It was only one year ago and thousands of miles away. As the oldest members of the household, the couple was thought to be experienced and wise, the bedrock of the family. But their lives changed. Their frailty and inability to speak out didn't help the situation. The cultural taboo of openly discussing their torture, coupled with language barriers and financial dependence on their caregivers, were an overwhelming obstacle.
Abuse comes in many different forms.
According to a 1998 study by the American Public Human Services Association, an estimated half a million seniors were abused in 1996. In the Bay Area, the numbers are grim. San Francisco Protective Services reports that 10.06 percent of the 2,121 active cases of elder abuse reported as of March 2001, involved Asian Americans. Of those, 6.81 percent were of Chinese descent, 2.7 percent were Southeast Asian American, .09 percent were of Japanese descent, and .57 percent were Korean American. Self Help for the Elderly, a San Francisco-based nonprofit organization funded by United Way, deals with some 50 to 60 cases of abuse each year in the Chinese community alone.