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Apna
Ghar's History Apna Ghar is a domestic violence shelter. The idea of establishing a transitional shelter and walk-in social service agency was first conceived in September 1989 by five Asian-American women activists who were
committed to serving the South Asian immigrant women and children facing domestic violence
and abuse in the Greater Chicago Area.
The initiative was undertaken in response to hotline calls reporting a high incidence
of domestic violence, abandonment, child abuse and neglect, sexual and criminal assault
among the South-Asian-American ethnic minority communities settled in Metropolitan
Chicago. It was also evident that due to cultural differences such as language,
dress, food, religion, family structures and values, the Asian-American women and families
were reluctant to avail themselves of the services offered by mainstream existing shelters
and other organizations. Women and children were suffering violence and abuse rather
than seeking help.
Existing shelters and service providers, not familiar with the South-Asian culture,
family system and immigration laws, needed a South-Asian social service agency to provide
translations, counseling, legal services and other support.
Apna Ghar, the first United States transitional shelter and social agency serving Asian
victims of domestic violence, was incorporated in December 1989. It was originally
founded to meet the expressed need for appropriate cultural social services for women and
children victims of domestic violence who came from the Asian Subcontinent countries of
India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Sri Lanka. Today, all services are free and
open to families irrespective of ethnic origins, socio-economic status, and racial
identity.
In 1991, Apna Ghar's services were expanded to include the Child Visitation Center,
which was established to provide visitation of children by non-custodial parents who are
court mandated not to see their children except under supervision.
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