Capacity Building
Mental Health Foundation workshop with mental health professionals
- → Breaking The Silence’ – A Two Day Workshop on Understanding and Working with Incest & Child Sexual Abuse Survivors
- → Date: Nov 8 & 9, 2014
- → Participants: 74 ( Day 1) ; 82 (Day 2)
- → Summary: This workshop aimed at development of skills in professionals dealing with survivors of Child Sexual Abuse. Teachers, Mental Health Professionals, Doctors, and Social Workers receive very little or absolutely no training in detecting and helping survivors of Child Sexual Abuse. The consequences of lack of training opportunities means not detecting Child Sexual Abuse, and not being able to recognise signs of Child Sexual Abuse. This workshop redressed this issue and aimed to provide hands on skills training on how to deal with this very complex issue.
The workshop was a great success as it was one of a kind workshop on Child Sexual Abuse issue in Kolkata. Well known Psychiatrists, Psychologists and Counsellors who were part of the workshop appreciated the comprehensive training module and the facilitation skill of the facilitaton. The Skype session with the survivor received an overwhelming response. The participants requested for a longer workshop next time on this issue.
Youth Community Programme at Behala College
Awareness Session
- → Date January 19,2015
- → No of participants: 106
- → Summary: RAHI Foundation, in association with Behala College, Kolkata organised a film screening session followed by discussion with 106 students of Behala College. A 37 minutes long film made in the year 2000 named 'Colours Black' directed by Mamta Murthy, a Mumbai based film director was also screened. 'Colours Black' captures the voices of adult women survivors and brings out the reality of Child Sexual Abuse in India and its impact on victims and survivors.
Training
- → Date February 25, 2015
- → No of participants: 9
- → Summary: 3 girls and 6 boys of Behala college participated in the 5 hour training programme which comprised modules on the definition of Child Sexual Abuse, difference between the victim and the survivor, the abuser profile, how abuse happened, what children feel, why the children do not share and the silent ways a victim tells etc. The programme concluded with the formulation of an action plan to carry out outreach activities on the issue of Child Sexual Abuse, and the participants making a commitment both to themselves and to RAHI to work for the cause
Outreach Activity
- → Poster Drive: March 25, 2015
- → Summary: Trained Campaigners shared their ideas within the team and developed several posters on Child Sexual Abuse issue. They added interesting messages in their posters also and put up all the posters in a display stand in front of their college entrance.
- → Outreach for poster drive: 2500
- → Campus walk: March 7, 2015
- → Summary: A total of 22 students organised the campus walk with placards in their hands. They walked through the corridor in the ground floor and the first floor. Students of the college were peeping from their classrooms and few rushed out from the class to get a glimpse of the walk. Many students started asking questions about the initiative. After the walk, all the placards were put up on a huge display board in front of the main entrance of the college. Students were of the opinion that this event has helped them gain insight about Child Sexual Abuse and has sensitised them about the issue.
- → Outreach for poster drive: 500
- → Signature Campaign March 7, 2015
- → Summary: Campaigners organised a signature campaign in the college to create awareness about Child Sexual Abuse. They approached each and every staff, professor and students to join in the campaign.
- → Outreach for poster drive: 2500
- → Leaflet distribution
- → Summary: During issuing admission forms for the new session, campaigners distributed RAHI leaflets with Child Sexual Abuse information along with the forms to the enrolling students.
- → Outreach for leaflet distribution: 1000
Outcome of Behala College Youth Community Programme
- → NAAC (National Assessment and Accreditation Council) , an an autonomous body funded by University Grants Commission of Government of India that assesses and accredits institutions of higher education in India, mentioned RAHI Foundation activities in their Behala College visit report.
- → Behala College offered a shot term course for the students of new session on several social issues including Child Sexual Abuse.
- → Students convinced the principal that Behala College's association with RAHI Foundation should be mentioned in the college prospectus, and this was done in the prospectus for the new session.
- → Behala College representatives acknowledged that the Gender Cell of Behala College started its journey when RAHI Foundation addressed the issue of Child Sexual Abuse by RAHI Foundation.
- → Students got motivated through the outreach activities and they expressed their willingness to be associated with RAHI activities in the long run.
Circle of Strength Healing Workshop
- → Date June 26 & 27, 2015
- → No of participants: 9
The Circle of Strength was started in Kolkata and the first meeting of the group happened soon after on July 7, 2015
Outreach
- → Date April 6, 2015
- → No of participants: 31 Inner Wheel Club members
Rahi Foundation got an opportunity to screen 'Colors Black', a film on Child Sexual Abuse in the 725th meeting of Inner Wheel Club, Midtown. It was followed by a talk by Anuja Gupta, Founder and Executive Director RAHI, to orient the audience on Child Sexual Abuse. An interested and curious audience had several questions including male child abuse, the right age to orient a child about CSA, and the psychological state of abusers. Anuja answered their questions and urged that the silence around child sexual abuse be broken to eradicate this menace from society.
School Programme
RAHI Foundation organised a film screening session followed by a talk with the students of Vidyasagar School of Social Work on August 7, 2015. 63 students participated, and 59 filled in forms to become peer educators. A training programme for them has already been scheduled on August 28, 2015.
