Domestic violence survivor pushes for policy changes during awareness month

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) -A domestic violence survivor is speaking publicly about her experience navigating protection orders, police and courts as she pushes for stronger responses and prevention during Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October.

Nia Holland said fear kept her from speaking out.

“I was suffering in silence because I was worried about who wouldn’t believe me,” Holland said.

Holland is the founder of Rise & Rebuild Foundation, which supports domestic violence survivors and their children through advocacy and prevention.

19 News typically does not name survivors of domestic violence, but Holland chose to share her story publicly and be identified.

Holland calls for lasting change

“I know a lot of times, like specifically this month is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. We see posts, we see people talk about it, and then it kind of fades away. It becomes taboo. My goal in this is to actually work closely as a survivor, no longer a victim, to see what can be changed, especially like the domestic violence laws,” Holland said.

Holland is working with Cleveland Councilman Richard Starr on possible policy changes.

“My goal is to get with her as well as other organizations to say, where are we dropping the ball at? And if we’re dropping the ball, where do we need to all connect to be able to help? You know, you should not have to navigate five different agencies to help you with your different trauma that you’re dealing with or the struggle to find protection or the struggle to find housing, the struggle just to get away,” Starr said.

Holland plans to address Cleveland City Council during public comment next Monday. Holland is also working to engage with Ohio state representatives on potential changes to laws, policies and practices surrounding domestic violence.

“No one should have to choose between remaining in an abusive situation and becoming homeless,” Starr said. “I just think overall I want to just request possibly from my colleagues for us to host what I would call a joint policy discussion involving Cleveland’s public safety, leadership, domestic violence, service providers, as well as representatives who work in this field to be able to deal with these issues.”

Holland’s goal is to encourage meaningful conversations about survivor safety, accountability, prevention, victim services, and how communities respond before situations escalate into further violence or loss of life.

Holland sets sights on funding and support

Holland said she wants to expand funding for survivors in emergency situations.

“Within the next year, my goal is to create more funding through the nonprofit 501(c)(3) to be able to get more funding and money for emergency situations. So for example, homeless victims, I know a lot of the homeless shelters may not always accept everybody. So my goal is to open up something for domestic violence victims in emergency situations. Funding with the city, that’s something that I’m actually hoping for as well,” Holland said.

From victim to survivor

“I’m no longer a victim, I’m more of a survivor now. I’m thankful that I’m alive, and now I’m here to just speak out and be there for other victims and help them become survivors as well,” Holland said.

Holland said abuse can make it difficult to see a way forward.

Asked what she wishes the public understood about why it is difficult to leave, Holland said:

“I hope that they actually understand that it’s very difficult because once you’re in a situation where you don’t know yourself really, it can be very difficult to kind of figure out how to navigate through those things,” Holland said.

Impact on her son

Holland said her life, and her 4-year-old son’s life, have improved since leaving the relationship.

“So life has actually been great. I have a son, he’s four, so really after this I noticed it was a big change for him as well, cause he actually witnessed me go through domestic violence as well. So, life has actually been good for us both,” Holland said.

Holland described the unpredictability of the abuse and its effect on her son.

“I felt very hurt because a lot of the times I didn’t know the situations were going to happen because this was a person who always said they wouldn’t do it again and then they did it again and then I was in a fight or flight situation where I was with my son and I am a single parent so I have my son all the time. But those kind of situations where it was unexpected, it would just happen out of nowhere,” Holland said. “So with my son being around, he witnessed a lot of it and I noticed his behavior during those time frames changed tremendously. We had to actually go through therapy for him as well.”

Holland said she uses Domestic Violence Awareness Month to honor lives lost, recognize survivors and focus on preventing future violence.