Inside the Middle East’s First Rape & Domestic Violence Crisis Program
For the last year and a half, there’s been a new sight in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Lodged into stacks of newspapers, stuck to mirrors in restaurant bathrooms, and pinned to grocery store notice boards are small, blue-and-white fliers with a simple but powerful call to action: Ladies, are you being hurt or abused? Help is available! Call Women’s Crisis Care International 24/7.
The fliers may seem relatively unremarkable. But they’re part of something both groundbreaking and life-changing — the Middle East’s first-ever rape and domestic violence crisis-response program.
Since launching in January 2016, Women’s Crisis Care International, or WCCI, has helped more than 150 survivors of domestic and sexual violence, while using educational campaigns to challenge societal narratives about male violence against women.
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