FCASV Insight April 2022
Join Us in Honoring Sexual Assault Awareness Month
Join Floridians around the state honoring Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) this April, and help to spread our month long theme of “Centering Survivors in Care, Community & Change”. Florida’s certified sexual assault programs will be hosting awareness activities in local communities and we invite you to uplift these efforts and the work taking place in your area to cultivate survivor-supportive environments. Each of us must be part of victim-centered change that improves systemic responses and provides equitable resources to ALL survivors.
Throughout the month, check out FCASV’s virtual gallery on www.fcasv.org featuring letters from survivors that were delivered to Florida’s legislators. Survivors are sharing their voices to highlight ways in which leaders and policy makers can better center the needs of survivors. How are you centering survivors this month and every day beyond?
Registration Open: FCASV’s 2022 Summit
FCASV is excited to announce that registration is now open for our Arriving Together: Forging our Collective Path 2022 Summit! During the two-and-a-half-day conference, attendees have access to informative workshops and engaging keynote speakers that offer fresh perspectives and challenge current practices. We are looking forward to holding impactful conversations around expanding our social justice work and advancing the anti-sexual violence movement.
The Summit will take place June 15-17, 2022, in sunny Orlando, FL at the Embassy Suites Orlando-Lake Buena Vista South, near several theme parks. Free CEUs are available for Florida licensed social workers, marriage and family therapists, and mental health counselors.
Registration Fees:
Certified Sexual Assault Programs/Members Rate: $300
General Public Rate: $375
Registration Process:
Visit fcasv.org to register and learn more about our agenda, workshops and keynotes, and other conference information.
Serving LGBTQ+ Survivors
Members of the LGBTQ+ community experience disproportionate rates of sexual victimization, with their unique needs often unacknowledged or unheard. FCASV hosted our virtual Zoom Advocate Meeting -- a facilitated discussion between sexual assault program victim advocates and staff -- to discuss working with LGBTQ+ survivors of sexual violence. FCASV’s Director of Programs Melissa Ashton led the discussion, which rendered helpful insights into barriers faced while assisting those in need of crisis management and other services. Through dynamic presentations and breakout room discussions, advocates used their experiences to examine the depth of services currently offered and shared the ways in which trauma-exposed professionals can better engage, create safe spaces, and foster core support when serving LGBTQ+ victims.
Amanda Canete, Youth & Family Services Director, Compass Community Center
Guest facilitator Amanda Canete, Compass Community Center’s Youth & Family Services Director, presented common shortfalls programs experience when working with LGBTQ+ survivors and methods to better assist those in need of victim-centered services. Amanda’s experience supporting LGBTQ+ youth and long-term partnership with Palm Beach County Victim Services (PBCVS) Sexual Assault Response Team gives her first-hand knowledge of working with individuals hindered by fear, reduced by stigmas, and burdened with the traumas of survivorship. PBCVS SART Team Supervisor, Rene Boone, shared the groundwork that has helped in shifting views and adding reassurance to survivors with distinctive needs.
Rene Boone, SART Team Supervisor, Palm Beach County Victim Services
How Do We Bridge the Gaps? Victim advocates and programs across the state use different tools to expand inclusivity of services, share the availability of resources, and produce equitable growth in our communities. Despite the challenges faced when serving LGBTQ+ members, simple actions can help sexual assault assistance programs better connect.
Sexual assault assistance program advocates gathered virtually from across the state.
It starts with us—Finding the tools and education to make program staff and advocates comfortable having open conversations helps with addressing LGBTQ+ specific needs. Sharing knowledge with allies such as first-responders, law-enforcement, and legal professionals can facilitate understanding of complex trauma reactions and awareness of direct service needs of victims from marginalized populations.
Consider updating intake forms and documentation for crisis treatment and emergencies. Requests for survivors’ preferred names and gender pronouns are subtle signals that they are in an accommodating space. Collaborate with your forensic nurses and/or hospitals to better support LGBTQ+ survivors who may be victims of a crime. Collecting certain responses such as “sex assigned at birth” or “identified as” foster an LGBTQ-friendly environment and may help nurses properly conduct the exam. Team up with your local law enforcement agency to review existing trauma-informed trainings and serve as a source for other relevant systems of care. Distributing program and service provider brochures in public places such as police departments, emergency rooms, and bus stops help increase the reach to more rural LGBTQ survivor populations.
Toss assumptions, listen first—LGBTQ+ survivors may internalize experiences from fear of bias or finding the right fit for professional help. Advocates agreed—being an active listener allows marginalized survivors to share their individual stories, unhindered by the status quo. Victims may not immediately identify as LGBTQ+ or may choose to express self-identity over time. Organizing community discussions in your area such as survivor coffee chats or coming out groups builds relationships with adult and youth members in need of social support, therapy and counseling, or health-based services.
Swag is the way in—When survivors seek help, knowing they have reached a safe space is pivotal to effective treatment and trust in advocates or providers. Embellishing your agency’s offices or public spaces with rainbow gear, LGBTQ+ supportive posters, or stationery explicitly reflects that all survivors, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation, have access to life-saving services.
The power of social media—Social media platforms are popular avenues for expressing solidarity, creating awareness, and publicizing victim-centric services. Collaborate with LGBTQ+ anti-sexual violence champions in your community; cross-share hashtags and information for survivors. Learn how your agency can also support their missions in engaging LGBTQ+ survivors.
Want to learn more about supporting LGBTQ+ survivors? Advocacy groups such as Equality Florida and Trans Lifeline cover the latest issues affecting LGBTQ+ communities in our state, host extensive resources, and offer ways to stay involved.
Trial Advocacy Podcast: Supporting Survivors of Human Trafficking
In January, FCASV and the Florida State University Public Interest Law Center (FSU PILC) presented the completed Trial Advocacy Podcast: Supporting Survivors of Human Trafficking.
For the last two years, the teams conducted community assessments and connected with leaders in Florida on human trafficking work. This resulted in the creation of a human trafficking toolkit aimed toward prosecutors and allied professionals within the legal system. The toolkit is presented as a podcast to make the content more relational and highlights the multi-faceted nature of human trafficking cases.
The podcast series includes eight episodes and features guests across many different fields like investigation, prosecution, advocacy, and higher education. This toolkit offers insights into the challenges of human trafficking cases and how various parties can successfully navigate these obstacles to best support human trafficking survivors.
The episodes are available on Spotify and Google Podcasts.
Meet FCASV's Newest Employee
Anne Tapley
Anne joined FCASV in 2022 as a therapist, serving the Keys. Prior to earning her Masters in Counseling, she taught for five years in an elementary school setting in Alabama. She has two years experience in a therapeutic role with non-profit agencies in Monroe County. Anne focuses on humanistic, person-centered therapeutic interventions based in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Trauma-Focused CBT. Outside of work, Anne enjoys spending time on the water and outdoor activities with her yellow lab, Finley.
FCASV’s trauma therapist, Anne Tapley.
Upcoming Trainings
Advanced SANE Training: Focusing on Photography
4/8/22 Webinar
For more information about this training and to register, please visit fcasv.org.
40 Hour Adolescent/Adult SANE Training
6/13/22 - 6/17/22, Orlando, FL
For more information about this training and to register, please visit fcasv.org.
Sponsored by Florida Council Against Sexual Violence and State of Florida, Department of Children and Families, Office of Domestic Violence through Contract No. LN208 funded by the state administering office for the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice’s STOP Formula Grant Program. 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 state or the U.S. Department of Justice.