Edinburgh Rape Crisis - where are we with this?

[WandaWomblesaurus]

What are the alternatives for women in Edinburgh (especially women of colour)
I have a Muslim friend who is excluding from ERC for obvious male based reasons.
Where else can I signpost her to?

I'm so sorry to hear that.

I don't have in depth knowledge of that area, but might Women's Aid be worth asking? Some of the staff understand the issues very well. If nothing else, they may be able to signpost to other services.

I hope your friend is able to access support.

Edinburgh Women's Aid

Provides confidential information, support and, if needed, refuge accommodation for women and any accompanying children and young people experiencing domestic abuse. Visit Edinburgh Women's Aid website for information on crisis support.

Call 0131 315 8110

or email* *[email protected]

Amina have a chat service, may be able to help or signpost.

mwrc.org.uk/

Thank you so much, I'll pass the details on x

Firstly, although MW started their career at Shakti Women's Aid in Edinburgh, MW is obviously not there now. Would you be able to approach them with her and check them out?

Secondly, I recall that Sikh Women's Aid came out in support of single-sex spaces in the social media discussions that developed as a result of this ongoing situation with ERC. Could it be worth reaching out to them to see if they know of someone in the Edinburgh area who could support a Muslim woman?

Are Shakti all female now?
Difficult to know isn't it without asking them directly and then risking being called a transphobe!

MW is obviously not there now

I don't recall MW leaving and their LinkedIn profile reads

Mridul Wadhwa
Chief Executive Officer at Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre
Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre
Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom36 connections
**
I'm confused now!
**

MW is at Rape Crisis. Shakti Women's Aid is not Rape Crisis.

FWIW I seem to recall we had a poster here who'd worked with MW at Shakti and was horrified to find out that MW was not female. But my memory is shot; it may have been a different organisation.

So this person, who is not legally female (only because of a technicality mind you) has worked at several different women's shelters/ crisis centres. FFS.

What kind of person puts their need for validation and ego above the wellbeing and suffering of acutely traumatised people? Not someone who should be at the helm of any sort of therapeutic service.

Meh. Everything's transphobic.

Ah, sorry, I can see how that exchange was confusing!

Shakti Women's Aid is a specialist charity for black women and ethnic minority women, with a base/branch in Edinburgh. It's where MW started their career in the women's sector. But as MW is now at ERC, that means MW isn't at Shakti (or Forth Valley Rape Crisis) any more.

Yep, that's the problem. I've thought it over, during the night. As I see it, if they are all female, it will be because of lack of male applicants, not any principle. MW worked there for years and that will have shaped their policy on the matter.

If your friend's opinion on whether TW are women is relevant to what she's seeking support for, she would have to watch her words to an extent that could destroy the therapeutic relationship.

It's reasonably likely that they are thus currently female-only because MW was fond of describing self as the only transwoman of colour in the Scottish women's sector, but this means they are female by default. The moment a male person does ask, women lose their services. We saw what that meant in Brighton, when the rape crisis service allowed a male to attend the women's group discussion.

At the end of the day though, it is still worth asking them if they can point you to specialist sexual violence support in the area for your friend. They describe themselves as having 35 years of experience offering domestic violence support to BME women. (Their wording not mine.) When you follow up with their recommendations, those might well be female only.

It might be worth contacting Shakti. At a quick look on their website, they look like an organisation that does a lot of good solid work.

shaktiedinburgh.co.uk/getting-help/