_____________________________________________________ _______________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________ aprii 21. 2000 * J m é M t, y 3
LHu : ì i l i v i d i m e w s
T urning 25
milestone birthday is generally
and transgender individuals experiencing or
cause for a little introspection
escaping domestic violence.
and celebration. Bradley-Angle
One day, Courvant, herself a trans
House’s 25th anniversary is no
woman and abuse survivor, picked up an
Bradley-Angle House reaches
different, except that the “never
anti-domestic violence flier that list
thought we’d get this old" comments don’t come
ed a variety of identifications,
the
quarter-century
mark
by Irene K. Hislop
with a cheerful chuckle.
including transsexual.
The Portland-based Bradley-Angle House
“I was floored in both a flat
grew out o f the Prescott House, which started in
Women seeking services go through a phone
Anderson says.
tered and worried way,” she
1971 as a shelter primarily for women leaving
screening that also covers oppression issues. If a
Currently she is
recalls.
prison. Sharon Bradley and Pam Angle were
woman expresses homophobia during the con busy updating out
While she was delighted to
two of the first residents there. In 1975, Bradley-
versation, Anderson explains, volunteers would
reach materials for
see Bradley-Angle reaching out
Angle House became one of the first shelters for
rather try to educate her than deny her services.
queer women. O ut
to the trans community, she was
battered women in the United States. The
But oppressive behavior is not tolerated in the
reach is also happen
also concerned it lacked the infor
world’s first had opened in England just two
shelter.
ing for a new queer
mation and resources to serve trans
years earlier.
women.
Bradley-Angle offers motel vouchers for youth group at Bradley-
According to Executive Director Erika Sil women escaping violence who might feel
Shortly after that, she and
Angle open to all genders.
ver, many of the house’s founders believed it
Travers did a training with
uncomfortable or unsafe in the shelter. The
In 1992, Bradley-Angle Bradley-Angle House
would be obsolete and unneeded by now.
drawback of using vouchers is that women in
House began to work with the Executive Director Erika Silver Bradley-Angle staff and volun
A recent report released by a coalition of motels do not have as much contact with case SM community to confront
teers. Courvant is now work
Multnomah County agencies shows that, to the
ing as an on-call case manager with the shelter.
workers and other support networks as they stereotypes that confused SM practices with
contrary, one in seven local women ages 18 to
“Education still needs to happen,” Courvant
would in the shelter.
abuse. Anderson notes that SM groups have
64 was physically abused by a partner during the
been solid financial supporters of the shelter.
says, “so people notice the little things. It’s not
When the lesbian group started it was just
past year.
going to happen all at once. This is
ongoing work.”
Demand for more shelter space has
placed a new facility at the top of
The basics of that work range
Bradley-Angle’s birthday wish list.
from creating inclusive policies to
updating mundane forms to making
Today, it is not only serving more
sure women understand shelter ser
women but a more diverse group of
women.
vices in enough detail to decide what
their best options are.
Queer women have always been
In late September, Bradley-Angle
involved in Bradley-Angle House,
organizers are planning an event to
according to staffers, and the programs
celebrate how far they have come in
have evolved over time to better serve
women from queer communities.
that ongoing work, and to honor
those who have made it possible.
“Many of the founders were work
But the statistics are still grim.
ing-class dyke feminists,” says Jody
According to Silver, Bradley-Angle
Anderson, Bradley-Angle’s sexual
has to turn away nine out of every 10
minority services coordinator.
women seeking shelter. And the
But when some folks in the orga
recent Multnomah County report
nization started the Battered Lesbian
states
that in that county alone
Support Group in the mid-1980s,
28,000 women were physically
they did so amid serious grumbling
abused
by their partners during the
from other staffers, board members
last year.
and volunteers— despite the fact that
But there is good news as well.
anti-homophobia training had been
Bradley-Angle recently received
in place for some time, says Ander
funding
from Multnomah County
son.
that can be used for sexual minority
At the time, homophobia was a
services.
It has also received a grant
widespread problem in the anti
from the Equity Foundation. And the
domestic violence movement, Silver
search for a new facility is in full
explains, and included pressures from
swing.
funders and denial that women could Bradley -Angle House queer staffers (clockwise from top left) Gabby Santos, Erika Silver, Jeannie LaFrance, Lauren
“ [Turning 25] is a pretty big
be abusers. While that denial is still an Martin, Jody Anderson, Diana Courvant, Crystal Query, Jodi Darby, Amy Catania, Molly Franks and Megan Savage
accomplishment,” says Silver. “The
obstacle, the support group has sur
cycle
of violence really has been bro
vived and evolved.
ken in a lot of people’s lives, and Bradley-Angle
In 1998, Bradley-Angle House began work
that— women had to identify specifically as les
Now Bradley-Angle’s services, including the
has
been a catalyst for that.”
to
provide
services
to
trans
women.
That
was
bians
to
participate.
Eventually,
a
bisexual
cau
shelter facility, are open to all self-identified
about a year after Diana Courvant and Derrick
women. Staff and volunteers receive anti cus formed and lobbied for inclusion. Now the
Travers
started the Survivor Project to raise
■ IRENE H is l o p is a Portland-based free-lance
group
is
open
to
all
women
battered
by
women.
oppression training that includes unlearning
uniter.
“We’re headed in the right direction,” awareness of the needs and issues of transsexual
homophobia.
W
e A *»
e'n tU
Uft
^t Alton you'll a
M a k e B en der Properties your real estate hom e. Put your feet up
and relax! D etails are our business. You w o n ’t lift a finger as w e
attend to every aspect of buying or selling your h o m e -e v e n the lit
tle chores that others sw eep under the rug. And successful? W h en
it com es to fresh m arketing or resourceful hunting, our enterpris
ing agents really clean house. C om plete service and client ed u c a
tion are alw ays our priority.
HOME PURCHASE & SALES
IN VESTM EN T PRO PERTY SALES, PURC HASE & M A N A G E M EN T
L IC E N S E D TAX C O N S U LTA T IO N
tt'f A l t in
»ftles
4133 SE Division Street, “Richmond Place"
f n
I N
tut f f i À ctniftitu! ©
503 . 233.4363
Portland, Oregon 97202
h