Rape crisis centers affected by Violence Against Women Act expiration due to shutdown

Despite the government shutdown, rape crisis centers are doing their best to stay afloat.

The Violence Against Women Act, which was passed in 1994 and reauthorized in 2013, administers federal grants to organizations that protect victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking. VAWA has expired because of the ongoing federal shutdown.

Jeni Cook, a media relations manager at UNC’s Office of University Communications, said grants that have already been distributed will not be affected. This means that the funds already given to the Carolina Women’s Center, which runs programs for sexual assault and relationship violence, will not be jeopardized. 

“Since the Carolina Women’s Center has already received its VAWA grants, and funds have already been administered, there is no impact on the Center,” she said.

Other organizations, though, are facing the realities of operating without guaranteed federal funds.

Rachel Valentine is the executive director of the Orange County Rape Crisis Center. She said the OCRCC reaches somewhere between 15,000 and 17,000 people a year in the county with resources including prevention programs and outreach, counseling and therapy, legal and medical accompaniment, advocacy and a 24-hour helpline.

She said government grants are OCRCC’s largest source of income, and they support many of their programs. She said most of the grants OCRCC receives operate on a reimbursement system, in which the organization pays for its expenses and is reimbursed by the federal government, but because of the shutdown, these reimbursements have been frozen. 

The center has diversified its funding portfolio, and partially thanks to financial support from the county's residents, it has been able to continue operating, Valentine said. 

Other organizations, though, such as the Rape Crisis Volunteers of Cumberland County, have had to furlough their staff.

Valentine said these types of developments are very concerning given the importance of the work that rape crisis centers do.

“Last year, we served over 750 clients through our helpline and other various services, and we know there are a lot more people in our community that are facing the trauma of sexual violence alone and without the type of support that we’re able to offer them," she said. "The difference that makes to those 750 individuals really can’t be overstated, and we are very concerned about any indication that these critical emergency services might not be available in any particular community or that we might have to cut back on them."

Although she is nervous, Valentine is remaining optimistic that this shutdown, like those before it, will pass. She is also not concerned about the Violence Against Women Act's preservation in the long run.

“I feel very confident about the long-term health of VAWA," she said. "But I think the short-term challenges can have real life impacts for survivors who are trying to reach out for help, maybe for the first time, and really depend on that help being there 24 hours a day."

Although she doesn’t think there is much we as individuals can do other than push local legislators to put an end to the shutdown, Valentine wants to emphasize that OCRCC is still up and running.

“I want people to know that our services aren’t going anywhere, that this puts us in a tight position and we may, depending on how long the shutdown lasts, have to start making tough decisions about what we do internally, but that it always has been and always will be our priority to make sure that our 24-hour services are always available — always free to the public," she said.

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