Protecting the most vulnerable from sexual abuse

Times West Virginian - 10/30/2019

Oct. 30--FAIRMONT -- Statistically, about one in four individuals will be victims of sexual abuse in their lifetime.

That figure is even higher for individuals who have either mental or physical disabilities, and even in an area where statistics are less reported in general, the difference is staggering.

"When we quote statistics, keep in mind sexual crimes in general are massively underreported," said Ashley Umstot, sexual assault victims advocate at HOPE Inc. "In West Virginia, the general population, nine percent have experienced sexual violence, but when we're looking at individuals who have disabilities, that number jumps up to 15 percent."

On Tuesday, Umstot and Alexa Borg, HOPE's domestic violence victim advocate, led a training session aimed at not only recognizing, but reducing this number by talking about the issue with community members at the Disability Action Center. The training was meant to help people recognize warning signs of sexual abuse, because when it comes to people with disabilities, these crimes can sometimes go unrecognized.

"Whether it's a cognitive disorder or a physical, some of them are more vulnerable," Borg said. "Either they can't say no because they're non-verbal, or they cannot fight back, so they are more vulnerable to this crime."

Umstot and Borg help all kinds of people through their trauma following a sexual assault or abuse case. The training was an opportunity for others to learn how they could react to these situations as well, which would be helpful for those who consistently work with people with disabilities.

"What is good is we have staff here, clients, family members here," said Julie Sole, director of the DAC. "They're going to hear 'How do we respond best and how do we protect individuals who are vulnerable?'"

Although victims of sexual abuse who have disabilities may have a different headspace than others, their approach to their victimization is somewhat like any other, that being adapting to the person and their situation.

"It's really case by case, but in general, I think what our main goal is is to make sure the victim's voice is being heard," Umstot said. "We want to make sure their personal autonomy is protected."

Despite the use of some different communication tactics, Borg said the advocates recommend the same tactics to anyone, including how they should follow up with law enforcement and health care.

"We can refer them to counseling within the shelter," Borg said. "We can refer if they want to go to the police and start making a report, we also help with that, they can get protection orders... just the process of really dealing with the aftermath of what happened."

While the advocates at HOPE want to focus on prevention, they said that often they have to deal with the aftermath of abuse. In those cases, Umstot said that listening before responding is the best way to help a victim get to their conclusion.

"It's really important when you talk with your clients, when you talk with your survivors that you really get to know them," Umstot said. "Some of the things they are going to say are going to hint to you or show to you how to react to them."

Umstot and Borg also talked about the factors that may discourage or prevent people from reporting their abuse, and when it comes to people with disabilities, these walls can be even more difficult to overcome.

"In situations where a person has a physical disability, there may be a real sense of helplessness there, and that can lead to shame and self-loathing issues," Umstot said. "In situations where the perpetrator is the caretaker... there is an added layer of intimidation there."

Cases of normalized abuse are also common in people with disabilities, because they may not even be aware that their abuse is abnormal.

"You have to remember that there are some individuals in our community for whom this abuse has been so normalized," Umstot said, "they don't see it as anything other than their regular day... It's normal, they don't even realize that something bad is happening."

Guests at the training began a conversation around what can be done in response to sexual abuse. According to Umstot, making community members aware of this abuse and its warning signs are important in the fight to stop sexual crimes.

"It's very important that we educate the friends, family members and service providers in the community on how to respond to these cases. It's kind of just a training to create more community allies," Umstot said.

For more information on HOPE Inc. and its training programs, call (304) 367-1100.

Email Eddie Trizzino at etrizzino@timeswv.com and follow him on Twitter at @eddietimeswv.

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