2022 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week Open House
Welcome to NVRDC’s Open House! During this year's National Crime Victims' Rights Week (April 24-30), We are hosting a virtual Open House to commemorate the victims of violence in the District over the last year and to highlight the growing number of resources available for survivors of crime. We hope to raise awareness so that survivors know that support and resources are available to help them in their time of need.
Network for Victim Recovery of DC empowers victims of all crimes to achieve survivor-defined justice through a collaborative continuum of advocacy, case management, and legal services. Find out more about our services here.
Check out our partner's services and information below!
Address Confidentiality Program
The District’s Address Confidentiality Program (ACP), administered by the Office of Victim Services and Justice Grants (OVSJG), provides a legal substitute address for eligible DC residents to maintain the confidentiality of her or his actual address. This program helps residents who fear for their safety by shielding their street address from public records, providing one tool in an individual’s broader safety plan.
Visit https://ovsjg.dc.gov/acp for more information or contact them directly by emailing acp@dc.gov or calling 202-788-2131.
DC Victim Hotline
The DC Victim Hotline serves victims of any crime in the District of Columbia. The hotline has a special focus on populations, crimes, and topics that are generally underrepresented or underserved in victim services. Our goal is to empower victims as they navigate the physical, emotional, and financial consequences of all crime.
Visit https://dcvictim.org for more information. If you or someone you know has been the victim of a crime in the District of Columbia or you are a District resident, contact them directly by calling or texting 1-844-443-5732.
Victim Legal Network of DC
VLNDC is a network of legal service providers in DC that provide legal assistance to victims of crime in DC. The network provides victims of crime with access to 24 different legal service organizations that can provide legal help in a variety of issues including (but not limited to) family law, immigration, and crime victims’ rights. When a victim contacts VLNDC, they strive to connect the victim to any member organizations that may be able to assist them with their pending legal needs. If the network cannot assist them, they provide the victim with other resources to explore.
Visit https://vlndc.org for more information.
Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center
The Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center (“APALRC”) advances the civil and legal rights of metropolitan DC's low-income Asian Pacific Islander (“API”) community with limited English/non-English proficiency through the provision of linguistically accessible and culturally appropriate legal services. The APALRC utilizes a three-prong approach of community legal education, individual representation and systemic advocacy to protect the civil and legal rights of the API community. The APALRC provides legal services primarily in the areas of: immigration (naturalization, U and T visa petitions, VAWA petitions, DACA and family-based petitions); domestic abuse/protective orders; housing/community development; and crime victim assistance. The APALRC runs the Crime Victims Assistance Partnership (CVAP), which seeks to educate, support, and assist victims and their families with the emotional and financial burden caused by the tragic occurrence of violent crime in the District of Columbia.
For legal assistance, please call:
(202) 393-3572 | Main Ext. 22
Chinese: Ext. 18
Hindi/Urdu: Ext. 19
Vietnamese: Ext. 20
Korean: Ext. 21
Email: helpline@apalrc.org
Visit https://www.apalrc.org for more information.
Amara Legal Center
Amara offers free legal representation to sex trafficking survivors and sex workers in courts throughout the DC metropolitan region, helping resolve some of the most commonly experienced legal issues for sex workers and sex trafficking survivors.
Their services include expungement of criminal records, civil protection orders, family law, and victim-witness advocacy.
To learn more go to https://www.amaralegal.org
Ayuda
Ayuda provides legal, social, and language services to help low-income immigrants in our neighborhoods access justice and transform their lives. Since 1973, we have served more than 150,000 low-income immigrants throughout Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia.
Ayuda’s expert and dedicated professionals help immigrants from anywhere in the world navigate the immigration and justice systems and access the social safety net.
To learn more go to https://www.ayuda.com
Legal Aid Society of DC
The Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia is D.C.'s oldest and largest civil legal services organization. Since 1932, Legal Aid Lawyers have been making justice real — in individual and systemic ways — for persons living in poverty in the district.
They specialize in housing law, domestic violence/family law, public benefits law, consumer law, appellate advocacy, and policy advocacy.
To learn more visit https://www.legalaiddc.org
Safe Sisters Circle
The Safe Sisters Circle is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides free culturally specific, holistic, and trauma-based services to Black women survivors of domestic violence and/or sexual assault primarily living in Washington, DC's Wards 7 and 8.
Their services include orders of protection, family law, and victim advocacy.
To learn more visit https://safesisterscircle.org
Tzedek DC
Tzedek DC’s mission is to safeguard the legal rights and financial health of DC residents with low incomes dealing with the often devastating consequences of abusive debt collection practices and other consumer related issues.
Tzedek DC offers direct legal services at no cost to low-income and working-class DC residents with debt- and consumer-related legal issues. They are able to provide legal assistance free of charge through our partnerships with the UDC David A. Clarke School of Law, community groups, and individual lawyers and law firms from the DC private bar.
For more information visit https://www.tzedekdc.org
Whitman-Walker Foundation
Whitman-Walker advocates for the health and wellness of LGBTQ+ individuals and people living with HIV. They believe everyone deserves access to affordable, high-quality health care and services. Policy and Advocacy.
They provide HIV care, preventive care, management of chronic and urgent health conditions, PEP – a course of treatment after possible exposure to prevent HIV, PrEP – a daily treatment to prevent HIV, gender-affirming care, medical adherence/case management, and women’s Healthcare.
Learn more at https://www.whitman-walker.org/medical-community-care/
My Sister’s Place
My Sister’s Place(MSP) shelters, supports, and empowers survivors of domestic violence and their children, while providing leadership and education to build a supportive community.
MSP is unique in offering a full continuum of care from emergency shelter through transitional-to-permanent housing. Their experienced team of case managers and residential counselors provides clinical counseling, case management, and comprehensive services to empower survivors to recover and thrive. MSP also provides training, case consultation, and advocacy to engage communities to prevent violence and abuse.
Learn more by visiting https://www.mysistersplacedc.org
House of Ruth
House of Ruth empowers women, children and families to rebuild their lives and heal from trauma, abuse and homelessness.
House of Ruth offers comprehensive services and housing for women and children. Our services range from supportive housing for families and single women in crisis, to a therapeutic, developmental daycare for homeless children, and free counseling services to anyone who has been a victim of domestic violence.
DC SAFE
DC SAFE began as a project of the DC Coalition Against Domestic Violence in 1997. Their direct services—crisis response, supportive advocacy, and emergency women’s shelter—are evidence-based and operate through an empowerment framework of advocacy that enables survivors of domestic violence to determine the best next steps in their lives.
SAFE Space is the only crisis housing program in the District of Columbia that offers 24/7 immediate placements for survivors of domestic violence. SAFE Space is a low-barrier, short-term program designed to help survivors and families stabilize and set the course for their next steps.
Learn more by visiting https://www.dcsafe.org
District Alliance for Safe Housing (DASH)
DASH is an innovator in providing access to safe housing and services to survivors of domestic and sexual violence and their families as they rebuild their lives on their own terms.
As a survivor of domestic violence, you have the option to stay in your current apartment or home. DASH advocates help you to navigate the process and talk through your housing rights and options to stay safe.
For more information, connect with an advocate at 202-290-2356 ext. 101 or visit https://www.dashdc.org
The Women’s Center
For forty-five years, The Women’s Center has provided mental health counseling, support, and education to the metropolitan area to help people live healthy, stable, and productive lives.
The Women’s Center meets the diverse psychological needs of women, men, children, couples, and families of all ages by offering numerous services and specialties. They offer sessions in both English and Spanish. They also provide counseling with professional therapists and advocates, who have experience supporting survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault, which is available at our Virginia and DC locations.
For more information please visit https://thewomenscenter.org
DC Rape Crisis Center
DCRCC provides survivor-centered advocacy through therapeutic services, training and technical assistance, community education, public policy initiatives as well as volunteer opportunities. More specifically:
Individual & group counseling (English and Spanish)
A 24-hour crisis hotline (202-333-RAPE)
Community education & outreach
Training & technical assistance
Public policy & legislative Initiatives
Volunteer opportunities
Undergraduate and graduate internship opportunities
Learn more by visiting http://dcrcc.org
Wendt Center for Loss and Healing
the Wendt Center for Loss and Healing has helped people in the Greater Washington area rebuild a sense of safety and hope after experiencing a loss, life-threatening illness, violence or other trauma. Nationally recognized for their expertise in grief, trauma and mental health, they provide an array of holistic services for children, teens, adults, families, and our local communities.
Through their office and community-based service sites across the area, the Wendt Center is a unique and critical resource for thousands of children, adults and families each year. Services are provided on a sliding scale basis according to need, or free under grants for those who qualify.
Individual and Group Therapy are at the heart of our work. Our programs range from providing support to adults grieving the loss of a loved one or facing life-threatening illness to highly specialized treatment for children and adults victimized by violence and suffering the consequences of trauma.
To learn more visit https://www.wendtcenter.org
Ayuda’s Victim Services Interpreter Bank
Ayuda’s Victim Services Interpreter Bank exists to make the victim services that are available in DC and the metropolitan area more accessible to limited-English proficient and Deaf clients. The services that the Victim Services Interpreter Bank offers to our nonprofit partners are: document translation for written information and office forms, local, specially trained interpreters for live meetings with clients, on-demand telephonic interpretation, and on-demand video-remote interpreting for American Sign Language. We have over 80 trauma-sensitive interpreters that work in more than 15 languages. These are all services that should be offered should you go for help at one of our 30 non-profit providers.
More information may be found on Ayuda’s website here: https://www.ayuda.com/language-services/ or by emailing interpreterbank@ayuda.com.