Meet the ONG that supports women from Rio de Janeiro who are victims of domestic violence

On August 31, in yet another edition of the “Projeto Agosto Lilás”, the NGO AMAC – Association of Women with Attitude and Social Commitment, celebrated the 15th anniversary of the Maria da Penha Law at the City Council of Duque de Caxias (RJ). The debate focused on “The Impact of Social Isolation on the Lives of Women Victims of Domestic Violence” and Nill Santos, the founder and president of AMAC, was awarded the title of Duquecaxiense Woman for her work with the female population through the NGO.

Learn more about the story of this woman, who, when she recognised herself as a victim of domestic violence and cured herself, decided to assist other vulnerable women in following  the same path.

Nill Santos, 50, says her story began as a result of domestic violence. She was married to the father of her two children for nearly 10 years, and right in her first month of marriage, she was slapped in the face the first time and lived through this cycle of violence for several years, which she only managed to break in 2007. However, only she recognised herself as a victim in 2011, when she participated in the project called “Coisa de Mulher”, which promoted itinerant conversation circles through the communities of Rio de Janeiro. Nill acted as one of the project leaders and, as a result, she saw that by sharing her life story, other women were being encouraged to take the same initiative.

In the interview below, she tells her story, how the idea of ​​creating the institution came about and how she managed to get here.

Neuza Nascimento: Where and how did the project start?

Nill Santos: We started in Vila Alzira (Dique Community), in Baixada Fluminense. But it grew and became an itinerant project, and we started to work inside and outside the state. We hold conversation circles wherever we are invited. Our goal is to get the message across.

Neuza Nascimento: What is the purpose of the project?

Nill Santos: The project exists to help women and their families rebuild their lives. But for me, as part of that, the purpose is to give back to the universe what I’ve received. I was only able to break the circle of violence because I had a person who listened, saw me, hugged me and cared for me in the first place, that was my mother. If it wasn’t for her, maybe I wouldn’t even be here now giving this interview. My mother was a very strong woman. And the purpose of the project is to change our role within the territory. By “territory” I mean wherever the woman is, because where she is, that’s territory. So, if I manage to take care of you and you go back to your territory, you spread the seed of knowledge, there are people from many different territories.

As soon as I got divorced, I went back to Comunidade do Dique, where I used to live before, I got married and there I founded a football school in 2008, a place my family occupied in 1982. At that time, I worked as a waitress and at night, and I really missed my house, my children, because when I left home, I could only bring my oldest daughter. In the meantime, I started to see many children loose in the community, so I called two friends to help me in this project and in fact, I didn’t even know what football was about, but I needed to occupy my mind.

In 2011, after participating in the “Coisa de Mulher” project, I started arrenging conversation circles. From the moment I recognised myself as a victim and felt healed of all my wounds, I thought I had a commitment, a mission to help other women get out of this cycle of violence. And then in 2012, a group of friends, Health Agents of the neighbourhood, invited me to set upa women’s association, but I didn’t want to have that commitment, despite enjoying doing the circles.

Neuza Nascimento: And what were those conversation circles like?

Nill Santos: I invited the women, set up the circle, brought up the subject and we all shared our stories. And that did me a lot of good, really, mainly because, later, I saw the results. So, the girls invited me to a meeting and, despite not wanting to, with encouragement from my current husband, I ended up going. During the meeting I suggested that we should pray, because if it was [a project coming from] God, he would give us an answer. When my husband arrived, he asked, “So, when will the project happen?”, I replied that no project would happen because God would not give me a sign and, that same night, I had a dream about the institution. I dreamed that I was in a circle of women and speaking to them the name AMAC- Association of Women of Attitude and Social Commitment, and the next day I called the girls and told them what had happened. Since it was July, I made the decision that, if it was trully from God, we would reap the rewards; however, if not, we would stop at the end of the year. The work went on to grow and in 2014 we got registered, the following year we won our first award, which was the “Prêmio Acolher”, from Natura. We were one of 15 institutions to receive this incentive.

Neuza Nascimento: What are the activities you offer today?

Nill Santos: In addition to the conversation circles, we also have tutoring, handicraft workshops, a soccer school, computer classes and an entrepreneurship course for women.

Neuza Nascimento: How many beneficiaries and what age group?

Nill Santos: We assist 200 children and their families, all within the Dique da Vila Alzira Community, and the age group ranges from new-borns to people over 80 years old.

Neuza Nascimento: What is the process for these families to join the project?

Nill Santos: The first step is an interview with the social worker, so we can understand what the needs of this family are. There are people who do not have a birth certificate so, in this case, we have an agreement with the Leão XIII Foundation, which grants exemptions for the birth and identity certificate service through a referral from us. We also receive people referred by the Guardianship Council and CRAS – Social Assistance Reference Centre, and children and families from the community itself who come to us through interviews carried out by our team.

Neuza Nascimento: How is your team formed?

Nill Santos: We started with four people and today we are about 20. And the tasks are split among us. All of the team members are volunteers, but they receive an allowance that comes from a project with SMAS – Municipal Social Assistance Department.

Neuza Nascimento: Besides SMAS, Leão XIII Foundation, CRAS and the Guardianship Council, are there other partnerships?

Nill Santos: Our first partnership was União Rio, then we closed a partnership with a group of friends, then with the filmmaker Julia Murat, who helped us with food handouts. And we also had others like Natura, Ação da Cidadania, the NGO Criola, the Movimento Negro and the NGO Gerando Falcões, the latter also donating food cards, what they call Cesta Digital.

Neuza Nascimento: What were your biggest challenges?

Nill Santos: The biggest challenge was to break all the bureaucracy, because in the beginning, we started out of love for work, but there comes a time when it is necessary to have a CNPJ and the problem is that no one informs us that it is a something you become accountable for for the rest of your life, it requires a lot of attention. And that’s how I found myself with a debt of R$11,000.00 in the Federal Revenue. At the time I had a team and, all the participants said, “I’m glad it’s not in my CPF”. I didn’t know that debt was in my name, and I found myself alone, without help from the people I wish would be there for me, it was quite a challenge, but when God is in charge, everything works out.

Neuza Nascimento: How did you solve this problem?

Nill Santos: I went to give a free lecture at Eletro Nuclear – Eletrobrás Subsidiary, but the coordinator liked my work so much that she decided to pay me, but I couldn’t get paid because I had a restriction on my CPF, that’s when I discovered the debt. A friend lent me the CNPJ for me to redeem the amount to be paid for the lecture and with that money, I paid a friend’s accountant, and he solved it for me. He managed to make the debt drop to R$770.00 reais. It was the universe conspiring in my favour. And another challenge was getting my definitive Operating Permit. I’m like that, don’t tell me I won’t make it, because I go there and show you that I will.

Neuza Nascimento: How is the project maintained?

Nill Santos: Mainly through an agreement with SMAS in Duque de Caxias. We also participate in many public notices, small prizes, raffle tickets and now we are doing a bazaar with the pieces that clothing stores donate to us and, finally, we have a charity lunch. And that’s how we manage to keep up.

Neuza Nascimento: What are Amac’s needs?

Nill Santos: Our need today is to keep it functioning, because the place where we are established has already become small, due to the demand of people. We need a bigger place to meet the demand that has been growing more and more, we should give the team, of which I am also part, more credit, to get a better salary, as we dedicate most of our time to this institution. As much as it is voluntary work in the sense that it is our choice, we have personal expenses, just like anyone else. And, to provide an increasingly better service to these people, we need feel tranquil in this regard. And finally, we need speakers, entertainers and volunteer social educators because, in the community, there are many illiterate children, including some with Autism Spectrum Disorder. It’s very frustrating when people arrive in need of some kind of care, and you can’t fit them in because we don’t have the support and space needed.

Neuza Nascimento: What are your greatest achievements over the lifetime of your work?

Nill Santos: My greatest achievements are the testimony of families, people I don’t even know, but who I have helped. When we post something on Facebook, someone likes and comments, “You don’t know me, but you have saved my life.” The biggest victory is the impact that this work is having on the lives of the women we have managed to reach.

Neuza Nascimento: How was the service during the peek of the Pandemic?

Nill Santos: With the Pandemic, our work grew even more because we started to help women from other states who were suffering domestic violence, with prevention and empowerment actions, and also with the deliver of food handouts – we collected and passed them on, food, cleaning and hygiene material. It was very busy, as the number of people assisted went from 90 families to 6 thousand people.

In 2020 we stopped activities for just two months, from March to May. Then we started to answer remotely, we created a group on WhatsApp where we communicated. In September of the same year, we had to attend in person again, with all the caution, we started to receive the children. But thank God, no one got sick. During that critical period we had the collaboration of União Rio, a group of Ecos, Instituto BHI and Banco da Providência.

Neuza Nascimento: Would you like to leave a message for women victims of domestic violence?

Nill Santos: I want to leave a message for the women who are reading this interview. Tell them that the wound heals, but the first step is for them to recognise themselves as a victim, as many do not see themselves that way and, by not recognising themselves as victims, they cannot break out of this situation. Don’t hide, don’t feel ashamed, because you are not alone in this fight. If you don’t have someone to open up to, talk to yourself, get in front of a mirror and tell yourself how wonderful you are, how brave you are, make your mind listen to you, your mind needs to hear you . I did this a lot.

Amac is a non-profit organisation, and you can support it through cash donations or personal volunteering. 100% of donations are invested in projects for the population. Be supportive, donate.

For more information, visit https://www.atitudeamac.org.br/

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Contact: +55 (21) 99807-8422 (Also WhatsApp)

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