The program empowers women and teens with disabilities with the knowledge, personal strategies and professional resources to enable them to avoid and escape unwelcome and harmful situations. It is critical to reducing violence against women through: 1. Educating on femininity and sexuality, as it pertains to their relationships and social circles 2. Helping them identify potentially harmful, violent or exploitative relationships 3. Conveying tools and skills to enhance personal protection.
Abuse a critical issue for women and girls with disabilities. Women with disabilities are ten times more likely to be sexually abused than women without disabilities. Potential abusers see them as easy prey-victims who can be harmed, with a low risk of crime being discovered or prosecuted with the perpetrators. A contributing factor is that women themselves often lack information about what is happening to them; do not know how to protect themselves; and often remain silent out of embarrassment.
The project will solve the problem by providing the girls and women with the tools they need to recognize potentially harmful, abusive, violent or exploitative relationships, protect themselves, or seek help when necessary. Too often, caregivers and the public do not treat people with disabilities as adults with agency over their own lives. The first, foremost and only goals are empowerment and self-advocacy because we view women with disabilities as independent, responsible individuals.
The goal is to help shift confidence and power back to these woman and teens for the long-term. The program will help them, for their lifetimes, better understand sexuality and their bodies, and be able to recognize abusive or unhealthy relationships. By deconstructing the socialization process that creates stereotypical perceptions of women and disabilities, we hope to empower them with the ability to reject society's values of a woman's worth and instead, believe in themselves.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
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