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Advocacy
"It's not important which talents we have. What is important is how we use the ones we have to help others." Barbara Bentley
HOW DID MY POLITICAL ADVOCACY JOURNEY BEGIN? After being the victim of a psychopath husband, I became the victim of the no-fault divorce law of California. I was told that I would have to pay alimony,give up half of my retirement fund, and pay car and medical insurance until the divorce was final.
HOW DID I LEARN POLITICAL ADVOCACY?
Iknew nothing of about the inner workings of politics, let alone the process to get a bill passed. But I had passion. I wanted to change an unfair law soothers would not have to suffer like I did. Armed with patience and persistence, it took me almost two years to find a legislator willing to carry the bill. Ihad been told the law could not be changed. Assemblyman Richard Rainey became my knight in shining armor. I worked with his legislative aides andlearned what it would take to change the law...step by step. I used my organizational skills, my speaking ability and my stubbornness until I realized Ihad become the sponsor of the bill, a role usually filled by an organization.If you observe an incident, report it to the police for intervention. If you, a loved one or a friend thinks they are in a domestic violence relationship, call theNational Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-799-7233 or your local domestic violence organization for help. If you see a wrong, andwant to right it, igniteyour passion and use patience and persistence to fulfill it.READ THE LAW
HOW TO CHANGE A LAW? Click the link to read some thoughts you might use to change a law. CHANGE THE LAW MY POLITICAL ADVOCACY CONTINUES In 2011, the San Diego DA responded to the plight of spousal rape victim Crystal Harris and sponsored a bill to amend my law to extend coverage tovictims of spousal rape. Assemblywoman Atkins introduced AB1522 in the California Assembly. Crystal tracked me down and I became involved in hereffort; I wrote letters to the committee members and went up a day before the committee hearing on March 20, 2012, to help lobby in their offices. I alsovoiced my support of the changes in the committee hearing. Crystal delivered a powerful appeal and the committee passed it to the full assembly. Itpassed the assembly and is now on its way to the Senate Judiciary Committee. I once more wrote letters and went to Sacramento to testify. AB1522made it out of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the full Senate. The Governor signed the bill into law in August 2012. Congratulations, Crystal. Thankyou for taking a stand for victims. WHAT TYPES OF VICTIMS ADVOCACY DID I JOIN? It took me two years to break free from my victim's shroud and I entered what I call my "going beyond self" journey. I became involved Speaker's Bureauof Battered Women's Alternatives, now known as STAND! Against Domestic Violence. Independently I presented "One Person Can Make a Difference"to diverse groups.
WHAT CAN YOU DO IN THE FIGHT AGAINST DOMESTIC VIOLENCE?
Barbara Bentley Motivational Author and Speaker
ONE PERSON CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Copyright 2017, Barbara Bentley. All rights reserved. No contents can be used without permission from the author.