HISTORY AND MILESTONE

Word & Action Profile

 

Word and Action (W&A) is a nonprofit organization that was founded in 2009 by psychotherapist, Georges Bossous, Jr., who after many years of practice, had identified a need for cultural competency when treating Haitian victims of child sexual abuse and their affected loved ones. Mr. Bossous’ conviction about this need was a result of his encounter with a 14-year-old Haitian-American girl who was impregnated by her 70-year-old stepfather and whose mother was not supportive during treatment. Where his peers seemed baffled by the mother’s lack of support for her victimized daughter,

 

Armed with a deeper understanding of the Haitian culture, Bossous understood that the mother was displaying signs of victimization herself. A second case, involving another 14-year-old Haitian-American girl who was sexually abused on multiple occasions by several men, was just as horrific, and her abuse had taken place when she was between the ages of 4 and 13. This compelled Mr. Bossous to write an outline of a culturally based approach to sexual abuse prevention and treatment: “Strengthening the Family.”

 

This outline was shared with friends and co-workers and became the catalyst for the launching of Word and Action (W&A). Mr. Bossous’ understanding of the Haitian paternalistic culture, coupled with his years of expertise as a psychotherapist and passion for the cause, fueled his desire for addressing the issue of cultural competency in prevention and treatment of child sexual abuse affecting the Haitian Community. As a result, W&A’s goal is to respond more effectively to the child sexual abuse “epidemic.”

 

W&A was officially incorporated on September 16, 2009. The agency has been conducting various fundraising activities to support its work in the counties of Miami-Dade and Broward. The agency is currently very active in numerous seminars, panel discussions, conferences, and trainings pertaining to Child Sexual Abuse.