April is the month we highlight our annual Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) campaign; however it is also National Child Abuse Prevention Month (NCAPM). The issues of sexual violence and child abuse, have many connections. Both are part of overarching experiences of harm that contribute to the continued reproduction of trauma and oppression in society and across generations.
This guide draws from research, reporting, and the lived experiences of survivors to explore the connections between sexual violence and disasters, the inequities that shape them both, the lessons to be learned from the resilience of survivors and their communities, and opportunities for all of us to prevent sexual violence before, during, and after disasters.
The COVID-19 pandemic deeply impacted and continues to impact our communities. In order to meet the needs of the changing landscape of learning, many curricula and interventions have provided virtual adaptation guidance and resources to their implementers. In addition to consulting the guidance below, implementers are encouraged to contact their funder and use guidance outlined by the CDC's Veto Violence Select, Adapt, Evaluate tool.
This resource from the Michigan Rape Prevention & Education Program shares how subrecipients found ways to continue to build and expand important community connections despite the pandemic, followed by some lessons learned along the way.
These sessions provide attendees with a foundational understanding of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Continuums of Care (CoC) and a practical understanding of the coordinated entry process. Information includes ways communities can design coordinated entry access points, trauma informed assessment and prioritization approaches, and data safety considerations.
This document was co-authored by staff of the National Sexual Violence Resource Center and National Resource Center on Domestic Violence, with significant input, guidance, and leadership from Black and women of color survivors and advocates.
PreventConnect and the National Sexual Violence Resource Center have hosted five previous web conferences in the series Sexual Violence Prevention During COVID-19: Adapting in an Ever-Changing Landscape. As we conclude this iteration of the series, join PreventConnect and NSVRC for this web conference where participants will reflect on key learnings from earlier web conferences in this series and explore ways to transform those learnings into action despite an ever-changing COVID-19 landscape.
"A health equity approach to preventing sexual violence means that we need to both understand and address the factors that contribute to violence and safety and factors that expose some communities — especially communities that have been historically oppressed — to higher rates of sexual violence". (NSVRC, 2019)
Prefacing Health Equity:
Feeling connected in your community is a protective factor against the risk of perpetrating sexual violence.