexually assaulted are victims and can get
help," she added.
Participants and coordinators agreed that the uniqueness of the
workshop was informative and helpful, specially to API women.
"This workshop makes API women aware and helps us realize that
ignorance and silence should be our only fears," Feng said.
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