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EDITORS’ NOTE

It shouldn’t hurt to be a woman, and as sisters in this great country, it is our collective responsibility to ensure that our daughters and sons know this statement to be absolutely true. Violence and abuse manifest themselves in a myriad of ways, and there isn’t always a raging red flag to alert us that someone we know or love might be in pending danger.

My Blue Suede Shoes seeks to shed light on various forms of abuse in relationships and to heal these hurts by focusing on the root cause of the abuser’s behavior and having him or her take responsibility for instituting the necessary self-change.

Whether it be child abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, or emotional abuse, domestic violence in any of its many manifestations is simply wrong, and as a people we must acknowledge it when we detect it in our communities and then take active steps to assist the victims in obtaining the help they need to remove themselves from relationships that cause them harm.

But help mustn’t only be provided for the victims of abuse. Many cases of domestic violence are perpetrated by those who have also been abused themselves. Causing pain to others thus becomes a vicious cycle, one that is difficult to break without intervention and assistance.

In this second volume of our Sister-4-Sister Empowerment Series, we not only seek to illustrate various aspects of domestic violence and abuse, we also strive to understand the motives behind the behavior and to find methods of eliminating the abuser’s need to inflict pain on others. It is our hope that the stories we’ve penned for this important volume of fiction are eye-opening and thought provoking in ways that are beneficial to you in your daily life.

So, as you go about your lives, may each of you place an arm of protection around your sisters and brothers in need, while praying for them the same safety, comfort, happiness, and protection that you seek for yourselves. May you be blessed with the utmost peace and balance, and as you navigate the harrowing roads to self-awareness and determination with CC, Zana, Charmaigne, and Monique . . . please . . . if you run across a sister who’s in trouble, don’t turn your back on her. Empower her! Be a Sister 4 your Sister. Share a copy of this book, and give her a pair of blue suede shoes.

Peace and balance, Tracy and TaRessa
www.empowerourselves.org

© 2011 Versatile Voices Entertainment Group, LLC