Hospitals Against Violence (#HAVhope) National Day of Awareness: June 7
Help OVC raise awareness about the important role that hospital-based services play in combating violence and providing services to crime victims as we commemorate the June 7, 2024, observance of the #HAVhope National Day of Awareness.
The American Hospital Association website features awareness materials, as well as tools to help hospitals respond to violence, including risk assessments, emergency response best practices, and more.
OVC awarded nearly $2.5 million in FY 2021 and nearly $1.5 million in FY 2022 under our Advancing Hospital-Based Victim Services program to ensure that trained victim service providers are on hand in hospital emergency rooms to connect victims of violence in underserved communities with the services and support needed to aid in their healing.
With OVC funding, the Health Alliance for Violence Intervention provides training and technical assistance to support the violence intervention programs connected to this initiative and promotes equity for victims of violence.
National Gun Violence Awareness Day
This year marks the 10th Annual Gun Violence Awareness Day, honoring survivors and building community with those working to end gun violence. Visit the Wear Orange website for awareness materials and to learn about events in your area.
Learn about OVC initiatives and funding opportunities that support victims and address community violence.
Apply for Funding to Meet the Needs of Crime Victims in Underserved Communities
Through the OVC FY24 Meeting the Basic Needs of Crime Victims in Underserved Communities funding opportunity, OVC seeks to fund organizations to provide for the basic needs of crime victims, such as transportation, temporary and transitional housing, clothing, food, and other items necessary for their well-being, healing, or safety.
Applicants should have experience providing direct services to crime victims in communities that have been historically marginalized, adversely affected by inequality, and disproportionately impacted by crime, violence, and victimization.
Start your application by July 29, 2024!
Community Violence Intervention Programs
OVC joins the Bureau of Justice Assistance, National Institute of Justice, and Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention in a collaborative approach to help ensure jurisdictions have access to expertise and resources to address community violence.
View the OVC Support for Community Violence Intervention Programs Fact Sheet for information on discretionary grant projects and programs to help victims and survivors heal in the aftermath of crime and to ensure victim service providers and allied professionals have resources to assist them.
Responding to Incidents of Mass Violence
OVC’s Helping Victims of Mass Violence & Terrorism: Planning, Response, Recovery, and Resources toolkit helps communities prepare for and respond to the needs of victims of mass violence and terrorism in the most timely, effective, and compassionate manner possible.
With funding from OVC, the National Mass Violence Center provides communities with evidence-based information and resources to effectively prepare for and respond to mass violence incidents. Resources include tip sheets, their Transcend mobile app offers a safe space for victims to heal, and more.
Discover more resources on our Terrorism & Mass Violence and Help for Victims of Terrorism and Mass Violence pages.
Advancing Hospital-Based Victim Services Program
OVC awarded nearly $2.5 million in FY 2021 and nearly $1.5 million in FY 2022 under our Advancing Hospital-Based Victim Services program to ensure that trained victim service providers are on hand in hospital emergency rooms to connect victims of violence in underserved communities with the services and support needed to aid in their healing.
With OVC funding, the Health Alliance for Violence Intervention provides training and technical assistance to support the violence intervention programs connected to this initiative and promotes equity for victims of violence.
June 15 Is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day
OVC is committed to ensuring that older victims of crime have access to trauma-informed services and resources that protect the safety and confidentiality of victims.
Join OVC as we commemorate World Elder Abuse Awareness Day on Wednesday, June 15, 2024. This annual commemoration is a call to action for individuals, organizations, and communities around the world to raise awareness about elder abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation.
From June 12 through June 16, the University of Southern California’s Center on Elder Mistreatment website offers resources to help advocates and professionals raise awareness of elder abuse and advance elder justice. The center’s Tools and Tips page also offers outreach guides, a social media guide, sample letters to the editor, downloadable fliers, and other outreach materials.
This month, we highlight the National Elder Fraud Hotline, which has been in operation by OVC for 4 years.
Launched in March 2020, it offers experienced case managers to provide victims of financial fraud ages 60 or older with personalized support by assessing their needs and identifying relevant next steps. Since the hotline opened, they have received over 121,000 calls, averaging 83 calls a day.
Call the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833-FRAUD-11 (833-372-8311) from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. eastern time, Monday through Friday.
We also highlight the Better Business Bureau's Scam Tracker that allows the public to report attempted or successful scams online. Submissions are vetted, and legitimate reports are then posted for the public to search. Reports may be shared with third parties such as regulatory agencies, law enforcement, or other appropriate organizations for investigation.
View publications and multimedia products to help the field provide effective services to victims of elder abuse and financial exploitation. These materials, funded by OVC and hosted by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Elder Justice Initiative, include the following and more:
- Strategies and Training to Advance Greater Elder Safety: This curriculum educates teams of judicial, justice, and community professionals about financial exploitation and elder abuse.
- Elder Abuse Fatality Review Teams: A Replication Manual: This manual provides guidance to communities on establishing elder abuse fatality review teams that examine deaths caused by or related to elder abuse.
- Lifting Up the Voices of Older Survivors Videos: This collection of nine training videos and accompanying discussion guides features the voices of older survivors describing their experiences and insights regarding effective interventions.
Discover additional resources for organizations responding to elder abuse on the Elder Justice Initiative website and the Elder Fraud and Abuse section of the OVC website.
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex Pride Month
In his Pride Month proclamation, President Biden states, "We reflect on the progress we have made so far in pursuit of equality, justice, and inclusion. We recommit ourselves to do more to support LGBTQI+ rights at home and around the world."
OVC offers resources to increase access to crime victim services for all victims of crime, including individuals who identify as LGBTQI+.
Join the OVC Training and Technical Assistance Center (OVC TTAC) for the webinar “Expert Q&A: Working Effectively with LGBTQI+ Youth Victims of Crime,” which will address the following questions.
- What can you do to make it easier for young LGBTQI+ victims of crime to disclose their identity to you.
- What can you do to provide a safe and empathic space?
- What support resources are available to the LGBTQI+ community?
Date: June 12, 2024
Time: 2:00–3:15 p.m. eastern time
If you are unable to attend the event on June 12, OVC TTAC will post a recording of it to their website within a few weeks.
OVC’s Responding to Transgender Victims of Sexual Assault e-publication offers practical tools to promote understanding and support of transgender victims.
In 2022, OVC awarded nearly $750,000 to FORGE Inc. to update and expand on the OVC e-publication “Responding to Transgender Victims of Sexual Assault.” FORGE is creating a new web-based toolkit that will provide guidance, resources, and referrals for those who serve transgender victims, especially women and girls of color.