Domestic Violence and the Arab American Community

This session will generate an understanding of the difference between culture and religion and how this leads to stigmas and cultural barriers for a domestic violence survivor and how advocates can work with the client without biases. Using the agency’s lived-in experience, the facilitator and audience will be breaking down a scenario. This exercise will explore how institutional insensitivity to cultural factors—such as language barriers, religious beliefs, and community biases—can inadvertently drive victims back to their abusive partners. The goal is to equip participants with strategies to effectively engage with these cultural aspects, fostering a more supportive environment that prioritizes the victim’s safety and autonomy. This engagement will help refine service delivery approaches to better meet the diverse needs of victims moving forward. It will also demonstrate how we can strengthen culturally specific interventions for lasting community change through legislative advocacy and wider intersectoral collaborations.