Anindita Chatterjee Bhaumik,
Community and External Affairs Coordinator for CONNECT;
NYPD clergy liaison for Hindu communities
By Petra Halbur
Addressing domestic violence in New York City’s faith communities requires effective partnerships between social workers and faith leaders, as clinical social worker Anindita Chatterjee Bhaumik knows well. She has worked as a DV advocate with Hindu community leaders and others for over 15 years, including serving (since 2006) as an NYPD clergy liaison for Hindu communities, and serving (since 2008) as a Community and External Affairs Coordinator for CONNECT, an organization dedicated to preventing interpersonal violence and promoting gender equality through workshops for men, women, and youth.
In addition to these education programs, CONNECT has worked (at times in partnership with ICNY) to help religious leaders address domestic violence. This is an effective way to support survivors, Bhaumik says, because “Most people, when they are at a crisis point, at the verge of breaking down, they go to their spiritual leaders. They go to their temples, their gurus, to get their information on what they should be doing and what they shouldn’t be doing. And if they hear what they need to hear from their gurus or their faith leaders, change is much more acceptable to them.”
Like social workers, most religious leaders address social issues through interpersonal relationships. Bhaumik believes this intimate, human approach is the best way to change social norms about domestic abuse. In this age of online activism, there is no shortage of public service announcements and social media campaigns intended to raise awareness about DV. Bhaumik feels that addressing the issue in this manner can be effective in some cases, but it depends on the audience. “PSAs are good,” she says, “but then they’re seen sometimes as a governmental ploy to brainwash people. So, it’s kind of like, who’s the audience?” By working with clergy, however, social workers can harness the authoritative voices of community leaders.
Bhaumik admits that religion – or its misinterpretation – has sometimes played a destructive, disempowering role in conversations about domestic abuse. In South Asian communities, for example, she acknowledges that Hinduism has been invoked to justify abusive behaviors, or else has been labeled by outsiders as the source of the problem. But Bhaumik feels this perspective stems from the conflation of religion or spirituality with culture or society. “You have to understand,” she says, “that religious philosophy does not always influence social philosophy. It’s almost the opposite, where social philosophy is influencing the religious philosophy. So we see a lot of stuff that has been brought into the realm of Hinduism and now given the name ‘religious practice,’ but it’s not essentially a religious practice.” By working in partnership and pooling their expertise, faith leaders and social workers can help each other untangle the complex threads of religion and culture in diverse communities.
In truth, Hinduism – or Sanatana Dharma, as Bhaumik prefers to call it – emphasizes respectful conduct towards everyone, regardless of gender or social status. “We believe in rebirth, we believe in karma, we believe that the soul is potentially divine. So if that’s true then all should be treated fairly and equally. And there shouldn’t be any dominance of one over the other.”
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To continue the conversation with Anindita Chatterjee Bhaumik, please join us on June 17th at the Social Work and Religious Diversity conference. Click here for information and registration.
