The Issues of Abuse Workshop was held on Thursday, March 13 at 11 a.m. at the Business Education Building (BE 119), where it educated the audience on the different types of abuse.
The event was hosted by Shannon Estrada, the advisor for the Re-Entry Resource Program at Cerritos College, and the workshop was provided for students both on and off campus to inform them issues of abuse.
The workshop covered abusive behavior, child abuse, bullying and peer abuse and domestic abuse.
Avanna Bell, undecided major said, “I think reporting abuse is necessary but it also depends on the situation. If it is peer to peer, then yes, go to the authorities, otherwise it is not necessary.”
Pamela Sepulveda, the presenter of the workshop and a Community Outreach Coordinator for Casa Youth Shelter said, “I enjoy doing this presentation because I like to educate students that are or may be dealing with some of these issues, and to help them get involved in the movement to end abuse.”
An important topic Sepulveda talked about was the imbalance of power or strength in abusive cases. She explained that the person that is being victimized does not know how they got to the point of getting beaten.
While some victims seek help from authorities or loved ones, others are too fearful and vulnerable and deny the abuse in order to survive.
Beatriz Valencia, sociology major said, “ I came to the meeting because I am doing a presentation on homelessness and drug addiction and I wanted information on those topics.”
Sepulveda showed the audience a video called Youth Communication, in which a young teenage boy shares his story of being abused by his mother.
The video was relevant because the teenage boy had thoughts about suicide due to the abuse he would receive and then Sepulveda mentioned her shelter again at the end of the workshop since it is specifically for teenage kids.
Erica Nelson, sociology major said,” I really liked how the speaker included every topic in her presentation, because it affects everyone and can happen to anyone.”
