Group Therapy Pilot Project

What is CSA?

Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) is defined as the inappropriate exposure or subjection of a child to sexual material, contact, activity, or behaviour. Anyone, no matter their culture, race, gender, or other identity can experience CSA. The taboo and stigma associated with abuse as well as the intergenerational ripple effect of abuse is rampant within the Tamil community, as it is within many communities.

What is the A.N.B.U. Group Therapy Pilot Project?

A.N.B.U., in collaboration with The Gatehouse and York University’s Centre for Sexual Violence Response, Support and Education, conducted and completed a first-of-its-kind research project developing a Group Therapy Model. This model is aimed at creating linguistically and culturally appropriate spaces for adult survivors of CSA in the Tamil community to begin their healing journeys.

How does the research take place?

Over the past 2 years, A.N.B.U. conducted three phases of group therapy and individual therapy sessions (as needed) for adult survivors of CSA within the Tamil diaspora. Each phase engaged a new group of participants. With the guidance of an expert evaluator, this research project tracked and incorporated improvements and made changes to the original model to ultimately take us closer to creating a group therapy program that reflects and serves the needs of survivors and those impacted by CSA in the Tamil diaspora. 

Who can participate?

This project welcomes participants who

• identify as Tamil,
• are 18 years old or above, and
• have experienced or been impacted by occurrence of childhood sexual abuse in their community.

If you have questions about participation or eligibility for future offerings of this program, please write to ask@anbu.ca.

What will participants experience in this group therapy program?

The program will engage participants over a period of about 10 weeks (1 group therapy session per week). These sessions will be facilitated by a Registered Psychotherapist or Peer Support Facilitator from the Tamil community. This project is created by Tamil people for Tamil people.

The activities in this project will be designed specifically to support survivors of CSA or those impacted by it. We hope that each group therapy session will help participants:

• Access a safer space to build culturally relevant knowledge on CSA.
• Discover tools to find their voice and begin their healing journeys.
• Form a sense of community and belonging with other adult survivors impacted by CSA.

The A.N.B.U. Group Therapy Model is the first step to a bigger goal!

Our hope is that this model created for the Tamil community over a two-year period can serve as a blueprint to design models for other racialized and equity-seeking communities.

Calling mental health practitioners and service providers! 

Would you like to explore a collaboration with A.N.B.U. to bring or adapt the A.N.B.U. Group Therapy Program to the communities you serve? Please fill out our interest form here.

What are the needs of the Tamil community when it comes to supporting adult survivors of CSA? How does the A.N.B.U. Group Therapy Model address some of these needs? And what resources and supports does our community still need to build to better support survivors? Stay tuned to learn more about some findings from our research process!

The research project offered group therapy programming for the community in 3 phases over 2 years. This means individuals seeking to engage in group therapy could access programs during these times at 3 different locations across the GTA as follows:

• Fall 2023 in Scarborough
• Spring/Summer 2024 in North York
• Fall 2024 in Markham

We are so grateful to the participants who placed their faith in A.N.B.U. and embarked on their healing journey through this program, as well as shared their thoughts and feedback to further support our research goals and help build this model for the Tamil community. 

Swetha Ranganathan (she/her), Project and Research Coordinator

Swetha is a nonprofit manager and an advocate for creating participatory, collaborative spaces for community learning. Swetha has a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering and a Master’s degree in Social Entrepreneurship. She is the co-founder of Apni Shala Foundation, a pioneer of the mental health movement in India. She is also a Theatre of the Oppressed facilitator, and an arts administrator. Over the past decade she has worked in the space of education, mental health, theatre, and the arts in India and Canada.

Anujah Posarajah (she/her), Registered Psychotherapist

Anujah is a Registered Psychotherapist in good standing with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario. As part of ANBU's Group Therapy Model, Anujah will be conducting group and individual psychotherapy sessions for adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse in the Tamil community. She will be helping with the development and the implementation of therapeutic interventions and group therapy models that will be tailored to the needs of the community and individuals. Anujah holds an MSc in Clinical Psychology from Kingston University London in the United Kingdom, and a BSc in the Specialist Program in Psychology from U of T St. George. She has been practicing for 7 years in the province of Ontario and is currently working as a Family Therapist at Southlake Regional Health Centre in the Child and Adolescent Eating Disorder Unit. She is also working as a therapist in private practice. Anujah is trained in individual therapy, group therapy, couples counseling, and family therapy. Over the years she has worked closely with clients struggling with addictions, eating disorders, depression, anxiety, and childhood trauma. Anujah's work is anchored in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) however, she enjoys incorporating Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Family Based Treatment, solution focused, attachment based theories, trauma focused therapy, art therapy and mindfulness in her practice.

Arumitha Sasiharan (she/her), Graphic Designer

Arumitha enjoys working with teams for meaningful causes, and bringing life to information through design. Having recently finished an undergraduate degree at University of Toronto, Arumitha is eager to continue pursuing art professionally. Outside of work, she loves to paint, garden, and cook. Arumitha is an active supporter of art education and volunteers within the Tamil community.

Manivillie Kanagasabapathy (she/her), Project Evaluator

Manivillie is a policy and program development specialist with over 15 years in strategic policy development, nonprofit program management, social justice, and advocacy work. She utilizes her diverse experience working with marginalized and at-risk communities to develop out-of-the-box solutions for communities and organizations with resource constraints. Known for delivering high-quality projects that meet and surpass funder requirements, Manivillie has helped small nonprofits achieve their program mandate and organization vision and mission. She identifies alignments to create growth and partnership opportunities for organizations assisting businesses to identify new avenues for expansion. Manivillie graduated with Honours Bachelor of Environmental Studies at York University in 2003 and went on to do her Master of Arts in Anthropology in 2006 at Carleton University and Master of Public Policy, Administration and Law in 2013 at York University. Her research has focused on providing access to community support for racialized and marginalized individuals at vulnerable positions of risk.

Anushya Karthigesu (she/her), Translator

Anushya has a flair for languages, arts, culture, and community. She is a former member of the Sri Lanka Administrative Service and a graduate (Bachelor of Arts) of the University of Jaffna.