Throw Away the Menu: Broadening Advocacy

A publication of the Sexual Assault Demonstration Initiative
By Kelly Wilt, Resource Sharing Project


Acknowledgments

Co-created with the wisdom, insight, and experience from past and present 
project staff from the Resource Sharing Project, National Sexual Violence 
Resource Center, National Organization of Asians and Pacific Islanders 
Ending Sexual Violence, and the Minnesota Indian Women’s Sexual Assault 
Coalition: Elizabeth Barnhill, Kris Bein, Valerie Davis, Cat Fribley, 
Maria Jirau-Torres, Nina Jusuf, Sally Laskey, Guadalupe Lopez, Nicole Matthews, 
Eric Stiles, Taylor Teichman, Stephanie Townsend, Karla Vierthaler, and 
Mira Yusef, with thanks to the Project Sites and OVW staff working on 
the project.

Editing assistance provided by Karen Litterer and Norio Umezu Hall

Please note that this publication uses they/them/theirs in the singular to recognize 
there are more than two genders and affirm survivors who are transgender or 
who identify outside the gender binary.

This publication is supported by Grant No. 2009-TA-AX-K011 awarded by the 
Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, 
findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this publication 
are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the 
Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women. 

© Resource Sharing Project & National Sexual Violence Resource Center 2019. 
All rights reserved. The content of this publication may be reprinted with 
the following acknowledgment: This material was reprinted, with permission, 
from the Resource Sharing Project and the National Sexual Violence Resource 
Center’s publication titled Throw Away the Menu: Broadening Advocacy.

Introduction

“In order for me to specialize in working specifically with survivors of sexual 
violence, I realized that I needed to make sure that I understood how survivors 
walked in the world.”— Tiombe Preston (2008)

Sexual violence affects thousands of people across the lifespan each year. 
Survivors of sexual violence experience lasting impacts that affect their 
physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual health. For a variety of 
reasons, survivors do not always seek crisis-focused support immediately 
after victimization(s), and may not seek support for months or years after 
experiencing sexual violence. They are not likely to see a shelter or a 
domestic violence program, or a dual/multi-service program that emphasizes 
domestic violence services, as a place to access support. In part, this is 
because dual/multi-service programs as a whole do not have an established 
history of providing the kind of comprehensive and relevant support that 
stand-alone rape crisis programs have (Bergen, 1996; Patterson & Laskey, 2009; 
Townsend, 2017).

This reality poses the question of what comprehensive and relevant support for 
survivors of sexual violence looks like, and further, how dual/multi-service 
programs committed to serving survivors can provide this care. ‘Advocacy’ is 
a broad term used to describe the support available to meet the wide-ranging 
needs of survivors of all forms of interpersonal violence. At its core, advocacy 
for survivors of sexual violence is rooted in supporting survivors’ self-determination 
so that they may continue their healing journey.

Dual/multi-service programs and rape crisis centers have a long history of organizing 
to provide crisis intervention, assistance, and information to survivors of sexual 
violence and domestic violence (Freedman, 2002). Originating from the grassroots 
work of women of color, early anti-sexual violence efforts can be traced back to 
the mid-1800’s when African American women and Native people testified before 
Congress about sexual violence committed against their communities by white men 
(Deer, 2015; McGuire, 2010). African American women, like other communities of 
color, continued to organize throughout the latter part of the 19th century, 
forming black women’s clubs in response to the unending post-war sexual violence 
(McGuire, 2010). These efforts, among others, laid the groundwork for future organized 
activism against various forms of violence, including sexual violence and other forms 
of oppression. The 1970’s marked the formal creation of rape crisis centers and dual 
domestic violence and sexual violence centers, often without the meaningful inclusion 
of voices of color, as a safe space for survivors to seek support and help. Organized 
efforts to provide safety and resources to survivors of violence have continued to 
evolve over the last half-century, with growth afoot as we continue to expand our 
knowledge and understanding of the needs and struggles of all survivors.

Historically, many dual/multi-service programs have characterized advocacy by describing 
the support made available in distinct settings or contexts, often described to 
include hospital accompaniment, legal advocacy, and crisis support. This resource 
recommends that dual/multi-service programs reconsider the concept of advocacy to 
be more responsive to the diverse and wide-ranging needs of survivors of sexual violence, 
and that we re-envision advocacy to expand beyond the care and support provided on 
helplines and in courtrooms or hospitals to also include the critical long-term emotional 
support survivors need in a range of contexts as they heal.

Challenges Dual/Multi-Service Programs Face in Serving Survivors of Sexual Violence

Sexual violence services within the context of dual/multi-service programs have suffered 
from competing priorities as programs often work with limited staffing, resources, 
and understanding of the needs of survivors of sexual violence. Programs with a shelter 
component often find that the immediacy of needs associated with serving domestic 
violence survivors in shelter can supersede the seemingly less immediate needs of 
survivors of sexual violence. The core advocacy services traditionally provided by 
dual/multi-service programs may fall short of being responsive to the diverse needs 
of survivors, leaving many survivors under-served, if served at all (Bergen, 1996; 
Patterson & Laskey, 2009). In many dual/multi-service programs, advocates serve 
clients who need shelter, medical care, legal response, or other, often tangible, 
services. While survivors of sexual violence may also have these needs, many want 
a safe space to talk through their experiences and responses related to the assault.
 When seeking services from a dual/multi-service program whose advocacy services 
are limited to these tangible resources (such as food, shelter, employment, etc.), 
survivors are likely to find their needs unmet. Many programs also find it 
difficult to adequately meet the needs of survivors of sexual violence, as staff 
may lack the experience and comfort to talk about sexual violence with survivors 
and to make space for the less tangible and more emotional, physical, and spiritual 
focused work of healing. Dual/multi-service programs must increase their comfort 
in working with survivors of sexual violence who may have needs that are less 
tangible than those they are accustomed to working with, and respectively, 
programs must prioritize and structure services and staffing to be responsive 
to a comprehensive understanding of advocacy (Townsend, 2017).

Survivors’ Experiences Must Shape Services

Understanding the unique and wide-ranging needs of survivors of sexual violence 
is key to embracing an approach to advocacy that is reflective of these needs. 
Sexual violence is a major trauma that disrupts survivors’ lives in a myriad of 
ways and may last years. Shock, fear, self-blame, guilt, embarrassment, 
feelings of loss of control, concern for the person who committed the sexual 
violence against them, nightmares, anger, and disbelief are common experiences 
of survivors. Survivors are also at heightened risk for a variety of physical 
health problems, anxiety, depression, difficulty trusting others, post-traumatic 
stress disorder (PTSD), eating disorders, and substance use (Campbell, Dworkin, 
& Cabral, 2009; Langton & Truman, 2014; National Sexual Violence Resource Center 
[NSVRC], 2010). Each survivor brings their own strengths and resources 
(both internal and external) to their healing process. These may include physical 
resources, support from family or friends, creative coping strategies, and 
hobbies or routines that support their well-being. Survivors’ strengths and 
struggles affect their needs and healing journey.

Each survivor brings their own strengths and resources (both internal and external) 
to their healing process. These may include physical resources, support from family 
or friends, creative coping strategies, and hobbies or routines that support 
their well-being. Survivors’ strengths and struggles affect their needs and healing journey.

Many survivors do not disclose immediately after being sexually assaulted, and if 
they do, it tends to be to a friend, family member, or other trusted figure. Survivors 
often feel a lack of options for support and may be unaware of services in their 
community (e.g., dual/multi-service centers or rape crisis centers). Survivors may also 
experience distrust, fear of not being believed by service providers, and concern that 
services will be ineffective (Ahrens, 2006).

Overcoming barriers

There are barriers to survivors seeking services, including barriers unintentionally 
built by advocacy programs. Advocacy programs better serve survivors when they 
acknowledge, understand, and lessen these barriers. Through a multi-year project aimed 
to ascertain best practices in service delivery to survivors of sexual violence, the 
Sexual Assault Demonstration Initiative (SADI) found that services for survivors became 
more comprehensive at participating programs when advocacy staff increased their 
understanding of the impact and needs of survivors of sexual violence. For example, when 
one dual/multi-service program conducted a survivor needs assessment, the program learned 
that advocacy specific to systems (e.g., legal and medical advocacy) was low on the 
list of items survivors wanted support for. Rather, survivors were more interested 
in help communicating their emotional and physical needs and talking about their 
experience(s) with their family and friends. This dual/multi-service program learned 
from the feedback that building a strong supportive program means offering on-going 
emotional support and empowerment through a variety of services, and extending advocacy 
and counseling support to family and friends are examples of important ways to meet 
survivor needs.

Other dual/multi-service programs within the SADI learned that branding and marketing 
changes, such as choosing an inclusive program name that clearly indicates the 
availability of sexual assault services and including specific reference to sexual 
assault services on the program’s website and in marketing materials were other 
concrete methods of making sexual violence services more visible to the community 
(Townsend, 2017).

These changes required organizational and leadership commitment to the development 
of strong sexual violence services within a dual/multi-service context. Organizations 
as well as individuals both have a great impact on survivors. Advocates as 
individuals have a critical role in lessening the barriers survivors face in 
obtaining support. Advocates may be one of few people in a survivor’s life who 
provide helpful information, access to resources, and overall compassion for 
their struggles. This support and information-sharing, whether on a helpline 
call or through regularly scheduled advocacy appointments, is fundamental to 
the work of advocacy.

Building a Stronger Understanding of Advocacy

Advocacy is a service that is transferable across setting and situation. It 
involves fostering a safe, culturally appropriate, and linguistically specific 
environment where survivors can tell their story and be heard without judgment. 
Advocates assist survivors in finding answers to their questions, understanding 
their options, and building strong support systems (Minnesota Coalition Against 
Sexual Assault [MNCASA], 2007).Advocacy is the skills used when answering a 
helpline call and talking through creative strategies for coping with triggers, 
it is the work that is done in the middle of the night when a call comes in 
to accompany a survivor to the hospital for a forensic exam, the weekly 
scheduled visits on campus with a survivor trying to heal while the person 
who committed sexual violence remains on campus, and the appointment we squeeze 
in between a staff meeting and the afternoon support group session to meet 
with a survivor and their family at the local LGBTQ center to discuss options 
and resources.

Advocacy requires flexibility, strong listening skills, patience, and a 
willingness to meet a survivor where they are. Advocates sets aside their 
own beliefs and goals regarding another’s experience and work to actively 
support the decision-making and healing of each survivor. This section 
will outline guiding principles to advocacy and effective traits of advocates.

Advocacy requires flexibility, strong listening skills, patience, and a 
willingness to meet a survivor where they are. Advocates sets aside their 
own beliefs and goals regarding another’s experience and work to actively 
support the decision-making and healing of each survivor. This section will 
outline guiding principles to advocacy and effective traits of advocates.

Five Guiding Principles of Advocacy

Empowerment-Based

Advocacy is rooted in the understanding that survivors are the best experts 
on their own experiences and needs. Some of the most critical work an advocate 
can do is to remind a survivor of this. Sexual violence challenges a person’s 
sense of trust in themselves and the world. It can cause feelings of shame, 
self-blame, low self-worth, and disempowerment. Decision-making after sexual 
trauma can be difficult and even meeting one’s own basic needs can be 
overwhelming for survivors. Empowerment-based advocacy supports survivor-led 
decision-making. Empowerment-based advocacy validates, affirms, and listens 
to how survivors identify their needs. It uses rapport-building and 
reflective listening to create a supportive environment where survivors 
can explore options and goals.

Advocacy can support empowerment through:

Supporting a survivor’s choice in selecting a meeting location


Exploring a survivor’s understanding of their own strengths
Offering validation when a survivor talks about a decision they made or 
a feeling they have

Reminding a survivor they are strong and capable

Encouraging a survivor to use their own voice

Honoring and supporting a survivor’s decision(s) even if they are 
different from those you would make

Providing education about the different ways that survivors heal and 
reminding them that there is no ‘right’ way to move forward after sexual trauma

Advocacy in Action

Last month, an advocate finished a six-week educational series at the local residential 
center for homeless youth. A call came in to the advocacy program today from a 
staff member at the residential center who expressed concern that a teen said something 
in passing over lunchtime that made the staff member think he may have experienced 
sexual abuse. An advocate asked if she could speak with the teen via phone and the 
teen agreed. During the call, the advocate asked the teen if he was interested in meeting 
and he agreed, but seemed concerned that his peers at the center might find out. 
The advocate assured the teen that she would not share any information with other residents 
at the shelter. She asked the teen to select a location where he would be most 
comfortable meeting. She reassured him that he could share as much or as little as 
he was comfortable and that she would review limits to her confidentiality when they 
met so he could make an informed decision about what he wished to share.

Relevant

Relevant services mean that survivors see an advocacy program as a useful resource, 
no matter what challenges they face. Relevant advocacy services are only achieved when 
programs commit to regularly assessing the work that they do and the needs of the 
community. Dual/multi-service programs should regularly reflect on the questions: 
“Are our advocacy services meeting the needs of survivors in our community?” and 
“How would survivors in our community know that our program has resources and support 
available to meet their needs?”

Just as survivors who have experienced different forms of interpersonal violence may 
have different and overlapping needs, survivors of sexual violence are also not a 
homogeneous group. Dual/multi-service programs provide strong advocacy in part by 
offering services that are relevant to the different populations in the community. 
For example, a program whose advocacy for survivors of sexual violence is primarily 
limited to hospital accompaniment and legal advocacy are not relevant to a middle-aged 
survivor who experienced sexual abuse as a child and is now looking for help processing 
feelings and memories. Similarly, a teen who is experiencing sexual harassment by a 
classmate and is unsure of what to do may be apprehensive to call the helpline, but more 
apt to use a text service or online chat, as this mode of communication is more relevant 
to their generation’s methods of communicating. A Spanish-speaking survivor may be 
interested in regular supportive counseling appointments, but cancels his second appointment 
upon learning that there are no Spanish-speaking advocates, as he fears it will be 
difficult for him to articulate his experience with someone who does not speak his 
first language.

These are just a few examples of the importance of relevance — not only in the contexts 
in which advocacy is available, but also in the diversity of methods used and staff 
available to provide advocacy services.

Methods of ensuring relevance in advocacy include having:

Advocacy services available for people of all ages

Advocacy services available in different languages

Advocacy services available for people of all abilities and disabilities

Advocacy for survivors at all stages of healing

Advocates with a strong understanding of the unique challenges across the lifespan 
and for survivors of various identities and experiences

Advocacy services that are culturally rooted and culturally relevant

Advocacy methods that are responsive to the different ways survivors may communicate 
based on generation and lived experiences

Advocacy in Action

In supporting survivors in a predominantly Spanish-speaking region, a program works 
collaboratively with survivors to start a weekly cooking group that helps to build 
community and connection among participants. This approach was rooted in awareness 
that establishing peer support and connection was a culturally relevant approach to 
supporting survivors in healing.

Mobile

In addition to the emotional and psychological barriers survivors may encounter in obtaining 
advocacy services, there are also logistical challenges related to limited resources, 
geographical location, and access to transportation that can make advocacy difficult 
for survivors to access. Advocacy reaches the most people when it is mobile and located 
in places easy for survivors to reach. Mobile advocacy quite literally refers to 
advocacy services that are accessible in various settings. Dual/multi-service agencies 
can support mobile advocacy through considering common places where survivors are 
likely to seek support and proactively having a presence in these settings, as well 
as by practicing flexibility based on the unique needs of each survivor in determining 
meeting locations. Mobile advocacy acknowledges that survivors may have difficulty 
accessing transportation or may feel more comfortable in one setting over another. 
Scheduled presence in different locations also serves as an awareness-raising and marketing 
tool, as survivors may be more likely to seek services if they are conveniently located 
and in close vicinity to a location they regularly frequent.

A mobile approach to advocacy:

Takes stock of the common points of entry for survivors seeking support and considers 
any gaps that could be addressed

Can be fixed (regularly scheduled time in specific settings such as schools, faith-based 
institutions, social service agencies, and at the office), on-call (at hospitals, law 
enforcement agencies and other crisis-based settings), and flexible (location negotiable 
based on survivor needs and program guidelines)

Is enabled by organizational support that trusts and empowers advocacy staff to provide 
services outside of the program office and at mobile locations

Advocacy in Action

Advocacy staff partner with a local soup kitchen bi-weekly. They get to know the volunteers 
and frequent patrons of the soup kitchen. They have information and resources available and 
talk with volunteers and patrons about the work of the program.

Trauma-Informed

A trauma-informed approach to advocacy is rooted in the understanding of the effects of 
trauma on the lives of survivors. Trauma-informed advocacy is grounded in a survivor’s 
history, goals, and the entire context of their experience and emphasizes choice, 
empowerment, and culturally relevant support. It considers all components of 
advocacy through a lens of understanding how violence affects all aspects of 
survivors’ lives. This understanding is then used to accommodate the diverse and 
holistic needs of survivors of sexual violence. Advocacy is provided in a way 
that avoids unintended retraumatization and facilitates survivor decision-making.

Integrating a trauma-informed approach to advocacy may involve:

Capacity-building work, such as: incorporating an understanding of trauma at all 
program levels to ensure that trauma-informed care exists at the core of an 
organization’s operation; expanding staff perspectives and understanding of 
how various coping strategies represent adaptations to traumatic experiences; 
ongoing staff training, consultation, and supervision; and regular evaluation 
and modification of organizational practices to incorporate trauma-informed care 
principles

Implementing strengths-based approaches with survivors, rather than those that 
are deficit-oriented

Ensuring the survivor feels safe in their current environment

Acting with an awareness of potential triggers

Checking in to see if they have adequate support and resources and helping to provide 
connections to new resources

Respecting privacy and confidentiality

Checking in with the survivor to clarify their needs

Providing consistent and reliable communication and actions

Supporting survivor-led decision-making

Advocacy in Action

A survivor stayed after a community awareness event and asked the advocate staff if they 
had a moment to talk. She shared how grateful she was to be present for the event, but 
that it brought some things up for her. She explained that her uncle, the person who 
repeatedly assaulted her, recently passed away and that she felt relieved and maybe 
even happy, but that she felt terrible for feeling that way. For nearly a decade 
after the abuse ended, she struggled with an eating disorder and depression. She 
described “getting to a much better place” over the last several years, but was 
worried because she found herself restricting food and feeling sad and hopeless the 
last few weeks. She laughed between tears and said “You must think I’m crazy to still 
be a mess over this.” The advocate responded, “It sounds like you have done your very 
best to cope with what happened. I don’t think you’re crazy at all. It can be frustrating, 
but for many survivors, the impact of trauma can be felt in waves, less at some times and 
more at others. It sounds like you’re using what you know to try to cope. Would you be 
interested in setting a time to meet so we can talk more?”

Collaboration

Collaboration is an essential component of advocacy that allows for the sharing of 
power and decision-making with survivors to foster empowerment and growth. Empowerment 
is supported by strong collaborative relationships where the survivor is 
recognized as the best expert of their own experiences. A collaborative approach also 
allows for advocates to continually learn from the survivors they serve and 
improve their advocacy skills.

Characteristics of collaboration in advocacy with survivors can include:

Regular check-ins with survivors that set a tone for honest communication and invite 
survivors to share about their experiences with services. Such opportunities provide 
space for a survivor to discuss what may be working well and what is not.

Support for survivors in setting their own goals and priorities, with advocacy 
tailored to help survivors achieve self-determined goals.

The use of active listening and reflective statements to emphasize each survivor’s 
expertise and ability to make decisions autonomously; advocacy supports survivor 
choice and avoids advice-giving.

Collaboration is also relevant in terms of an advocate’s work with other service providers. 
Collaboration is critical to maintaining a clear understanding of the reach and limits of 
advocacy work and more specifically, where an advocate’s role ends and another service 
providers may begin. A collaborative relationship between advocates and other services can 
help ensure that survivors have accurate information and access to resources. Strong collaborative 
relationships also aim to ensure that interactions across service providers are consistent 
and meet mutually agreed upon expectations. Collaboration with other victim service professionals 
and community programs can strengthen the services a survivor receives, as shared philosophies, 
practices, and information can help create an almost seamless approach to service delivery which 
lessens the potential for retraumatization of the individual.

Characteristics of collaboration with other service and community providers can include:

Proactive collaboration with service providers that helps to establish procedures and protocols 
in advance of survivors’ involvement with systems, allowing all parties to be informed in advance 
of involvement

Strong relationships with culturally specific programs that enables advocates to collaboratively
work with and provide referrals to culturally specific programs to support the comprehensive 
needs of diverse survivors

Providers sharing information and providing cross-training to teach about provider roles 
and benefits and limits to the services available; this information can enhance an 
advocate’s understanding of the services available and processes a survivor are likely 
encounter in obtaining services.

Regularly scheduled meetings such as collaborative gatherings of trusted community 
leaders and community partners or coordinated response teams such as Sexual Assault 
Response Teams (SARTs), with the goal of providing a regular channel of 
communication across victim service and community professionals to strengthen 
the care for survivors

Advocacy in Action

During a weekly meeting with a survivor, the survivor indicated she’s dreading her 
upcoming custody hearing regarding her children. Anything involving the court system 
is a trigger and prompts memories of the ongoing sexual violence she experienced in 
foster homes as a child. The advocate asked the survivor what would be helpful in 
dealing with this stress. The survivor asked the advocate if she could help her 
write something she could share at the custody hearing. The advocate agreed and 
offered to take notes as the survivor talked about the points she wanted to share 
at the hearing. The survivor indicated this would be helpful and asked the 
advocate if she can be present at the hearing. The advocate agreed to be there 
as a support.

These core components to advocacy practice help create a strong foundation 
for a re-envisioning of advocacy that is rooted in survivors’ experiences 
and needs. Similarly important are the characteristics we bring as advocates 
that support an empowering relationship with the survivors we serve. When we 
take a closer look at the supportive relationship between an advocate and a 
survivor, we can learn more about the key traits of advocates that support a 
successful relationship between advocates and survivors.

Traits of the Effective Advocate1

Sensitivity to Cultural Factors, Social Conditions, and Personal Identities
Advocates need to comprehend how cultural factors, social conditions, and identities 
impact a survivor’s experience of sexual violence. The survivor—advocate relationship 
will be considerably strengthened by an advocate who can demonstrate knowledge and 
respond sensitively to people from various cultural and social groups. This involves 
being aware of how one’s background and culture can affect one’s experience. It is 
imperative not to make assumptions based on generalizations and stereotypes. 
Make space for the survivor to share with you how their culture(s) and identities 
influence their life and the way they perceive their experience(s).

1  From Sexual Violence in Minnesota: A Resource Manual for Advocates (pp. 163-164), 
by Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault, 2007, St. Paul, MN: Author. Copyright 
2007 by Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault. Adapted with permission.

Empathy

A survivor—advocate relationship benefits from the advocate’s ability to accurately 
perceive what the survivor is experiencing and communicate that perception. This 
does not mean that an advocate has to have experienced sexual violence to feel 
empathy towards a survivor or that an advocate should be all-knowing. Rather, the 
advocate must be able to empathize with the trauma of a person’s experience. It can 
be difficult to identify completely with individuals whose life circumstances, 
socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, and sexual orientation differ from one’s own; 
therefore it is imperative not to overemphasize similarities. Rather, the focus 
should be on displaying interest and concern for the survivor’s particular 
circumstance and demonstrating empathy.

Respect

Sexual violence is a traumatic experience, and for this reason, respect is an important 
and influential element in the helping relationship. Respect insists the advocate 
display genuine appreciation for the worth of the survivor, which embraces their 
experiences and their behaviors. This entails upholding the survivor’s rights to 
make their own decisions, their assessment and account of the situation, and their 
ability to overcome the struggles they are facing.

Warmth

Our energy and body language can set the tone for our interactions with survivors. 
Warmth generates a sense of care, concern, and reassurance that can result in 
trust. It is possible to display warmth in many ways, especially non-verbally. 
Advocates should be mindful that their nonverbal cues such as body language, eye 
contact, and facial expressions communicate appropriate messages.

Genuineness

Advocates should be their authentic selves when working with survivors of sexual 
violence, being mindful to not assume behaviors or express opinions that are 
not authentic. Being “real” allows the advocate to relax and focus on the survivor, 
rather than on their own behavior or appearance. Genuineness implies to the 
survivor the advocate’s credibility and willingness to assist.

Articulate and Transparent

One common reaction to sexual violence is a feeling of disorientation, which can 
lead to a sense of powerlessness and confusion. Therefore, an advocate must be 
as specific and clear as possible in their interactions with a survivor. This 
does not mean, however, being directive (giving unsolicited advice or instruction), 
but rather providing detailed information in concise and understandable terms. 
This helps to maintain a present-focus with survivors — dealing with issues 
in the here and now.

Conclusion

Advocacy is most powerful when advocates have strong knowledge of the sociological, 
psychological, physical, and spiritual implications of sexual violence and hold 
with equal truth the hope and support for healing. When we approach advocacy as 
the critical work done across all settings, we have awareness of the multiple 
entry points a survivor may have with a program. This enables us to understand 
that advocacy services are strongest when they are less reliant on a survivor’s 
involvement with a particular system or setting, and instead driven by each 
individual survivor’s needs. Comprehensive advocacy meets survivors where they 
are. It is intentional and flexible. It avoids prescriptive directions or 
artificial parameters that fail to make space for the healing work that advocates 
are uniquely qualified to support survivors in. Advocates for survivors of 
sexual violence play an integral role in the healing process. Broadening 
how we see advocacy enables dual/multi-service programs to provide care that 
is relevant and reflective of the diverse needs of survivors, enabling more 
survivors to receive the support and resources they deserve.

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National Sexual Violence Resource Center • (877)739-3895 • resources@nsvrc.org • www.nsvrc.org/projects/sadi

Resource Sharing Project • (515) 244-7424 • rsp@iowacasa.org • www.resourcesharingproject.org