Three agencies — Disability Rights Washington (DRW), the Washington Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs (WCSAP), and Washington State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program (LTCOP) — came together as the Alliance to End Sexual Violence in Long-Term Care. Alliance partners created this handbook as a result of their collaboration to develop technical assistance for advocates working with residents of long-term care facilities in Washington State.
This handbook celebrates the combined…
Most detention facilities are required to comply with PREA. This includes state and federal…
This training is intended for trained and experienced sexual assault advocates. It explores the roles and responsibilities of hotline sexual assault advocates with two or more years of experience. Participants will explore the unique needs of survivors and address the specific challenges that may arise when advocating. Through sensitive, intentional and informed interventions, advocates will be equipped to offer survivors resources, options and crisis intervention, supporting their healing…
This summer, WCSAP released a support statement for the #blacklivesmatter Movement as a recommitment to our anti-racism work and allyship with African American communities. In that statement, we committed to being transparent about our ongoing process and to sharing tools that we find helpful along the way with our membership. We don’t have all the answers, but we want you to come along with us as we continue and deepen…
Commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) is a form of child sexual abuse. It is sexual activity involving a minor in exchange for something of value, or promise thereof, to the child or another person or persons. The young person is treated as a commercial and sexual object.
Often when schools and communities request a CSEC program this is connected to increased media attention of CSEC or in response to a recent incident. Programming that defines the violence and focuses on…
Over the last several years, sexual assault service providers in our state have been working to enhance their response and accessibility to minor survivors of child sexual abuse (CSA). Ideally, we want to create communities that offer safety for young survivors to disclose abuse and agencies that are prepared to provide early intervention services. However, we know that for many reasons, CSA survivors may not disclose their abuse for years. Thus, we want to also be ready to meet the unique…
For many of us music can have an important and influential role in our lives. It's more than just a means of enjoyment though, it can also be a platform for communicating social norms. That's why a lot of prevention efforts include media literacy skills. As preventionists, one of our biggest roles is to facilitate meaningful conversations that will help lead communities towards prevention that is personal and more likely to be effective. Therefore before diving right into the fun of…
In WCSAP's 2006 issue of Connections, Sexual Assault: Not Part of the Penalty, we explored the issue of sexual assault in correctional facilities. A lot has changed since then. Although the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) was passed in 2003 to address sexual assault and abuse in prison, it was not until 2012 and 2014 that the final PREA standards that govern implementation of this law took effect.
One thing that has not changed since our last exploration of the issue of…
Working with young people who have been sexually assaulted can often be a daunting task for advocates and volunteers. Often, sexual assault advocates are tasked with "specializing" in so many areas of victimization, that it becomes overwhelming. How can one use the expertise that they already have to their benefit when working with young people? What barriers stand in the way of serving youth in a relevant and empowering way? In this webinar, participants will get an overview of what makes…
Diversity, non-discrimination, cultural competency, anti-oppression, & social justice are not synonyms — they are not words that replace one another, nor are they words that connote the same meaning or the same type of interaction.
As advocates and preventionists, it is vital that we take into account power relations and oppression. Advocating on behalf of survivors and being an ally includes thinking about services, survivors, and yourself in terms of diversity, non-…
