Author: Pat Bell (Pat Bell)

22 hours ago

Jane Bolin, an incredible woman that deserves recognition this month! Jane was the first African American woman in the United States to become a judge.

Judge Bolin was the first black woman to graduate from Yale Law School, the first to join the New York City Bar Association, and the first to work in the office of the New York City corporation counsel, the city’s legal department.

At her graduation in 1928, she was named a Wellesley Scholar, a distinction given to the top 20 students of the class.

When she broached the subject of a law career to a Wellesley guidance counselor, she was told that black women had little chance. Her father also discouraged her at first, saying that lawyers had to deal “with the most unpleasant and sometimes the grossest kind of human behavior.”

But Mr. Bolin did not know she had already been admitted to Yale Law School, and he eventually agreed to her career choice.

At Yale, Ms. Bolin was one of three women in her class and the only black person.

Excerpt taken from the New York Times. ... See MoreSee Less

3 days ago

Today we're celebrating Betty Friedan, a journalist, activist, and co-founder of the National Organization for Women. Betty Friedan was one of the early leaders of the women’s rights movement of the 1960s and 1970s.

A busy activist throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Friedan helped found the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws in 1969, later renamed National Abortion Rights Action League and more recently NARAL Pro-choice America. She organized the Women’s Strike for Equality on August 26, 1970 on the 50th anniversary of women’s suffrage, to raise awareness about gender discrimination.

In addition, in 1971, Friedan was a co-founder of the National Women’s Political Caucus with Congresswoman Bella Abzug, Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, and feminist Gloria Steinem. Through these organizations, Friedan was influential in changing outdated laws such as unfair hiring practices, gender pay inequality, and pregnancy discrimination.

Excerpt taken from the National Women's History Museum. ... See MoreSee Less

4 days ago

Meet the hearts behind House of Ruth! Natasha is our Prevention Educator and has been with us since the Fall of 2018. We asked her a few questions to help you get to know her!

What brought you to work in the domestic violence field?
- I have always had a passion for providing service to those in need. I did not intentionally seek work in the domestic violence field, but am so grateful fate brought me here and introduced me to this field of work.

What’s your passion word?
- RESILIENCE

What would you say to a survivor?
- Don’t be ashamed of your story. It will inspire others.

What’s your favorite thing to do when you’re not at work?
- My favorite thing to do when I’m not at work is sit in my bed with my Haagen Dazs Dulce de Leche ice cream, while binge watching Grey’s Anatomy. ... See MoreSee Less

4 days ago

Another volunteer spotlight! See what Cindy has to say about why she volunteers.

"I volunteer at the House of Ruth to honor the kind people that helped my mother and four kids when she was in a very bad situation. Many people would not help, law enforcement, family & friends, but many people did. I have wanted to be one of those people that did help since I was a teen." ... See MoreSee Less

5 days ago

One of the many services that House of Ruth offers is support and guidance in the area of child custody and legal help with restraining orders.

This is an excerpt from a Domestic Shelters article about child custody in domestic violence cases that showcases just how important this service is.

"Every day, protective mothers—those who have been abused by their partners—fight desperately in court to retain custody of their children and keep them away from the destructive grasp of the abusive parent.

Some mothers are forced to share custody with an abuser whom they fear will harm their children while in their care, and some mothers lose custody all together, barred from seeing their children. They are painted as unfit mothers, as “crazy” for the emotional pain they cannot hide in courtrooms as they are forced to turn over their sons and daughters to a knowingly dangerous individual.

“There is a blindness to their trauma,” says Hannah, a clinical psychologist of nearly 30 years. “The women are blamed and then labeled mentally ill because they’ve been traumatized.”

The myth that abuse ends after a survivor escapes is just that—a myth. According to the American Bar Association, researchers found an abuser’s motivation to use their children as a means to intimidate and control survivors increased after separation." ... See MoreSee Less