Rahel Tsada made it into a metro Atlanta domestic violence shelter when there was still space.
It was late 2019, and the mother of two was pregnant with her third and desperate to leave the children’s father. He’d kept her from fleeing his abuse, she said, by hiding her green card, passport, other important documents and family photos. Tsada, a native of Ethiopia, needed the documents to work or to rent an apartment.
The Women’s Resource Center in DeKalb County took Tsada and her children in. The resource center saved her. “I feel like I have somebody who cares about me,” she said.
But if Tsada had tried to flee abuse now, she likely would have a much harder time finding space in a shelter around Atlanta or elsewhere in the state. COVID protocols have forced shelters to reduce capacity. Reports of domestic violence have also risen amid the pandemic, leaving many shelters weathering unprecedented need. And many people end up staying in shelters longer, officials say, because of the lack of affordable housing in metro Atlanta and elsewhere in the state. Even the shelters are paying more in rent, along with other expenses.
The Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, which distributes funding to Georgia shelters, is awaiting a decision from the governor’s budget office on a request for $5 million to help close funding gaps the facilities face. The governor’s proposed budget doesn’t include increases for domestic violence shelters, though last year’s saw a increase of 9%.