The Orbis

You may not know where or what it is, but Nashville's Ujima House is in dire need of your help. The Ujima House is a shelter for women and children who have been victims of domestic violence; however, this valuable program needs more volunteers and contributions in order to help the growing number of women and children in trouble.

The name Ujima is derived from one of the seven guiding principles of Kwanzaa. The principle of Ujima is "Collective Work and Responsibility reminds us of our obligation to the past, present and future, and that we have a role to play in the community, society and world." The Ujima House embodies this principle by serving some of the Nashville community's neediest victims.

In an interview with Ujima House volunteer Anita Aboagye-Agyeman, the hardships these women and children face were revealed, as well as what can be done by volunteers. She gave the example of a woman who graduated from high school and planned to go to college, but she met a man who sweet-talked her, and they had a few kids together. When she expressed her desire to go back to school, he apparently he took this as an insult and assuming she would leave him he began to beat her, so much that she was embarrassed to leave her home.

The location of the Ujima House is secret in order to protect the women and children who live there from their abusers. Volunteers go through a training process, but they are not told much personal information about the victims. Aboagye-Agyeman compared the house to a half-way home; women are brought in and taught the skills necessary in order to live safely on their own.

Volunteers teach the women about the resources available to them, and they also serve as mentors to the children by helping with their homework and answering any questions the kids may have.

Nearby is the Magdalene House, a program for women who are recovering from drug and alcohol problems and the ill effects of prostitution. Among other things, the program provides computer classes for women that are computer illiterate. Every morning the women get together and say what they are thankful for. Aboagye-Agyeman notes that these women "take everyday, day by day, because they do not know what is going to happen to them."

Aboagye-Agyeman points out that you can learn a lot from these women; they are just like any woman in the world, but they made wrong choices. She encourages students to open their eyes and experience the numerous projects in Nashville. She noted the apathy of many Vanderbilt students; they attend things like "Take Back the Night", but do not often leave their comfort zone and feel the discomforts that these women and children face every day.

However, there are many ways that people can help. Both houses are suffering from budget cuts and a lack of volunteers, so any time or monetary contributions are especially beneficial. For instance, the Magdalene House owns Thistle Farms, a workplace where many of these women that create candles, balms and other scented goods to sell. The proceeds from these products go directly to the women of Magdalene. For more information, visit http://www.thistlefarms.org.

For more information about either of these programs, please contact Anita Aboagye-Agyeman at anita.n.aboagye-agyeman@vanderbilt.edu.

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