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| Women's center airs truths about domestic violence |
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| Written by Jonathan Partridge / Patterson Irrigator / | |
| Wednesday, 17 October 2007 | |
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“There are still times when we come to put these up … and I say, ‘Oh my God.’” - Miranda Stiers
 Elias Funez / Patterson Irrigator T-shirts that hung on a clothesline in Patterson’s North Park on Monday were blazoned with frank messages that proclaimed victims’ experiences with domestic violence and sexual assault, no holds barred. “There are still times when we come to put these up … and I say, ‘Oh my God,’” said Miranda Stiers, a Stanislaus County Community Services Agency domestic violence program coordinator. Haven Women’s Center is a Modesto-based shelter that aims to empower victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. Haven offers services throughout the county, and staff members offer presentations once a month locally at the Westside Resource Center. The clothesline is set up each October in honor of Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Words marked on the rows of T-shirts and blue jeans detail victims’ past traumas in colored markers and puff paint. The T-shirts’ colors represent different types of abuse. One shirt described how a woman’s husband hit her on the head with a steel cup and beat her severely. “He hits me so much that I feel like I’m dying,” the woman wrote. “I don’t have a mom, dad, brothers or sisters. I’m all alone. I’m 57 years old.”  Elias Funez / Patterson Irrigator The baby’s outfit bore the simple words, “I never got to wear this.” “Quite a few of our clients have lost babies because of abuse,” explained Kristin Kinnear, Haven’s prevention program manager. Domestic violence is about power and control, she said. Abusive men may lose their sense of control when others surround a woman during her pregnancy, and abuse can intensify. In addition to messages of hurt, several shirts displayed words of empowerment, such as a shirt with a rainbow and a cross at the end that said, “You can be free to smile like me.” A few of the shirts came from San Francisco-based Free Battered Women, which aims to free incarcerated women and transgender people whose crimes were related to their experience with domestic violence. However, most were from Stanislaus County residents. The first Clothesline Project was created in Massachusetts in 1990. Today, there are more than 250 projects throughout the world. The project has existed in Patterson for five years, and it ran in Oakdale for a couple of years. In addition, the clothesline is hung in Modesto in conjunction with the Day of Peace for Children. That day includes various events from different agencies. “It would be neat to make this event grow, too,” Stiers said. Crowds on Monday were not as large as in years past. Kinnear speculated that it might be because past Patterson events had been on Fridays. Still, about 30 folks dropped by to look at the shirts and receive free hot dog lunches served up by the Patterson Fire Department. Adrienne Chaney, director of Patterson’s Parks and Recreation Department, was one of those who showed up to view the clothesline. She described it as an “awesome” project and said it was wonderful to see Haven helping women and children who are victims of violence. “Really, it’s disturbing, but it’s reality,” she said. Chaney said she planned to consider incorporating the display into the city’s annual Fall Family Festival in October to give the project more exposure. Though domestic violence is a heavy topic, Chaney said, the project might be a good match with the festival. The family-oriented event has included a Girl Scout walk against domestic violence in the past. “Actually,” Chaney said, “I think it’s the perfect fit.” To reach Jonathan Partridge at the Irrigator, call 892-6187 or e-mail him at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
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