Brandle, Brenda

English

Canadian Woman Studies / les cahiers de la femme (E-Journal, York University)

VOLUME 8, NUMBER 2 19 St. Christopher House Its Role in the Portuguese Women's Community By Brenda Brandle its eleventh year of publication, is printed in Portuguese and English and is distrib- uted at the work place by the unions and St. Christopher House. In 1977 many of these women worked as cleaners at Queens Park. The staff cleaners were terminated in favour of hiring an independent contractor. The cleaners - through direct social action, the support of the media, and great deter- mination - were able to extract a fair wage policy from the government. This victory was limited to the Queens Park Cleaners: whenever an employer con- uactsoutthecleaningof theirbuildingsto an independent contractor, the fight must be fought all over again. COMMITTEE FOR CLEANERS' RIGHTS Cleaners do not have job or income security, even when they are unionized. Cleaners and cafeteria workers do not qualify for "successor rights" as spelled out in section 63 of the Labour Relations Act. This glaring inequality in the Act prompted a group of concerned people to form the Committee for Cleaners' Rights. The committee is a coalition of labour, community and women's groups who are dedicated to rectifying this inequality and to securing the legal protection required by Ontario's building cleaners. Partici- pants on the Committee include people from St. Christopher House, the National Action Committee on the Status of Women (NAC), the Portuguese Inter- agency Network (PIN), a number of NDP activists, and unions such as CUPE, FASWOC, CUPW, OPSEU, SEIU, and the Labourers Local 183. One can see a community of women isolated by their own community, cut offfrom the outside world by a lack of education, confirsed by a counfry whose rules and values they do not understand, and pressed to find em- ployment to cover family expenses. Transition into Canadian life is a major problem, and Canada has done little to ease that nunsition. (The Story of St. Christopher House: 19 12-1986) I mmigrant families arrive in Canada with high aspirations for their new life - and often little else - to absorb the inevitable culture shock. These people are isolated by language and cultural differences; their dream of agood lifecanquicklybecomeanightmare with- out the help of a concerned citizemy: ... the essence of St. Christopher House is reflected in the small things that staff and volunteers do from day to day - small things that make a big difference to many people in our community. (St. Christopher House Chronicle, Decem- ber 1986) In the spirit of "people sharing life" with people, St. Christopher House has played a productive role in the lives of many immigrant communities since its incep- tion. The last fifteen years have been sig- nificant for the House in its involvement with the Portuguese community. The House aims to help the community as a whole, and in so doing has played a vital part in the lives of many Portuguese women. St. Christopher House continues to offer services in translation, English as a Second Language (ESL) and Literacy classes: it facilitated the formation of the Cleaners' Action committee and pub- lishes a newsletter of the same name; actively participates in the Committee for Cleaners' Rights; and provides support groups for victims of domestic violence. INTERPRETING SERVICE In 1973 a small group of people who worked as interpreters recognized that the Portuguese community would benefit from acomprehensive self-help program. The Portuguese women were isolated by language and cultural differences and uninformed of their rights and available community resources. The Portuguese West of Bathurst Project (PISEM) was established in 1974 to meet their needs. Community workers and volunteers be- gan a door-knocking campaign: the initial contact was to meet with individual women in their homes, and then in small groups, and much later in larger groups. These women identified as their issues lack of communication with their chil- dren's schools and problems in the work place. PISEM staff organized meetings with teachers at appropriate times for par- ents who worked in the evening and, as a result, better understanding was promo- ted between the parents and the teachers. CLEANERS' ACTION The women discussed their job-related problems with PISEM staff and from these concerns the Cleaners' Action movement was born in the mid-1970s. The Cleaners' Action Newsletter was published and kept the cleaners informed of relevant issues. The newsletter, now in ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE English classes have always been a part of the St. Christopher House program to promote community development. The lack of English is a major factor contrib- uting to isolation and alienation: without English and literacy skills immigrant women are forced into low-paying jobs that entail long working hours away from their homes. St. Christopher House has provided English classes in small informal groups in peoples' homes, in the work place and in classroom settings. In 1955,125 adults paid the one dollar registration fee for English classes in the Kensington area. Presently there are three programs offered through the House: a literacy program for Portuguese speakers; a beginners' pro- gram for older adults, and a program run from Sanderson Library for people of all ages and proficiency levels. The Sanderson Library Program offers child care service to enable women with young children to participate. There are presently twenty people enrolled in this program (fiiteen women and five men), ranging in age from sixteen to seventy- tbo. Some of theolder female students are motivated to learn English so that they will be able to speak English with their grandchildren and to communicate with those of their children's spouses who do not speak Portuguese. Younger students are motivated to learn English in order to improve their occupational opportunities. The methodology in these classes is very flexible: a multi-level program is offered, and the time people are able to spend at their studies varies with each student. The Older Adult Centre's oldest stu- dent is a woman of seventy-six who ap- plies herself to her studies with zeal and enthusiasm. The enrolment in this pro- gram is twenty students, fifteen of whom are women. The focus of classroom in- struction is Survival English. The stu- dents learn important things, such as us- ing the telephone, making appointments and making emergency telephone calls. Some of the students in this program are so keen to learn that they also attend the classes at Sanderson Library. The Portuguese Literacy class is a small, hard-working group of thirteen people, most of whom are women. Some of these students attend the classes with- out the knowledge of their husbands. Their ages range from early twenties to seventies; on average, the students are in Cleaners examine their newsletter Photo: Courtesy St.  Chrisfopher House 1 CANADIAN WOMAN STUDIESLES CAHIERS DE LA FEMME their fifties. These people missed out on educational opportunities in their home- land and are now making up for lost time. One can only admire their courage, as they must first acquire literacy skills in their mother tongue in order to then apply them to the difficult task of learning English. Attendance is not mandatory in these programs and, if people are absent from the class, they are able to resume atten- dance when their schedules permit. Teaching in these kinds of flexible pro- grams is as demanding as it is exciting: it requires very special and dedicated teach- ers to respond to the varying needs, levels and schedules of their students. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE Programs in the House evolve from the needs expressed by the community. These needs are made apparent through the trust and goodwill engendered in ex- isting programs. The sensitive issue of domestic vio- lence is just such a program. The Clean- ers' Action has not only strengthened women in their goal of improving their working conditions, but has allowed some women to seek assistance for their personal problems. There is presently a very active group of staff workers and volunteers who are helping women and children troubled with violence in the home. Funding shortages have prevented the hiring of a male social worker who could deal directly with the perpetrators of this violence. Meanwhile, the House does all that it can by providing an evening and a day- time program for women. The focus of these programs is therapeutic: they help the women to deal with the emotional impact of battering and to direct their lives, through education and life skills I training, toward renewed self-esteem and 1 financial independence. There are three children's programs established to assist them through this critical period in their lives: a morning program for pre-schoolers, an afternoon program for school-age children, and an evening program for older children. After 1 a ten-week period the children are inte- grated into other existing children's pro- grams in the House. The focus of these programs is both therapeutic and preven- tive. The children have the opportunity to deal with their feelings about the prob- lems in their family and then to go on to normal activities that allow them to expe- rience healthy male role models. Photo: Courtesy St.  Chrisfopher House In the area of Community Education on Domestic Violence, St. Christopher House sponsors two public forums a year. A panel made up of Catholic Family workers, priests, doctors, lawyers and members of the Domestic Violence Team with the Police Department addresses the problems and answers questions from members of the community. The theme for the March '87 Public Forum "Alcohol and Violence." The forum being organ- ized in conjunction with the Kensington Clinic, a new program run by the Toronto Western Hospital for Portuguese and Spanish-speaking men with alcohol-re- lated problems. Many immigrant women have used the programs described above to lighten the heavy burdens they carry. Their struggle to adapt to a new life is made a little easier by "sharing life" with each other. It is through becoming a community of women who helponeanother that they are freed from fear and isolation. St. Christo- pher House is the instrument that exists in the community for just this purpose - to help people help themselves. Through seventy-five years of active community development, the House has worked to meet the changing needs of all members of the community. It embodies the spirit of the Settlement House philosophy: The Settlement Houses seek to develop harmonious relationships among dif- ferent cultural, economic, religious and social groups, and seeks to foster per- sonalgrowthandself-confidence. They offer an approach to a neighbourhood -helping neighboursfind solutions to problems in terms which are meaning- ful to them. NeighbourhoodHouses use both direct services and social action to achieve these goals. (The Story of St. Christopher House: 1912-1986) It renews the spirit to know that, in this dark world fraught with political and economic chaos, there is a bright light burning. As individuals we are not able to effect changes on a global scale, but as individuals who live together in commu- nities, we can extend a helping hand to our neighbours. It is in our communities that we can effect changes and make them better places for us all. A caring commu- nity, "sharing life," keeps that bright light burning. I gratefully acknowledge all the time and interest given to me by staff members of the House (both present and past) and other interested people, without whose valuable assistance this article would not have been written: Ana Maria Borges (St. Christopher House (ESL), Sanderson Library); Lourdes Braga (St. Christopher House (ESL), Older Adults); Fatirna Compos (St. Christopher House, Portu- guese Literacy); Lina Costa (St. Christo- pher House, Neighbourhood House - Committee for Cleaners' Rights, Domes- tic Violence); Wendy Isler (Food and Service Workers of Canada, Vice-Presi- dent); Ilda Furtado (St. Christopher House, Cleaners' Action); Sidney Pratt (St. Christopher House, 1973 - Inter- preter; 1974 - PISEM; 1976 to 1980- Adult Services, Cleaners' Action). VOLUME 8, NUMBER 2 2 1 

St. Christopher House: Its Role in the Portuguese Women's Community

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St. Christopher House: Its Role in the Portuguese Women's Community

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Canadian Woman Studies / les cahiers de la femme (E-Journal, York University)