Sara is a Muslim woman who has endured ten years of abuse. But above all, she is a survivor. Sara’s husband would beat her so badly she was unable to go anywhere. He refused to allow her to even go outside for two months. He would not allow her to have any friends. In fact, Sara has never invited anyone to her home. Her husband monitored all her phone calls allowing only 30 minutes per month; each call was strictly supervised.
When she came to this country, she barely spoke English. Despite her husband’s wishes, Sara managed to become fluent in English and earn a GED. She was able to attend community college, and now is midway through a doctorate at a local university. 
Sara’s husband believes that women do not have any reason to become educated.   He accuses Sara of being a bad wife and mother for allowing her children to go to after-care when she has class or needs to study.  Unfortunately, the abuse did not stop with insults and degradation.  Daily beatings were the norm. It was not uncommon for him to pull her by the hair so hard that chunks of hair were ripped from her scalp.