MAINE, USA — According to the Maine Coalition to End Domestic Violence, a domestic violence assault is reported to law enforcement in Maine every two hours and 22 minutes.
But advocates say more Mainers are speaking out thanks to a campaign working to help break the silence of domestic violence.
For more than two years, Finding Our Voices have put up more than 5,000 posters of survivors, from business storefronts to high schools across the state.
Now, the nonprofit is expanding with posters going up in bathrooms and fitting rooms of restaurants and boutiques to help survivors break away from abusive relationships.
Jennifer Greensmith is the owner of Green Gnome Holistics, which provides services for medical cannabis caregivers.
She is also putting up these posters, letting customers know that she is also a survivor of domestic abuse.
"I wanted to help out and do something, [to] spread awareness," Greensmith said.
The posters feature portraits and quotes of 43 Maine survivors of domestic violence ranging from ages 18 through 82. The posters adorn the windows and halls of businesses, high schools, and vocational schools across the state. Greensmith is featured along with "Michelle," another survivor of the same abuser.
"He was not able to break the bond, we shared the experiences between us that what was happening was not okay," Greensmith said.
Riley Kennedy, Miss Cumberland County 2022, plans to be on a poster soon. She says a violent past with her father made it difficult to make healthy decisions when it came to a former boyfriend, who was also abusive.
"I did not know what a good relationship was, when I went into that relationship, that was what I thought was real love and it wasn't," Kennedy explained.
Besides the two-by-four posters, volunteers along with Finding Our Voices Founder Patrisha McLean are putting up smaller ones in businesses that may not have a storefront. McLean, a photojournalist and a survivor, started Finding Our Voices as a small photo exhibit three years ago.
McLean, along with volunteers, has a goal of placing the posters in the bathrooms of every restaurant and in fitting rooms in every boutique in Maine.
"They are going to see them in the privacy of the bathrooms and changing rooms, to really be able to take in the message," McLean said.
All of the posters have a domestic abuse helpline, including a QR code that links the Finding Our Voices website, with resources and stories from other survivors. The posters are also going up in medical clinics and hospitals, with translated versions for migrant workers being placed in mobile medical vans. More exposure to the message of breaking the cycle is the ultimate goal.
"They are in danger, but they have never said anything to anybody, and this is causing women to say something," McLean explained.
The Maine Statewide Crisis Hotline number is 1-888-568-1112.
For more information on domestic violence resources and programs, click here.