Victim / Survivor Support

QTPoC Mental Health exists to provide greater access to community healing. We host meditations for queer & trans people of color (QTPoC) and publish original art and writing on www.restforresistance.com

QTPoC Mental Health empowers the community through knowledge and compassion, with the ultimate goals of creating online & offline spaces for LGBTQ2IA people of color to be comfortably, unapologetically our whole selves.

The volunteer-led group uplifts QTPoC in our intersecting identities, understanding that this means different things to different people.

Crisis Text Line provides free, 24/7, high-quality text-based mental health support and crisis intervention by empowering a community of trained volunteers to support people in their moments of need.

BlackLine® is a 24-hour hotline geared towards the Black, Black LGBTQI, Brown, Native and Muslim community. However, no one will be turned away from the Hotline.

The purpose of the BlackLine is to provide people with an anonymous and confidential avenue to report negative, physical, and inappropriate contact with police and vigilantes. We include vigilante contact because of what can happen to folks in rural and suburban communities at the hands of local community members. BlackLine can gather needed information to share with local community organizers and officials to create the most effective response to police and/or vigilante contact. Another component of the BlackLine is to provide immediate crisis counseling to those who are upset, need to talk with someone immediately, or are in distress.

Our Mission

To support survivors of sexual trauma, improve systems response, and create social change to end sexual violence.

Our Vision

To build a healthy community free from oppression and sexual trauma.

Our Philosophy

We are committed to:

• Addressing sexual violence as a public health problem, not simply a concern of an individual who experiences sexual trauma
• Challenging attitudes, beliefs and behaviors within our culture that normalize, excuse, condone and perpetuate violence and oppression
• Preventing sexual violence through a multi-level approach including primary prevention, therapeutic intervention and trauma-informed supportive response
• Protecting survivors’ rights
• Ensuring that every survivor of sexual violence has the right to confidential and competent services, regardless of their age, background, gender, race, ethnicity, ability, sexual orientation, gender identity or decision to report
• Increasing survivors’ power and visibility in the community
• Building community capacity to address sexual violence by creating meaningful partnerships with individuals, organizations and institutions that believe in our mission and want to help us fulfill our vision
• Revolutionary change to fundamentally transform ourselves, our clients and our communities

SAFE-NOW provides confidential forensic medical exams for any victim of rape, sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse and strangulation. The exams are performed by specially trained Nurse Examiners and Medical Providers. Exams are done at no cost to the victims.

Hope Recovery is a nonprofit faith-based organization that provides emotional support to survivors of abuse and sexual trauma.  Support services include but are not limited to support groups, newsletters and workshops.  Support services are free to survivors of abuse, who must be at least 18 years of age.  All survivors are welcome.  To access support, go to Our Program page on our website.

Mission and Vision

CAASE envisions a community free from all forms of sexual exploitation, including sexual assault and the commercial sex trade. CAASE addresses the culture, institutions, and individuals that perpetrate, profit from, or support sexual exploitation. Our work includes:

• Prevention Education - We teach innovative, evidence based, and engaging curriculum across Chicago to empower students to become active allies in the movement to end gender-based violence.
• Public Policy and Advocacy - We advocate for local and statewide policies and legislation that expand options for survivors of sexual harm, hold perpetrators and systems accountable, curtail the criminalization of trauma behaviors, and prevent future violence.
• Community Engagement - We center communities most impacted by sexual harm. These efforts focus on committing time, space, and energy to listening to survivors so their experiences and expertise can inform our work and raise public awareness.
• Legal Services - We provide individualized legal advice, consultation, and representation following and related to sexual harm. Our attorneys assist survivors in criminal and civil matters.

Values

Social and institutional systems do not adequately serve survivors of sexual violation. Sexual violation disproportionately harms people from marginalized communities, including girls and women, people of color, LGBTQ people, people with disabilities, people living in poverty, and immigrants and undocumented people. To best support survivors, CAASE confronts the inequities that fuel or intersect with sexual harm. Our dedication to this work is reflected in our values.  

• Dignity - We respect the inherent humanity of all people and strive to expand opportunities for personal autonomy.
• Accountability - We answer to survivors and collaborate with allies as we seek to hold those responsible for harm accountable.
• Progress - We create individual, institutional and cultural change by using innovative approaches to ending sexual harm. 
• Equity - We commit to building a world where every person, with consideration for their intersecting identities and unique circumstances, has the same access to opportunity and power.

White Buffalo Calf Women's Society provides services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking. Our work is guided by the teachings of Pte’ San Win to restore the spirt of every individual who seeks our help in their time of need. We extend our knowledge and cultural resources to empower our community to end violence in and around Rosebud Reservation.

Our mission is to lead Latina victims of domestic violence and intimate partner violence to safety, empower them to live free of violence and reach and sustain their full potential. We pursue our mission by raising community awareness, engaging in activism and providing culturally competent services.

Services include:

• immigration
• housing for survivors
• economic empowerment
• language access
• training and workshops