For many years, Esperanza, whose pseudonym means “hope” in Spanish, lived in a violent marriage because she was undocumented. She would take all the physical and psychological abuse from her husband because she was afraid she could get in trouble with Immigration because of her status.

“I always lived in fear of losing my son or me getting deported,” remembers Esperanza. “The fear stops you. The fear controls you. My husband started telling me that he was going to kill me, that he was going to take my son from me. According to him I had no rights, whatsoever, about anything.”

Esperanza found hope through the ACCESS, Inc., VAWA Legal Program, a San Diego non-profit organization that helps undocumented women like Esperanza escape domestic violence.

“Thanks to this program I realized it was not true,” she said.

The ACCESS, Inc., VAWA Legal Program is having its first fundraising campaign and a special event to continue with its mission of rescuing undocumented women from the abuse.

The online fundraiser through The Allstate Purple Purse Challenge is trying to raise funds to empower immigrant survivors of domestic violence.

“Our goal is to raise $40,000 by October 3 to help 40 survivors achieve financial independence through the Violence Against Women Act, or VAWA,” said Anne S. Bautista, legal program director for the ACCESS, Inc., VAWA Legal Program. “With your support, we also have a chance to win the grand prize of an additional $100,000.”

The fundraiser leads to event called “Saving Beverly” which will take place at the University of San Diego Joan Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice on October 3rd at 6 p.m., with tickets selling for $75. The event will feature Marivi Soliven, the author of The Mango Bride, a novel about a woman trying to escape her abusive marriage.

Bautista said that the message that ACCESS, Inc., VAWA Legal Program is trying to send out to undocumented women is clear: If you’re facing domestic abuse and undocumented, you don’t have to afraid of seeking help.

Immigration status shouldn’t be an impediment for these women to seek the help they desperately need, she said.

“VAWA immigration provisions allow a victim who is abused by her U.S. citizen or Permanent Resident spouse to self-petition — or file her own paperwork to legalize her status in the U.S.”, Bautista said. “She must prove that she is a victim of battery (physical abuse) or extreme cruelty (emotional abuse, threats, insults, anything that makes her feel scared, lowers her self-esteem, and ability to function). While VAWA alone does not grant her custody of the children, or lead to criminal charges against the abuser, it does help the victim address the major barrier to asserting her legal right to do so — fear of being deported and separated from her children.”

Bautista said that Latinas represent about 80 percent of the women who received services through ACCESS, Inc., VAWA Legal Program. But they also help women from different Asian countries. In total, the program helps about 200 women, she said.

With the recent cases of domestic violence in the NFL, the issue has been put in the forefront of the nation, Bautista said.
“This is not just a woman’s issue. This is not just a private domestic matter,” she said. “This is not something that only happens to women, to those with low self-esteem, or those living in poverty. Anyone, man or woman, rich or poor, regardless of your profession, can become a victim.”

To learn more about the ACCESS, Inc., VAWA Legal Program or if you’re a person who needs help with domestic abuse, please visit www.access2jobs.org .