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Deconstructing Leaver: Devictimizing the Homeless
“He slapped me and I slapped him back, and as I turned to run, he pulled out his gun and shot me in the back” (Pugh 55), writes Gayle, a homeless woman whose memoir appears in the book I Have Arrived Before My Words. The book contains four other memoirs written by homeless (or once homeless) women who have chosen to share their memories and experiences as part of a writing workshop in a shelter in Washington DC (vii). The book has received much praise, some of which is from Judy Leaver, Vice President of the National Mental Health Association. In her endorsement, Leaver writes: “All five women have been victimized in some way through abuse, neglect, or serious illness, causing them to slip into the shadows and eventually into homelessness” (unpaged). Having read three of the five memoirs in the book, I found Leaver’s claims to be not entirely accurate. ... By saying the women were “victimized,” particularly by abuse, did Leaver mean to imply that the women shared no responsibility in the offence with the offender? More importantly, did the abuse cause them to “…slip into the shadows and eventually into homelessness,” as Leaver puts it? By claiming they were victimized, Leaver suggests that these women were completely innocent, and while being abused sexually or physically affected them to a certain degree, it is not clear how Leaver can say that it caused their homelessness. Therefore, it is hard for me to agree with Leaver’s claim that these women were all victimized by abuse, as well as her presumption that they slipped into homelessness because of it. Leaver is wrong in leading us to believe that homelessness is simply a consequence of victimization, where a correlation exists that justifies the homelessness and therefore, our sympathy. ...
Leaver’s views as to the causes of homelessness become less apparent after reading how the women of I Have Arrived Before My Words tell their stories. ...
Although Leaver’s presumption is that these women were without blame, not all situations can be looked at using this simple approach. ...
As Gayle internalized the feelings that led to her self-destructive behavior, Leaver’s use of the word ‘victimized’ can be accepted, in that being victimized as a child can lead to such behaviours. ... Leaver fails to explore Gayle’s role in this abuse, electing instead to incorrectly portray her as the innocent victim. This allowed Leaver to justify Gayle’s homelessness as a consequence of victimization.
In describing these five women as having been victimized, Leaver suggests that they were not accountable and were not responsible for the abuses that led them to homelessness. ... Ann’s background and attitude clearly differ from Angie’s or Gayle’s, further defining Leaver’s mistaken depiction of these women.
Ann’s attitude about the way she tells her story suggests that she was responsible and justified in the choices she has made, far from Leaver’s assessment of these women being helpless victims of abuse.
Approximate Word count = 2524
Approximate Pages = 10.1
(250 words per page double spaced)
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