A Deaf, Deaf-Blind or Hard of Hearing woman trying to leave an abusive relationship faces unique barriers.

Information travels quickly within a Deaf, Deaf-Blind or Hard of Hearing community, compromising confidentiality and the victim’s safety.

Law enforcement and shelters are often not skilled at communicating with the Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing and often don’t have interpreters.

The Size of the Problem

Four million women are physically abused each year by their partners.

• 500,000 are Deaf, Deaf-Blind or Hard of Hearing.
• 31% of American women report being physically or sexually abused at some point in their lifetime.
• 6,000,000 are Deaf, Deaf-Blind or Hard of Hearing.

How the Hotline Can Help

The Hotline strives to educate the public about the need for Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing abuse outreach programs.

Call the toll-free TTY number, 1-800-787-3224, to find programs and services prepared to help the Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing.

If you or your organization needs more ­information please e-mail: deafhelp@ndvh.org

How Family Violence Programs Can Help

Make efforts to understand the Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing culture:

• Invite Deaf advocates to your program.
  Recruit Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing volunteers.
• Become familiar with Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing resources: local interpreters, churches,cultural groups and school programs.
• Add TTY phone numbers to printed materials.
• Teach staff to use TTY and ensure that the line is always answered.
• Ensure that television public service announcements are close captioned.

Additional Resources

ADWAS—Abused Deaf Women Advocacy Services
www.adwas.org
206.726.0093 – TTY Office
206.236.3134 – TTY Hotline

Contact ADWAS for the most up-to-date information regarding these resources.

California

Los Angeles
LACAAW—Los Angeles Commission on Assaults Against Women
www.lacaaw.org
213.955.9090
213.955.9095 – TDD

Colorado

Denver
DOVE—Advocacy Services for Abused Women
www.deafdove.org
303.831.7932 – Voice – Office
303.831.7874 – TTY 24 hr Hotline

Washington DC

DAWN—Deaf abused Women’s Network
www.deafdawn.org
866.290.3296 – TTY 24hr Hotline

Iowa
DWIAA—Deaf Women of Iowa Against Abuse

www.dwiaa.org
515.244.0875 – TTY
877.244.0875 – TTY Toll free

Illinois
DCAV—Deaf, blind and hard of hearing Community Against Violence
dcavchgo@aol.com

New York
ASDV—Advocacy Services for Deaf, blind and hard of hearing Victims
www.asadv.org
585.387.0744 – FAX
asadv@asadv.org

Ohio

DWAVE—Deaf Women Against Violence Everywhere
dwaveofcentralohio@aol.com

Pennsylvania
ADVAN—Abused Deaf Victims Advocacy Network
www.laurelhouseonline.org/advan.htm

888.883.0770 – TTY
800.642.3150 – Voice

Utah
SLCAD—Sego Lily
Center for the Abused Deaf
www.slcad.org

800.897.5465 – Voice
800.787.3224 – TTY

Vermont
DVAS—Deaf Victims
Advocacy Services
www.dvas.org

802.479.1934 – TTY Office
800.303.3827 – TTY Hotline

Virginia
VAV—Virginians
Against Violence
www.vadv.org

757.221.0990 – Voice
804.377.7330 – TTY

Washington
ADWAS—Abused Deaf Women’s Advocacy Services
www.adwas.org

206.726.0093 – TTY Office
206.236.3134 – TTY Hotline

Deaf Women United
www.dwu.org

Ending domestic violence involves discussion, awareness, and you serving as a catalyst. We encourage you to learn all you can about domestic violence, and share your knowledge with others. Please use this page to access the tips and materials you need to spread the word that “Domestic Violence must end in America.”

NOTE: WINDOWS users, for best results, right click the link you want to download. MAC users, [control] click the link you want to download.

Read

• The Verbally Abusive Relationship: How to Recognize It and How to Respond. Patricia Evans. Adams Media Corporation, 1996.
• Why Does He Do That? Lundy Bancroft. Berkeley Trade, 2003
• Saving Beauty from the Beast. Vicki Crompton & Ellen Zelda Kessner. Little, Brown, 2003
  But I Love Him: Protecting Your Teen Daughter from Controlling, Abusive Dating Relationships. Jill Murray. Regan Books, 2001
• In Love and In Danger. Barrie Levy. Seal Press, 1998
• When Violence Begins at Home: A Comprehensive Guide to Understanding and Ending Domestic Abuse. K.J.Wilson, Ed.D., Hunter House, 1997

Learn

• October – Domestic Violence Awareness Month
• Statistics on Abuse in America
• Decade for Change Final Report PDF
• Violence Against Women Act
• Safety Planning
• Questions and Answers for Immigrants and Refugees Dealing with Domestic Violence
• Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing Outreach
• 10 Teen Dating Abuse Facts PDF | Word Doc
• What You Need to Know about Dating: A Teen’s Handbook PDF

Teach

Million Voices Campaign Materials
For additional questions regarding membership, please see our FAQ.

Campaign Description – color PDF (8/16)
Campaign Description - b&w PDF (8/16)

Please send registrations cards to: NDVH, P.O. Box 161810, Austin, TX 78716.
Membership Registration 4-on-page - color PDF (8/16)
Membership Registration 4-on-page - b&w PDF (8/16)
Membership Pledge Sheet – color PDF (coming soon)

Flyer – Domestic Violence at the Workplace PDF (10/08)

Flyer - Freedom From Fear PDF (9/16)
Flyer – Break the Silence PDF (10/10)

Flyer – Day of Remembrance for Homicide Victims PDF (9/16)
Flyer – DVAM Show Your Purple Power PDF (9/16)
Flyer – DVAM Use Your Voice PDF (9/16)
Flyer – DVAM I Am a Survivor PDF (10/02)
Flyer – DVAM Break the Silence PDF (10/02)

Additional Handouts
Teen Dating Mini Quiz Poster PDF
Love is Respect – Teen Helpline Description PDF
National Domestic Violence Hotline Press Kit PDF
NDVH Quiz Pads (bi-lingual) PDF
Friends and Family Guide (bi-lingual) PDF

“Despite significant efforts over the past decade to address the problem of domestic violence in our country, 33 million American women continue to experience abuse every year,” said Sheryl Cates, NDVH chief executive officer. “As a society, we can and need to do more to stop the cycle of violence before it starts. The Decade for Change Report provides the unique opportunity to not only develop viable solutions for primary prevention, but importantly, it is the first step in creating a unified national movement to end domestic violence.”

“Collaboration is the key to changing attitudes and strengthening the resolve of individuals to end all abuse of women, youth and men,” said Mary Beth Buchanan, Acting Director of the Office on Violence Against Women. “OVW is proud to partner with the National Domestic Violence Hotline to raise awareness about teen dating violence and implement the national blueprint released today.”

More than 120 Summit panelists representing the public and private sectors, faith communities, domestic violence services, youth, state and federal officials, media, education, and medical/mental health professionals participated in a series of three Summit meetings over the course of the last year. The panelists were called on to provide experience and expertise from their respective fields with the ultimate goal of co-creating recommendations to address how various sectors/industries can participate to solve the problem of domestic violence.

“We realized that the challenge of stopping violence is not for women or advocates to solve alone,” continued Cates. “The goal of the Summit was to bring together a representation of all sectors of society to find common ground and bring a collaborative vision to address the issue of violence against women.”

Based on outcomes of the Summit, the Decade for Change Report focuses on four primary thematic areas: public awareness; education and training; organizing men as role models, and primary prevention focusing on ’s youth. The themes do not stand in isolation, but are interdependent in their approach to ending domestic violence. Among the many Report recommendations:

Theme One: Public Awareness

· Shift public opinion and attitudes as well as social norms that say it is okay to tolerate domestic violence to a national consensus that violence against women is unacceptable.

“Creating safe families and communities is something we should all strive to support. The Decade for Change effort creates a voice for those who need to be heard by working to eliminate domestic violence,” said Summit sponsor and panelist, Laysha Ward, vice president, community relations, Target.

Theme Two: Education and Training

· Professional education and training must be integrated into every system, both public and private, including school systems, health care settings; corporate , faith communities and the government.

· New and innovative models should be utilized. Work should be community driven, transformative and linked to certification and professional requirements as part of a universal prevention approach.

“Education can provide an understanding that mass public awareness does not,” said Summit sponsor, Jennifer Kuhn, program manager, The Allstate Foundation Domestic Violence Program. “Through targeted and consistent education, we can increase the individual capacity of family, friends, bystanders and neighbors to understand domestic violence and know how to respond and/or engage appropriate community and corporate resources.”

(more)

Decade for Change Report/page three

Theme Three: Outreach and Inclusion of Men

· Focus prevention efforts on men by bringing them into the work as role models and messengers to influence other men. Consider men and boys as an audience for awareness, information and services.

· Engage men by changing the language, and rather than compartmentalizing, create an understanding that all men have a role in preventing and ending domestic violence.

“We need to shape and deliver messages to all males by redefining gender roles and establishing new, positive culturally-sensitive male role models,” said Maury Lane, NDVH advisory board member and Summit panelist. “Simply put, positive male role models, who ignore the problem of domestic violence, ensure the continuation of a vicious cycle that has hurt so many women over so many years.”

Theme Four: Outreach to Youth

· Target primary prevention efforts at youth to affect developing values and opinions about domestic violence.

· Create a national youth advisory board to accommodate the rapidly changing youth culture.

“Despite girls’ empowerment programs and evolving gender roles, these efforts have not translated into healthy relationship expectations and behaviors,” said Summit panelist and sponsor, Lupita Reyes, national program director
Domestic Violence & Healthcare, Verizon Foundation. “Affecting a shift in attitudes among today’s youth can help break generations of unhealthy patterns and stop violence before it begins.”

While domestic violence is perpetrated against men, the Decade for Change Report is framed to address the larger problem of men’s violence against women in intimate relationships and how it impacts families, communities and the country.

“The best solution for our nation’s families is that they never experience violence in the first place,” said Cates. “It is our hope that the Decade for Change Report becomes a call to action to engage new partnerships and raise our collective voices to leave a lasting legacy of safety and respect within all American homes.”

About the NDVH

The National Domestic Violence Hotline (NDVH) is a project of the Texas Council on Family Violence in Austin, Texas. NDVH provides empowerment-based crisis intervention, information and referral to victims of domestic violence and their friends and families. The Hotline serves as the only center in the nation with access to over 5,000 shelters and domestic violence programs across the , Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. NDVH operates 24 hours each day, 365 days every year, in over 150 different languages, with a TTY line available for the Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing. All calls to NDVH are anonymous.

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