Advocacy
SCCADVASA actively monitors all legislation that potentially impacts victims/survivors and our member organizations. This can range from specific bills that address the criminal legal and family court process to housing, to access to healthcare, to reproductive rights, and beyond.
The impacts of domestic and sexual violence have many intersections and reach far into the lives of survivors. The voices, needs and perspectives of survivors on policymaking, in every area of their lives, is critical to building safer homes and communities.
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You can help ensure that the voices of survivors are heard in the statehouse and on Capitol Hill by calling your legislators, senators, and representatives. Learn about the issues, stay informed and make your voice heard.
Public Policy Initiatives
During each Legislative Session in both South Carolina and at the Federal Level, SCCADVASA continues our advocacy efforts and monitors the situation at the S.C. State House and in Washington, D.C.
Click here to sign up to receive updates on how things are progressing at both the State and Federal level. These updates will also be posted in the News & Updates section of our website.
2023 SC State House Legislative Session Wrap Up
Survivor Access to Abortion Care
Denying access to critical health care, including abortion care, increases the danger a sexual or domestic violence victim is in and decreases their ability to seek safety from their rapist or leave their abusive partner.
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IPV and Gun Violence
Intimate partner violence and gun violence in the U.S. are inextricably linked. The intersection of these issues impacts millions of women, families, and communities across the country. With escalating levels of gun violence, combined with recent court decisions, advocacy efforts for increased gun safety measures are even more critical.
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2024 State House Session Advocacy
Our policy focus areas are determined by our member organizations’ experience of emerging and ongoing needs at the community level. SCCADVASA strives to make sure these needs are heard, understood, and acted upon by our state legislators and congressional delegation.
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2024 Federal Session Advocacy
During each legislative session, we monitor news and events related to survivors at the Federal Level happening in Washington, D.C. and nationwide. Our goal is to provide you with updates on how things are progressing and what you can do to stand with survivors.
Get InformationOngoing Public Policy Initiatives
SCCADVASA staff work with advocates at rape crisis centers and staff at federal, state, and local corrections institutions and juvenile detention centers across South Carolina to provide in-service trainings and regional and state conferences to ensure that incarcerated survivors of sexual assault and rape have access to victim-centered, trauma-focused care. The Coalition also works with community partners to increase collaboration and improve capacity by supporting the development and continual improvement of policies and practices for services to incarcerated survivors.
As a member of the Attorney General’s Human Trafficking Task Force, SCCADVASA is at the forefront of advocacy for the creation and continual improvement of prevention and intervention services for victims and survivors of labor and sex trafficking.
When the issue of human trafficking first became a priority at the state Attorney General’s office, SCCADVASA was a key player in the formation of the AG’s Task Force and in the development of our current state legislation, which is one of the strongest in the country. As a leader of the Direct Services Workgroup, a subcommittee of the Task Force, SCCADVASA works alongside the Department of Social Services, the Department of Juvenile Justice, child advocacy centers, sexual assault and domestic violence centers, and other nonprofit groups to create and implement model policies and practices for direct service provision to survivors of trafficking in our state.
SCCADVASA also provides technical assistance and professional development training to member organizations and allies to improve their professional knowledge and capacity to provide services to this population.
Learn more about the Attorney General’s Human Trafficking Project and the Task Force.
SCCADVASA plays a vital role as a link between direct service providers, state legislators, and policy developers to amplify the voice of all survivors. We understand that sometimes seemingly simple things can become very real roadblocks for survivors and victims of trauma, preventing them from accessing care. Whether it is as members of the Governor’s Domestic Violence Task Force or the Immigrant Victim Network, or through our advocacy work with allies such as the Department of Education or the Department of Social Services, SCCADVASA brings a unified voice to address systemic needs.
SCCADVASA advocates for systems that work for survivors instead of against them.
