Interview with Victoria Tamarah Rosenberg, April 12, 2021

Interview Summary

Victoria Tamarah Rosenberg was a Peace Corps Volunteer in South Africa in 2019 in Community Health. She was a mid-career volunteer, fulfilling a long-time dream after her youngest child was out of high school. During training, she was sexually harassed and sexually assaulted – a man followed her and touched her inappropriately. This was a common occurrence in the country, but in her village of Belfast she was safe. She was involved in many projects: teaching English in two preschools, data tracing for the clinic, teaching high schoolers global history and about the Holocaust, tribalism, and ethnic cleansing, and her main project at the Home Health Center for children impacted by HIV/AIDS. She was bothered by the corporal punishment she saw, and let the town know that if she saw more, she would leave. One earlier volunteer who had reported it had been murdered. She lived in a family compound and loved the village and her work, but one morning awoke to screaming and saw a woman beating a boy she was fond of, and knew, for her safety, she had to leave. The trauma surrounding the event resulted in an anxiety disorder and PTSD, and she was med evac’ed. Although she is still impacted by the dangerous parts of her experience, she loved what she did and does not regret it.

Interview Keyword

Peace Corps (US) South Africa (Country of Service) 2019 (Year of Service) Peace Corps Volunteer Job: Health HIV Sexual Assault and Harassment Corporal Punishment Belfast Mpumalanga Province Troya (Training Village) Holocaust/Genocide education 24.95S by 31.37E Site village

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