THREAD: A friend of mine, who left an abusive relationship, wrote down her thoughts in the aftermath of Hannah Clarke's death. She asked me to post them, because it would not be safe for her to post herself. I posted on Facebook but have been asked to thread here:
Every time I read an article about a woman being killed at the hands of someone she once loved, I sit & hold that heavy thought: will this be how my story ends too? When will I be able to trust there will be a legal system in this country that will adequately protect my son & I..
/if we were in danger? There is so much injustice weaved into a system that suggests custody should be split between parents, even if there is a history of violence. All it takes is a single incident alone with a child to have devastating consequences...
Women should not have to live in fear for their and their children's lives every day. Our laws need to change and reflect the reality that we are most unsafe in our own homes, and with those who we thought once loved us. Until then, we have to build a life of illusion .../
& play a game, keeping perpetrators happy, and de-escalating situations every day. And I am exhausted. I am exhausted of seeing a woman die every week. I am exhausted of being the only one protecting my son and I. Solidarity to every woman in this situation./
May we rise somehow tomorrow. May this not be how our story ends also. What you don't realise is #WeAreHannahClarke. It isn't over. We are not ok. We are not safe. There are so many of us who are still living the torture she endured: the constant fear, the instability/
the protection of ourselves & our children from a monster we know so well. We are completely alone in this fight. There is no system or structure we can trust to save and support us. There is no other option but to simply endure each day, and hope our fate does not end the same/
Be with us. Sit with us. Listen to us. Weep with us. We are not safe. We are not ok. When we left, it wasn't over. When we left, the worst began. Hear our story, please. And let us be free. Give us our power to be free. We have done all we can alone. But alone we cannot.../
a system that does not value our lives as much as men's freedom. In the meantime, we wait. We survive. We continue. He hasn't broken us yet, though he has tried to in every way. We are strength, resilience, wisdom and courage. We are #HannahClarke."
