Kalle Benallie
ICT
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Wednesday that a $15 million grant from the Administration for Children and Families will fund a National Indigenous Domestic Violence Hotline.
“By creating the first National Indigenous Domestic Violence Hotline, the Trump Administration is responding to decades of tribal leaders’ advocacy for dedicated American Indian and Alaska Native domestic violence services,” said Andrew Gradison, acting assistant of the Administration for Children and Families. “This investment ensures that Native survivors – many of whom live in rural or under-resourced areas – have access to 24/7 lifesaving support.”
More than four out of five American Indian and Alaska Native women experience violence in their lifetimes, according to a study funded by the National Institute of Justice.
The StrongHearts Native Helpline will operate the hotline, which is authorized by the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act, for five years. It will operate 24/7, offering confidential, toll-free support via call, text and online chat. Staff will be trained by advocates who have expertise in tribal cultures, sovereignty and jurisdictional complexities.
“We’re very excited about the award. Of course, this is going to give StrongHearts and all of the relatives that we serve some stability in terms of ensuring that StrongHearts has a future,” said Lorrie Jump, CEO of StrongHearts.
The Menominee Tribe in Wisconsin operates its own shelter for victims and requires perpetrators convicted of domestic violence to submit to a domestic violence abuser assessment and utilize treatment certified by the Wisconsin Batterers Treatment Provider Association.
The tribe used to have its own batterer intervention and prevention programs, but the grant funding for the service expired.
StrongHearts has been operating under HHS funding as a subgrantee of the National Domestic Violence Hotline. Jump said the funding will ensure employment of their advocates.
“There was a competitive notice of funding availability that was issued actually in late August. We had two weeks to turn around this application,” said Jump, Sault Ste. Marie Chippewa. “It was a new format for us. So the requirements were different. So it was quite the marathon effort by all of our leadership here at StrongHearts.”
The grant was a 40-page document detailing the needs of Indigenous communities and how StrongHearts would support those needs.
The hotline will maintain a comprehensive, regularly updated database of tribal and non-tribal service providers; ensure accessibility for disabilities, limited English proficiency, and hearing impairments; collaborate with other national hotlines and tribal, state and local partners; and conduct public awareness campaigns across Indian Country and the United States.
The hotline will also help expand the capacity of domestic violence programs, inform best practices, and strengthen services across tribal and non-tribal systems through the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act’s Training and Technical Assistance Resource Network.
For Domestic Violence Awareness Month, StrongHearts is hosting a community chat on Zoom on Oct. 9.