Webinar 12: Sexual Wellness for People with Cognitive and Developmental Disabilities as Sexual Violence Primary Prevention

Description

Contextualizing sexual wellness for people with disabilities as a strategy for SVPP across the social ecological model; Risk Factors for SV for People with Disabilities related to sexual wellness; What kinds of things does a sexual wellness instructor need to consider for program adaptation? How should we address consent?

Webinar Outline
  • 5 minutes: Housekeeping & introductions (Skye/Cierra)
  • 15 minutes: Sexual Violence Primary Prevention and Disability Justice (Skye/Cierra)
  • 40-60 minutes: Panel Conversation (Panelists)
  • 10 minutes: Attendee Questions (Skye/Cierra)
  • 5-10 minutes: Resource Recommendations (Crew)
Presenters
  • Skye Kantola (she and they, Facilitator): Program Coordinator, Multicultural Efforts to End Sexual Assault, kantola@purdu.edu
  • Cierra Olivia Thomas-Williams (she/her, Presenter): Prevention Specialist, Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence, cwilliams@icadvinc.org
  • Jordan Haisley (she/her, Panelist), Disability Consultant, Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence
  • Dr. Mary Ciccarelli (she/her, Panelist), Professor of Clinical Medicine and Clinical Pediatrics at Indiana University School of Medicine
  • Pam Malin (she/her, Panelist), Disability Victim Advocate (she/her, Panelist), Disability Rights Wisconsin
  • Cindy Bentley, Executive Director (she/her, Panelist), People First Wisconsin
  • Timotheus Gordon (he/him, Panelist), Research Assistant, University of Illinois – Chicago

Closed Captions & Transcript created by Skye Ashton Kantola, MESA Program Coordinator

Co-Sponsors

Gaps & Opportunities for Prevention Infrastructure

The Indiana Abuse Prevention Disability Task Force (IDJ) conducted interviews with disability serving and governmental agencies in order to understand the processes by which people with disabilities can report abuse including sexual assault (SA). There are three state divisions, Bureau of Developmental and Disability Services (BDDS), Division of Aging, and the Department of Child Services (DCS) that have processes in place for reporting, following up after incidents, and to provide for or “cover” medical and legal care. After the Task Force identified mandatory state reporting procedures, they created flow charts depicting these practices to encourage transparency across sectors.

During this collaborative effort, these three common gaps in holistic care emerged following the official reporting of the incident:

In reviewing the flow charts, IDJ learned disability service providers follow the reporting requirements set by state agencies and offer support where they can with little to no interagency collaboration. Each state division, BDDS, Division of Aging & DCS, collects incident data and enforces mandated safety standards and when sexual abuse incidents are substantiated, a criminal legal process may begin. The safety of the person receiving services is paramount as is protecting provider organizations from liability for harm that may come to the person while receiving services. Advocacy or support for a person with ID/DD through the criminal legal system and/or healing process is not guaranteed. Additionally, organizations that provide rape crisis services do not typically house people with ID/DD, especially when there are caregivers in the person’s life. 

The IDJ makes the following recommendations to increase safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and environments in the state of Indiana

Education of disability service providers, victim service providers, and the community is needed to ensure survivors with disabilities are connected to the healing services they need following an incident of violence. Education on bodily autonomy, sexual literacy, and inappropriate touch is needed for people with disabilities so they can communicate their desires and report positive or harmful experiences. 

Mandated processes ensure reports are made to the appropriate authorities to ensure safety of the survivor as well as other consumers. However, these processes can feel sterile, and confusing and sometimes made against the will of the victim or person harmed. 

Advocates remind survivors of their rights, empower survivors to choose what is right for them, and provide emotional support to survivors in challenging situations. For survivors with disabilities to benefit from advocacy, disability organizations must be informed of this role and contact them when needed, and victim service providers must be educated on the unique needs and ways to communicate with survivors with disabilities. 

The gaps discussed in this document demonstrate a lack of communication and understanding between the disability justice movement and the anti-violence movement, which we believe is the outcome of the siloing of social problems and constructing one size fits all solutions through state systems. While legal justice is attempted and pursued, prosecution and conviction rates remain low, and restorative and healing practices are ignored when they involve people with ID/DD. Instead, restorative justice is personal and responsive to the needs of the individual survivor or person harmed; it is both survivor-centered and person-first, empowering the individual who was harmed to drive the investigative and reparative processes. 

The IDJ is connecting people with and without disabilities across disciplines to identify and address the existing gaps in service provision, education, and communication across sectors and levels of prevention. We are joining the concepts of survivor-centered services from the anti-violence movement with person-first services from the disability justice movement so that survivors with disabilities are empowered to lead self-directed lives, which includes what happens following an incident of violence. 


Credit

Analysis and info-graphic was created by Haleigh Rigger and Micca Stewart.  Haleigh Rigger is the statewide Rape Crisis Coordinator with Indiana Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Human Trafficking (ICESAHT), haleigh@indianacesa.org and Micca Stewart, Bureau of Quality and Improvement Services (BQIS), Indiana Family & Social Services Administration (FSSA), micca.stewart@fssa.in.gov. Post written by  Cierra Olivia Thomas-Williams, Prevention Specialist, Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence (ICADV), cwilliams@icadvinc.org.

#PowerInPrevention CSA Prevention Webinar by PreventConnect

PreventConnect’s January 16th web conference will be discussing sexual abuse prevention efforts inclusive of children with disabilities: #PowerInPrevention Ending Child Sexual Abuse: Updates on Child Sexual Abuse Prevention with Elementary School Ages.

Webinar 7: Mental Health, Neurodivergence, and Sexual Violence Prevention Panel

Description

Learn about the lived experiences of a panel of neurodivergent and mentally ill self-advocates and listen to them discuss how society can prevent sexual violence against those in these communities. Video with CC coming soon.

Webinar Outline
  • 5-10 minutes: Housekeeping & introductions
  • 60 minutes: Moderated panel discussion on Mental Health, Neurodivergence, & Sexual Violence Prevention
  • 10 minutes: Attendee questions
  • 5-10 minutes: Closing, resource sharing bonanza
Presenters
  • Skye Ashton Kantola (she and they, Facilitator), Program Coordinator, Multicultural Efforts to End Sexual Assault, kantola@purdue.edu
  • Vita E. Cleveland (they and she, Panelist), percussionist, educator, poet, vocalist, and activist
  • Cénix C. Callejo (they/them, Panelist), environmental activist and biologist
  • Nick Dowling (he/him, Panelist), Purdue undergraduate student who is 50% sick, 30% math, and 20% memes
  • Teht Ashmani (they/them, Panelist), creative writer & scholar of cultural theory & literature
  • AJ Lewis (he/him, Panelist), survivor & self-advocate
  • Cierra Olivia Thomas-Williams (she/her, Tech Moderator), Prevention Specialist, Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence

Closed Captions & Transcript created by Skye Ashton Kantola, MESA Program Coordinator

Co-Sponsors