I need to leave as soon as i can

[Guest]

I turned 18 recently on the 4th of September. on the evening of my birthday i got beaten by wood while my hair was yanked until it bleed by my mother. i refused to strike back due to respect my dad held her back. they caught me smoking, am not proud of it and its not what i would normally do, but it does take way the pain. my mom always had anger issues ever since i was a child and i never speak up and i was always afraid to express myself. in silence i would creep into my corner feeling low and trapped because inside i just wanted to be free to be me. it lead me to be so far against control in society and the one i live in is terrible. Am from a small island called Bequia apart of St.Vincent and the Grenadines in the Caribbean. people are extremely judgmental and love to force there beliefs on to others. i wanted to leave since i was 13. After i got beaten on my 18th birthday my step father held off my mom he knew for a long time i was never happy and i told him i wanted to leave am even sure they knew i did. he still believes that things can be fixed but all i want to do is go. Am at the community college i did pretty good for myself when it came to school. now its almost impossible to focus and i feel so helpless. i was going to be with my girlfriend in Barbados but she still has a lot of preparing to do. i even considered the US Navy i am an American citizen. my Grandfather was a veteran and passed down Citizenship. i wanted to renew my passport id have to go Barbados to do that but i only have US$150 and there is no one i can go to and no organization that can help me here. Cause there is so much more i can't discuss in public.

[ccsmod16]

Hello,

Thank you for reaching out to us since it sounds like you are in a very frustrating and painful situation and feel trapped. We are sorry to hear no organization is able to assist you in renewing your passport and to hear of the abuse you endured from your mom. You don’t deserve to be treated that way by any adult and especially by a parent. Parents should be there to provide for your needs and support you. It must have taken a lot of courage to not strike back to your mother due to your respect for her. It is wonderful to hear you have a supportive step-father in your life, since you are going through a rough time and have decisions to make.

It must be discouraging and frustrating to reside in a town where you feel the people are extremely judgmental and force their beliefs onto others. It sounds like you have been contemplating running away since age 13. Now that you are an adult at age 18, from what we know you have the right to leave without parental permission to live with your girlfriend. You certainly sound like a hard-working, resilient young adult so our hope is that you can find assistance to find the funds to go obtain your passport. Have you considered explaining the situation to other adults who you feel supported by, to possibly assist you? Since we are located within the United States, we don't have an resources for the area that we are currently in. Possibly reaching out to UNICEF, American Red Cross, or Salvation Army might be helpful since you are an American citizen.

Thank you for reaching out to us here, we are always hear to listen to you and provide you with support as you are trying to figure out our options. If you would like to talk further on the phone we can be reached at 1-800-621-0394. We’re here to listen, here to help. Please call us anytime as we are available 24 hrs. 7 days a week.