Commemorating International Day of Persons with Disabilities

Twenty-five years ago, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), was signed into law - an historic moment in our nation’s long fought effort to eliminate discrimination against people with disabilities. Two years later, in 1992, the United Nations established the International Day of Persons with Disabilities to increase awareness and promote inclusion of persons with disabilities in society.

Disability affects, or will affect nearly all of us.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly 1 in 5 or approximately 56.7 million people in the United States have a disability. Research shows that women with disabilities and Deaf women are more likely to experience violence and abuse than women without disabilities, and individuals with disabilities are more likely to experience violence and abuse for a longer duration and by a greater number of perpetrators. Unfortunately, we also know that individuals with disabilities and Deaf individuals experience multiple barriers to service.

On this day, the Office on Violence Against Women reaffirms our commitment to ensuring that survivors of sexual assault, domestic and dating violence, and stalking who have disabilities can access services – barrier free.

As we mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of the ADA and International Day of Persons with Disabilities, OVW is excited to highlight a new tool developed by the Vera Institute of Justice, an OVW Technical Assistance provider. Last month, VERA’s Center on Victimization and Safety released five implementation guides that use performance indicators to help disability organizations and programs that address domestic and sexual violence track their progress in serving survivors of domestic and sexual violence who have disabilities. Step-by-step guides have been created to help service providers implement this tool in each of the following types of organizations:

• Disability organizations

• Rape crisis centers

• Dual domestic violence/sexual assault organizations

• Residential domestic violence programs

• Non-residential domestic violence programs

This tool provides organizations with a practical way to measure capacity for serving survivors with disabilities, and to help organizations track progress toward specific goals and refine capacity-building efforts to better meet those goals.

On December 14, 2015, Vera is hosting a webinar on the new performance indicators tool and will provide an overview of the performance indicators system and practical tips for using it in your organization.

For more information and resources, visit End Abuse of People with Disabilities.

As we reflect on the progress made over the past twenty-five years, we must not forget that much work remains ahead of us.  We know that in order to address the complex needs of individuals with disabilities and Deaf individuals experiencing violence, we must promote systemic change. We must build a community of support that is accessible to survivors with disabilities and Deaf survivors, and one that understands the unique dynamics of both violence against women and disability. Survivors with disabilities and Deaf survivors need to be met with a consistent, accessible and appropriate response regardless of where they seek help.

As President Obama reminds us, “[o]ur pursuit of equal rights for those with disabilities is not over.  Today, we stand on the shoulders of generations who fought for better laws, demanded better treatment, and who, by being good, decent people and hard workers, proved to the world that having a disability should not force individuals into the margins of society.”

Full text of the 2015 International Day of Persons with Disabilities Proclamation

For 24-hour help or support, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE or the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE.