#MeToo movement increasing pressure on support groups
Rape crisis centre pressing provincial government to increase core funding
Support services are struggling to meet the needs of sexual-violence survivors since the emergence of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements, said Sambriddhi Nepal, manager at Vancouver’s Women Against Violence Against Women Rape Crisis Centre.
“Whenever we have a hashtag or a movement that takes off online — we saw it with #beenrapedneverreported with Jian Ghomeshi, and we’ve seen it continue with #MeToo — there’s been a big spike in the numbers of survivors calling asking to access support,” Nepal said.
Many survivors of sexualized violence or harassment need counselling and ongoing support after coming forward, Nepal said.
“As a sexual-assault support centre, we really think about what’s next.”
The rape crisis centre has launched a petition with the hashtag #IWill asking the B.C. government to restore core funding to all anti-violence organizations across the province.
“Core funding is funding that helps us to pay the rent, keep our lights on and handle operational costs,” Nepal said.
In 2004, B.C.’s Liberal government cut all of the $1.7 million from its budget that was dedicated to B.C. organizations serving women. The rape crisis centre relies on a blend of project funding from the provincial government and private fundraising to cover costs. Project funding is given on a term basis and has to be reapplied for periodically. The rape crisis centre has a crisis line that can be reached 24 hours a day, but there is only one line servicing the entire province. It also takes calls from across Canada, Nepal said. Sometimes callers are left waiting to have their call answered.
“It’s heartbreaking. We’ve heard stories of survivors who’ve mustered up the courage to disclose to someone on the phone only to hear a busy tone or an automated message.”
In addition, there is an 18-month wait for survivors to access counselling services.
Nepal said the rape crisis centre has ongoing conversations with the B.C. government about funding, but the recent budget didn’t address their core funding. Nepal hopes the #IWill petition will change that.
“If the government sees that the community really cares and sees that this is a critically important issue for their constituents, they should make the change,” she said. “We want to show the government how far the issue reaches, and how urgent the need for change is across the province.”
The petition will be sent to the provincial government on International Women’s Day on March 8.
The rape crisis centre supports survivors through a crisis line and victim services, including hospital, police and court accompaniment.
It also provides counselling, including programs for Indigenous survivors and family members of missing and murdered Indigenous women. The rape crisis centre’s second mandate is educational, working with teachers, students and service providers in workplaces.
The rape crisis centre also serves family members of survivors, as well as trans, two-spirited and non-binary members of the public.
We want to show the government how far the issue reaches, and how urgent the need for change is.