Our Cabrinian mission calls us to reach out to others, especially the marginalized, the outcasts and the less-fortunate. We need to be a haven for them to feel safe, to feel the love of God. We live at a time where fear and abuses are rampant. It’s hard to believe that in this day and age, human slavery still exists, people fear that they will be deported and separated from their children, and the number of reported violent crimes has risen.
Cabrini Immigrant Services (CIS), Dobbs Ferry, wanted to reach out to its clients and to some members of the community. During October, we held three different presentations: Domestic Violence (DV), Know Your Rights (KYR) and Anti-Human Trafficking. All three topics have staggering statistics. The presentations on DV and KYR were done by CIS staff and the Anti-Human Trafficking was done by Olga Brandenberger, a Senior Case Manager at Catholic Charities, and Jessica Beladino, a Children and Youth Counselor from Hope’s Door. This presentation was offered to our adult tutors and some members of the Dobbs Ferry community.
As hard as these topics are, it is important for us to be aware that these horrors exist in our world, in our state and in our neighborhoods. Education is power. We need to do all we can to get the word out there. We need to do all we can to protect the victims of these horrendous crimes.