DCS is proud to partner with the Center for Community Solutions and San Diego Regional Center with a goal of increasing service accessibility for survivors who are Deaf/Hard of Hearing or have developmental disabilities.
DCS knows that intimate partner violence and sexual assault particularly impact individuals with vulnerabilities or disabilities. Such vulnerabilities can be exploited to cause even greater harm or isolation for survivors who rely on a caregiver or communication/ mobility assistive devices. When reaching out for help, survivors face even more barriers when the systems are involved by not provide language accessibility or understand the cultural norms and thereby misunderstand the vulnerabilities.
We strive for a culturally humble approach in our prevention and intervention services by ensuring services are accessible, and our staff is trained to engage with interpreters and utilize assistive communication tools.
IMAGE DESCRIPTION: Blue boarder, Text “Are you safe and happy? No one deserves to be hurt. Abuse can be…”. Below: 3 images: Image 1: Cartoon of two people, one intimidating the other. Text: “Someone makes you feel scared or bad when they talk to you.” Image 2: Cartoon of one person standing over another dictating their thoughts. Text: “Someone doesn’t let you make any decisions or choices for yourself.” Image 3: Cartoon of person who is upset and has hands on them. Text: “Someone hurts or touches your body without your consent or agreement.” The text below cartoons, “No excuse for Abuse.” Below: “We believe you. We will listen to you. We can help you.” Rainbow hand signing the love gesture in ASL. Below: “Call us for help!” Below: Center for Community Solutions Hotline 1-888-385-4657”, “Deaf Hotline: 1-206-812-1001(VP)”, “Email: hotline@adwas.org” Below: logo’s of Center for Community Solutions, Deaf Community Services and San Diego Regional Center. Below: “This project was supported by Grant No. 2017-FW-AX-K005 award by the OVW, U.S. DOJ. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this publication/program/exhibition are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the DOJ, OVW.”