National Community Outreach Project Latinas and Sexual Violence

1
National Community Outreach ProjectLatinas
and Sexual Violence

• Part 1

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Population Overview and Projections

• By 2050, nearly one in three U.S. residents will
  be Hispanic (U.S. Census Bureau, 2008).
• According to a 2004 survey, one in six females
  age 13 and older will suffer some form of sexual
  violence (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2004).
• The number of Hispanic females who have
  experienced some form of sexual violence could
  reach 10.8 million by 2050.

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Diversity

• A snapshot of Hispanics in the United States in
  2008 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010)
• 66 were of Mexican background.
• 9 were of Puerto Rican background.
• 3.4 were of Cuban background.
• 3.4 were of Salvadoran background.
• 2.8 were of Dominican background.
• 15.4 were of some other Central American, South
  American, or other Hispanic or Latin American
  origin.

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Alternative Terms

• Hispanic and Latino are not identical terms.
• Hispanic Used most often in government
  publications.
• Latino Generally used by grassroots
  organizations and community-based initiatives.

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Alternative Terms (cont.)

• Existe Ayuda materials use Latina/o.

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Immigrant References

• The phrases illegal immigrant and illegal
  alien both include politically charged words
  that many victim advocates see as dehumanizing
  labels.
• The phrase undocumented immigrant is often
  preferred.

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Immigrant Assumptions

• It is important that victim advocates do not make
  assumptions about the immigration status of those
  they assist.
• Most Latina/o youth are not immigrants
  two-thirds were born in the United States (Pew
  Hispanic Center, 2009).

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Challenges

• Challenge 1. Lack of bilingual and bicultural
  direct service staff and volunteers.

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Challenges (cont.)

• Challenge 2. Lack of bilingual and bicultural
  trainers.

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Challenges (cont.)

• Challenge 3. Lack of bilingual and bicultural
  materials.

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Latinas and Sexual Violence

• Latina girls reported that they were more likely
  to avoid further harassment than to seek help and
  or report (American Association of University
  Women, 2000).
• Married Latinas were less likely to immediately
  define their experiences of forced sex as "rape"
  and terminate their relationships some viewed
  sex as a marital obligation (Bergen, 1996).

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Latinas and Sexual Violence (cont.)

• Female farmworkers (or Campesinas) are 10 times
  more vulnerable than others to sexual assault and
  harassment at work (Lopez-Treviño, 1995).
• According to a 2009 report, 77 percent of Latinas
  said that sexual harassment was a major problem
  in the workplace (Southern Poverty Law Center,
  2009).

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Cultural Considerations

• Addressing cultural considerations is necessary
  for the development of protocols that eliminate
  access barriers and enhance outreach.
• Generalizations should also be avoided,
  especially when working with Latinas/os who are
  third-generation and longer residents of the
  United States.

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Cultural Considerations (cont.)

• When developing outreach strategies and
  materials, consider
• Language.
• Gender.
• Level of acculturation.
• Education.

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Gender Expectations

• Ongoing struggle between Latinos (who are
  encouraged to be sexually active) and Latinas
  (who are socialized to avoid the advances of
  males).
• Amarra tu perra porque mis perros andan
  sueltos. (Tie your female dog because my male
  dogs are loose.)

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Good Girls and el Respeto

• Good girls are expected to know how to make
  oneself be respected (hacerse respetar) to
  avoid being raped.
• In some Latina/o communities le faltó el
  respeto (he disrespected her) is another way
  of referring to a sexual assault.
• Tengo suerte que me ha durado. (I am lucky that
  she has lasted.)

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Emphasis on Virginity

• "Me siento sucia y dañada." (I feel damaged and
  dirty.)
• "He avergonzado a mi familia." (I have shamed my
  family.)
• Ningún hombre querrá casarse conmigo." (No man
  will ever want to marry me.)

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Emphasis on Virginity (cont.)

• The loss of control over a precious rite of
  passage does not need to define a survivor.
• Being raped as a virgin does not automatically
  imply the loss of virginity to rape.

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Understanding Culpa (Blame)

• Por algo me pasó. (This happened to me for a
  reason.)

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Language and Confianza (Trust)

• Trust may improve the survivors comfort level
  when addressing very difficult and often taboo
  issues.
•  An advocate can build trust by
• Speaking the same language.
• Having a similar cultural heritage.
• Demonstrating awareness of pertinent cultural
  issues.

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Impact Through a Cultural Lens

• Survivors often fear how the assault may affect
  their
• Standing in the community.
• Feelings of self-worth.
• Reproductive options.
• Future marriage prospects.
• Future intimate partners/relationships.

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Addressing Shame

• Latina/o victims can benefit from shame-releasing
  exercises that allow them to assign
  responsibility for sexual violence to the
  offender(s) (Fontes, 2007).
•  For example, a Testimonio is a written or oral
  recounting of the victim's story that may allow
  others to bear witness to the trauma suffered by
  the survivor (Aron, 1992).

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Diversity of the Spanish Language

• The United States
• Has the third largest Spanish-speaking population
  after Spain and Mexico.
• Is home to residents with Spanish dialects from
  South America, Central America, the Caribbean,
  North America, and other Spanish-speaking regions
  of the world.

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Language Considerations

• The most frequently reported barrier keeping
  Latinas from needed services was languageeither
  not being able to speak English or not having an
  interpreter (Murdaugh et al., 2004).

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Language Terms

• Limited English Proficiency or Proficient (LEP).
• English Language Learner (ELL).

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Language Access Laws and LEP.gov

• Executive Order 13166 requires federal agencies
  and state and local agencies receiving federal
  assistance to develop guidelines guaranteeing
  accessibility to their programs by persons with
  LEP.
• U.S. Department of Justice LEP Guidance
  www.ojp.usdoj.gov/about/ocr/lep.htm
• LEP Web site from the Federal Interagency Working
  Group on Limited English Proficiency www.LEP.gov

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Victim Service Access

• English Language Learners require service access
  to
• A crisis line at the moment of need.
• Information regarding the rape exam.
• The various levels of supportive services and
  legal advocacy that an agency may offer.

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Victim Service Access (cont.)

• Bilingual personnel are crucial for eliminating
  access barriers at every stage of the
  help-seeking process (ALAS, 2004).

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Use of Interpreters

• All staff must know how to use an interpreter
  properly, whether the interpreter is a
  professional (such as an agency employee) or a
  non-professional (such as a friend of the
  survivor).
• Being a fluent Spanish speaker is not enough.
  Interpreters should also be familiar with and
  respectful of Spanish language regional
  differences.

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Professional Interpreters

• When working with professional interpreters
• Verify the interpreters experience with, or
  knowledge of, different Latin American dialects.
• Meet with the interpreter 15 to 30 minutes before
  the appointment.
• When meeting with the client, pause every three
  sentences or less.
• Look at and talk directly to the Spanish-speaking
  client, not the interpreter.

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Non-Professional Interpreters

• When working with non-professional or
  acquaintance interpreters, consider
• Competence.
• Confidentiality.
• Appropriateness.
• Possible conflicts of interest.

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Non-Professional Interpreters Risks

• Confidentiality may be compromised.
• Feelings of embarrassment or shame may be made
  worse.
• The survivor may be less willing to share details
  when discussing his/her assault.

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Non-Professional Interpreters Ethical Issues

• Never use children as interpreters.
• Using family, friends, or other survivors can
  cause secondary victimization. This can create
  additional problems for the agency and victim.

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Downside of Using Interpreters

• Communicating the trauma of sexual violence
  through an interpreter can make the help-seeking
  process even more difficult.
• Interpretation disrupts the smooth communication
  of events and sentiments.
• Outside professional interpreter services can be
  costly.

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Specialized Lay Interpreters

• Band with other victim service agencies to train
  lay interpreters.
• Recruit Spanish-speaking college students as
  volunteers who are fluent or at least familiar
  with your target areas dialects.

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Translations

• To reach an audience that is more comfortable
  reading Spanish
• Translate English language materials.
• Adapt materials already available in Spanish.
• Develop original materials in Spanish.

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Downside of Translations

• Myth If the English language version works, then
  you can simply translate it into Spanish.
• Facts
• The ideas and concepts of the original version
  may not translate culturally.
• The translation may be too formal or at a reading
  level too advanced for the target population.
• If the material was not originally written with
  translation in mind, it requires careful editing
  and revision to be useful for the target
  audiences.

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Machine Translation

• It may be tempting to rely on Web sites that
  translate text into various languages because
  its quick and often free.
• This can be problematic when dealing with the
  specialized terminology of sexual assault and
  domestic violence advocacy.

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Machine Translation Risks

• Not accurately translating There are some
  idioms, culture-specific phrases, and grammatical
  forms that only a native speaker can understand.
• Not adjusting for the English-to-Spanish
  translation expansion rate (16 increase in word
  count).
• Not using special Spanish characters that are
  often required in a translated document (such as
  the accent mark).

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Machine Translation Errors

• Sexual Assault Awareness Month was translated
  to meses conciencia asalto sexual (or months
  awareness sexual assault).
• The specific sexual assault context of the term
  grooming was absent in the literal hygiene
  reference translation aseo.
• Acquaintance rape was literally translated to
  conocido violación (or known rape).

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Machine Translation Possible Consequences

• Agencies that use machine translation services
  often cannot understand the output and therefore
  cannot verify that it is correct.
• Agencies may suffer credibility issues because of
  incorrect or incoherent text.

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Original Materials

• Original Spanish-language and bilingual
  materials
• Convey information in a manner that is culturally
  relevant and fluid.
• Ensure that agencies transmit the intended
  messages and information effectively.
• Convey respect for cultural diversity and ethnic
  identity, even to bilingual speakers who may be
  proficient in English.

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Original Materials (cont.)

• Considerations for developing original materials
  in Spanish include
• Economic and education level.
• Gender.
• Immigration status.
• Country of origin/dialect.
• Acculturation level.
• Attitude/awareness differences.

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Visibility

• All agency materials and online content should
  describe in Spanish the bilingual services
  offered.
• Services offered in Spanish servicios que se
  ofrecen en español.
• 24-hour hotline línea de ayuda disponible las
  24 horas del día.
• Crisis counseling asesoría o consejería para
  personas en crisis.
• Support groups grupos de apoyo.
• Hospital accompaniment acompañamiento al
  hospital.
• Legal advocacy asesoramiento legal.

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A Glossary Resource

• Existe Ayudas Sexual Assault Glossary
• www.ovc.gov/pubs/existeayuda/glossaries/sexualassa
  ult