A Letter to Everyone to get something off my chest

Dear Everyone,

                     You guys probably know me already but if not my name is Angelisa Hassan. I wanted to start this thing called love/respect week this story is actually the reason why. I can't believe I'm writing this but someone stop me. You guys probably don't care but I want to become an activist or an advocate for domestic violence. Especially for children who witness it and I really want to break the cycle of violence.
                 
             You may not know this but my mom is a domestic violence survivor. She's been through so much. We had a long story but I'm going to make it short. In April 2003 we left my dad. I could remember that day so well. She was so scared. I was nine and I didn't know what was going on. She had a lepard duffle bag and her bible in her hand. I guess we didn't know what to expect what my dad will do since he jumped on my mom a month before. He hit my mom a couple of times before. Every hit it had gotten worse and worse. He hit my mom so much I almost thought  it was normal thing to do.
            
          So we left and went into the domestic violence shelter. We stayed for about 3 weeks until we got kicked out. Fortunately my mom already bought an apartment in Canton but we had no furniture and we couldn't afford to pay the bills. Are church had to help us with that. My mom filed an restraining order. But I still had to visit him. He didn't know where I lived so I had to go to my grandmas and  he had to come pick me up and drop me off there. But somehow he found out where I live and somehow broke the resstraining order. So he could to my moms apartment. I thought it would have been better that way but on the inside I was scared.

        I stoped seeing him when I got into middle school for some reason in the 6th grade. Then he came one night unexpected on Nov. 4 or 7 2004. We talked a little bit but he wanted to take me somewhere but my mom said no because it was time for me to eat my dinner which was salad. My mom kept on saying no then he got mad and jumped on her. He was choking her on the table and I kept on telling him to stop and I told him to go. That was the last time I had seen my dad.

       Today, we're doing good I'm a senior in high school who is going to go to Schoolcraft next fall and then transfer to some university. Well my mom is still mom. She has gotten stronger because of this experience than I have. But we still suffer she has anxiety, and depression. I have depression and post traumatic stress syndrome or disorder. And I'm very quiet than I use to be before we moved out here in Canton in 2003. Still am. My dad tries to still keep in touch with me through facebook. He use to go by a name of a girl name Angel Nicci. Some of my facebook friends were friends with him today. I don't want to see him but I still love him he's my dad.

        I know what you are thinking. Why do I need to know this sad story? It's none of my business. I just wanted people to know why I started a Love/Respect Week. And why I'm so quiet I guess. Don't feel sorry for me because I'm going to make a difference and I'm going to be an activist and an advocate for kids who witness domestic violence. And I just want you to know my story. If you know me and you read my story please don't treat me any differently. That's why I started this blog also Invisible Victims. I just don't want another kid or family that has been through what I have been through cause no kid should be scared of their dad and experience what I experience, but they are some kids who do this very minute.

                      From  Angelisa Hassan

                     P.S. Don't treat me any differently or feel sorry for me. I'm ok. Just respect the people you love and hate.

Love/Respect Week

Love/Respect week is a week where people are going to try to remember why they love their love ones. This week is going to be on Feb. 13- Feb. 19. This week you should try not to argue or put down your partner, families,friends and others. Remember why you love them and think about how you should treat them all year round.

Hotlines

Teen Dating Abuse

National Teen Dating Abuse 24-hour Helpline: 1-866-331-9474
Break The Cycle's Teen Helpline:1-888-988-8336

Domestic Violence and Child Abuse

USA National Child Abuse Hotline: 1-800-422-4453
National Domestic Violence/Child Abuse/Sexual Abuse: 1-800-799-7233
National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-HOPE (4673)
All four of these lines are national numbers. Trust us, these people can really help you if you are being abused in any way.

My Story

When I was little my mom was abused by my dad and I had seen a lot of it. She was abused so much I thought it was normal to hit someone because of disagreements. Until the day my mom got out of that situation and went into a shelter. Even when my mom separated from my dad he still came to her house and choked her and abused her. Don't get me wrong I love my dad but I haven't seen him in 6 or 7 years and he still tell lies about what happened that night. Today I'm a teenager who is still recovering from the things I have witness. I live in fear of my dad and I'm am angry with him. I worry about my mom cause now she has depression and anxiety attacks. But don't get me wrong we are in a safe place now. We are doing so much better than what we were doing 7 or 8 years ago. But it still hurts though. So that's why I'm writing this blog. Kids are the invisible victims of domestic violence and it hurts them too. It's a cycle that needs to be stop and I want to help kids who witness or who are abused break it in their families for my generation and the next generation can become strong.

Children exposed to Domestic Violence

This is a serious topic blog. I t may not be about music or celebrity gossip but I think it's an important topic to cover. When I was younger I use to witness my dad beating up my mom everyday and that's why I'm doing this blog page. I'm not trying to become a citizen journalist either. It's hard to talk about and it's hard to understand why these things occur. The fact is that 3-4 million children are at risk of being exposed to domestic violence. They become abusers themseves or wind up dating an abuser, depress, have a teen pregnancy, become anti-social, bedwetting and commit sexual assault crimes. You may not find it an issue but it is. Her are some sites you can go to for more info:

http://www.houseofruthdothan.org/children.htm

http://www.domesticviolenceroundtable.org/effect-on-children.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_domestic_violence_on_children