Abuse Survivor: Financial Independence for Jacqui

I'm fundraising for my cousin Jacqui. She is a 28 year old single mother living in Philadelphia, PA. Jacqui was the victim of a brutal assault and attempted murder by her former partner, and she is struggling to take care of her kids and household while dealing with injuries, medical bills, and the loss of a second income.

 

 

 

TW: assault, domestic abuse, sexual violence

 

On May 1, 2022 Jacqui was assaulted by her then-fiance. Here is an account of the incident in her own words:

 

"My ex pulled me through a hole in the bathroom door that he ripped through, threw me into the door, lifted me by my throat and told me he was going to murder me, grabbed me by my face and smashed my head against the wall over and over again.

 

 

Then he flipped me over and slammed me against the ground, my ankle hit the wall so hard I heard it pop and started screaming so he put his hand over my mouth and I begged him to stop choking me because I have Luka and Lylah and they need me.

 

He said he didn’t give a f*** about me or the kids.

 

He stepped back for a second and I ran down the steps towards the door and I couldn’t unlock it in time so he ripped me back and pulled my towel off bc I am a whore and didn’t deserve to be covered up.

 

I ran out back naked and tried to scream to the neighbors for help and to call the cops. He told me to stop fighting back, grabbed both my wrists and tried to sit on my feet.. he stopped for a second again and I grabbed a coat and ran out the front door naked and begged a woman on the sidewalk to call the police.

 

He went up on the roof and the cops had to call a fire truck in and Jon finally went inside and I guess they arrested him at that point."

Jacqui's Ring doorbell recorded videos of the incident, which were used as evidence to help ensure that the perpetrator, Jon Child, is kept in prison without bail while awaiting trial.

CW: violence, nudity, assault

These videos show Jacqui being assaulted in her home, and then running out into the street screaming for help.

 

 

 

 

 

TW: childhood sexual abuse

 

This recent assault is only the latest in a series of hardships Jacqui has endured. She has epilepsy which prevents her from driving. She is a childhood leukemia survivor, and I just learned recently that her father molested her at the age of 12. Her immediate family covered up the abuse and continues to shelter and make excuses for her abuser while gaslighting Jacqui and denying it ever occurred.

 

Jacqui is my cousin, so this pedophile who raped her is my mom's brother. Jacqui's immediate family never told anyone (including my mom) when it happened, so I didn't know about this until about a week ago. I feel terrible that I was not there to support her over the past 16 years while she worked on healing from that trauma.

 

Jacqui has been in therapy, and she and her therapist filed a police report when Jacqui was 16. She did not press charges, but the court mandated no contact between her and her father until she was 18.

 

To make matters worse, he assaulted her again in her early 20s. Jacqui called my mother to come and help her that time. No police report was filed. My mom is considering whether to file a report now.

 

My main concern and the reason why I started this GoFundMe is that Jacqui needs a stable and safe home for her and her kids, and a stable financial situation. She just needs a space in which she can heal and resume working on her paralegal degree.

 

Since her ex was put in jail Jacqui has been reliant on her mother and aunt for childcare while she works Thursday through Sunday as a server at a restaurant. Those are the same family members who denied her abuse and gaslit her, so I am worried that if my mom files a police report, Jacqui might lose her support network.

 

I live all the way across the country so I cannot personally assist with any of this. All I can do is to contribute financially to the best of my ability. I started this GoFundMe to ask you all for help with that.

 

Jacqui deserves more than just enough money to scrape by. Let's raise enough to pay her medical bills, therapy, childcare, and also the rent and utilities while she finishes school. Let's raise enough so that she doesn't have to ask her abuser for help, or the immediate family members who deny her abuse.

Please donate any amount that you can, and share to as many people as possible. Thanks for reading.