Domestic Violence Resource Guide

Each year, more than 10 million men and women experience domestic violence, estimates the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV).

While we might think this type of violence is rare, 33 percent of women and 25 percent of men have experienced some form of physical abuse by their partners during their lifetime, NCADV reports.

In fact, the coalition notes 15 percent of violent crimes are the result of intimate partner violence. However, only 34 percent of domestic violence victims receive medical care for their injuries. This suggests men and women often suffer in silence.

Domestic violence isn’t always physical. It also includes:

• sexual assault by an intimate partner
• stalking
• emotional and psychological abuse (humiliating, shaming,
  name-calling, and controlling the victim)

Emotional abuse is more common than physical violence. NCADV estimates 48 percent of men and women have experienced at least one emotionally abusive act by an intimate partner.

Being the victim of domestic violence isn’t your fault, but reaching out for help can be scary. Becoming familiar with community and online resources can help you take that first step to get support. We’ve put together a list of resources to provide guidance.

Crisis hotlines

Each day, domestic violence hotlines receive approximately 20,000 calls. Survivors of abuse and concerned loved ones may contact the crisis hotline at any time.

Trained advocates at The National Domestic Violence Hotline are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to offer support. While calling a hotline can be scary sometimes, remember that advocates are highly trained. They provide empathy and information for each person’s unique situation.

Here’s what you can expect

The advocate will ask about your situation and help brainstorm next steps as well as a self-care plan. All calls are anonymous and confidential.

Victims of domestic violence should consider contacting a hotline when their partner isn’t home to avoid aggressive or controlling behaviors. It can also allow peace of mind to talk freely with the advocate.

Keep yourself safe after the call. Delete the phone number in your call history. If you’re searching for resources online, clear the browsing history on your computer. You can also use your browser’s incognito (private) mode. It won’t track your online activity.

In some situations, it may be safer to look up information at a shelter, work, or the public library.

National hotlines

The National Domestic Violence Hotline

• 800-799-7233 (SAFE)
• www.ndvh.org

National Sexual Assault Hotline

• 800-656-4673 (HOPE)
• www.rainn.org

National Dating Abuse Helpline

• 866-331-9474
• www.loveisrespect.org

Pathways to Safety International

• 833-723-3833 (833-SAFE-833) (international and
  toll-free)
• www.pathwaystosafety.org

National Center for Victims of Crime

• 855-484-2846 (4-VICTIM)
• www.victimsofcrime.org

Spanish-speaking hotline

Casa de Esperanza

• linea de crisis 24-horas (24-hour crisis line)
• 800-799-7233 (national)
• 651-772-1611 (Minnesota)
• www.casadeesperanza.org

Blindness Resources Statistics

There are several ways to define blindness. Many people regard blindness as the inability to see at all or, at best, to discern light from darkness. The National Federation of the Blind takes a much broader view. We encourage people to consider themselves as blind if their sight is bad enough—even with corrective lenses—that they must use alternative methods to engage in any activity that people with normal vision would do using their eyes.

The United States Bureau of the Census question about “significant vision loss” encompasses both total or near-total blindness and “trouble seeing, even when wearing glasses or contact lenses.”

The statutory definition of “legally blind” is that central visual acuity must be 20/200 or less in the better eye with the best possible correction or that the visual field must be twenty degrees or less.

There are no generally accepted definitions for “visually impaired,” “low vision,” or “vision loss.”

Almost all statistics on blindness are estimated, which means that the numbers found in a sample are extrapolated to the entire population. United States government agencies—including the Bureau of the Census, the National Center for Health Statistics, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics—use sophisticated statistical techniques that lead to population estimates with great accuracy. Moreover, these techniques also provide the margin of error.

Blindness among Children

American Printing House for the Blind (2017)

Each year, the American Printing House for the Blind (APH) polls each state for data on the number of legally blind children (through age twenty-one) enrolled in elementary and high school in the US eligible to receive free reading matter in Braille, large print, or audio format. This is used to develop a “quota” of federal funds to be spent in each state for material in each alternative format. 

Please note that the numbers quoted below from the APH Annual Report do not meet the standard definition of statistics. However, they do provide useful data that is worth including on this page. According to the APH, 

“The specific purpose of the annual Federal Quota Census is to register students in the United States and Outlying Areas who meet the definition of blindness and are therefore eligible for adapted educational materials from APH through the Act to Promote the Education of the Blind.

Statements regarding student literacy, use of appropriate learning media, and students taught in a specific medium cannot be supported using APH registration data” (APH News: December 2017).

• Total number of students: 63,357
• By reporting agency:
  • Reported by state departments of education: 53,155 (83.9%)
  • Reported by residential schools for the blind: 4,940 (7.8%)
  • Reported by rehabilitation programs: 3,800 (6.0%)
  • Reported by multiple disability programs: 1,462 (2.3%)
• By primary reading medium:
  • Braille readers: 4,963 (7.8%)
  • Print readers: 20,460 (32.3%)
  • Auditory readers: 6,833 (10.8%)
  • Non-readers/Symbolic Readers: 20,718 (32.7%)
  • Pre-readers: 10,383 (16.4%)

American Printing House for the Blind, “Annual Report 2017: Distribution of Eligible Students Based on the Federal Quota Census of January 4, 2016 (Fiscal Year 2016).” Retrieved from http://www.aph.org/federal-quota/distribution-of-students-2017/.

Disability Statistics, American Community Survey (2016)

The number of non-institutionalized males or females, ages four and under through twenty, all races, regardless of ethnicity, with all education levels in the United States who reported a visual disability in 2016.

Prevalence:

• Total: 706,400 (0.8%)
  • Girls: 337,700 (0.79%)
  • Boys: 368,700 (0.83%)

Erickson, W., Lee, C., von Schrader, S. (2017). Disability Statistics from the American Community Survey (ACS). Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Yang-Tan Institute (YTI). Retrieved from Cornell University Disability Statistics website: www.disabilitystatistics.org.

Blindness among Adults

These estimates (for adults age sixteen and older reporting significant vision loss, who were in the non-institutionalized, civilian population) are all derived from the American Community Survey results for 2016, as interpreted by Cornell University’s Employment and Disability Institute (EDI), unless otherwise credited.

Prevalence of Visual Disability (2016)

The number of non-institutionalized, male or female, ages sixteen through seventy-five +, all races, regardless of ethnicity, with all education levels in the United States reported to have a visual disability in 2016.

• Total (all ages): 7,675,600 (2.4%)
  • Total (16 to 75+): 7,208,700 (2.83%)
    • Women: 3,946,300 (3.01%)
    • Men: 3,262,300 (2.65%)
  • Age 16 to 64: 4,037,600 (2.0%)
  • Age 65 and older: 3,171,100 (6.6%)

Race or Ethnicity (2016)

The number of non-institutionalized, male or female, all ages, with all education levels in the United States reported to have a visual disability in 2016.

• White: 5,546,000 (2.4%)
• Black/African American: 1,215,600 (3.0%)
• Hispanic: 1,253,400 (2.2%)
• Asian: 250,500 (1.4%)
• American Indian or Alaska Native: 100,400 (3.8%)
• Some other race(s): 563,100 (2.1%)

State Distribution (2016)

The number of non-institutionalized, male or female, all ages, all races, regardless of ethnicity, with all education levels in the United States reported to have a visual disability in 2016.

Educational Attainment (2016)

The number of non-institutionalized, male or female, ages twenty-one to sixty-four, all races, regardless of ethnicity, in the United States reported to have a visual disability in 2016. These numbers refer to the highest level of education attained by a given individual.

• Less than high school graduation: 847,000 (22.3%)
• High school diploma or a GED: 1,201,600 (31.6%)
• Some college education/associates degree: 1,151,500 (30.3%)
• Bachelor’s degree or higher: 598,000 (15.7%)

Income and Poverty Status (2016)

The annual earnings and poverty status of non-institutionalized persons aged twenty-one to sixty-four years with a visual disability in the United States in 2016.

• Median Annual Earnings: $38,500
• Median Annual Household Income: $41,300
• Number living below the poverty line: 1,048,600 (27.7%)

Supplemental Security Income (2016)

The number of non-institutionalized persons aged twenty-one to sixty-four years with a visual disability in the United States who received SSI benefits in 2016 was 649,900 (17.1%).

Health Insurance Status (2016)

The number of non-institutionalized persons aged twenty-one to sixty-four years with a visual disability in the United States in 2016.

• Uninsured: 471,900 (12.4%)
• Insured: 3,326,300 (87.6%)
  • Employer/Union: 1,351,100 (35.6%)
  • Purchased: 449,500 (11.8%)
  • Medicare: 801,400 (21.1%)
  • Medicaid: 1,486,200 (39.1%)
  • Military/VA: 208,800 (5.5%)
  • Indian Health Service: 38,700 (1.0%)

Employment (US) (2016)

The number of non-institutionalized persons aged twenty-one to sixty-four years with a visual disability in the United States who were employed full-time/full-year in 2016 was 1,120,700 or 29.5%.

Therefore, for working age adults reporting significant vision loss, over 70% are not employed full-time.

Erickson, W., Lee, C., von Schrader, S. (2017). Disability Statistics from the American Community Survey (ACS). Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Yang-Tan Institute (YTI). Retrieved from Cornell University Disability Statistics website: www.disabilitystatistics.org.

Mobility

There are very few reliable current statistics on the use of canes or dog guides in the United States. However, according to Perkins School for the Blind, “Most people who are visually impaired don’t use a white cane. In fact, only an estimated 2 percent to 8 percent do. The rest rely on their useable vision, a guide dog or a sighted guide.”

Perkins School for the Blind. (2015, October 15). “10 Fascinating Facts about the White Cane.” Accessed on January 14, 2019, from https://www.perkins.org/stories/10-fascinating-facts-about-the-white-cane.

Guiding Eyes for the Blind estimates that “there are approximately 10,000 guide dog teams currently working in the United States. Another frequently cited statistic is that only about 2% of all people who are blind and visually impaired work with guide dogs.”

Guiding Eyes for the Blind. (2019). “FAQs.” Accessed January 14, 2019, from https://www.guidingeyes.org/about/faqs/.

Computer Use

For data on the preferences of screen reader software users, please see the report on the results of the October 2017 survey from WebAIM (Web Accessibility In Mind), Screen Reader User Survey #7 Results. WebAIM is a nonprofit organization based at the Center for Persons with Disabilities at Utah State University.

For data on the use of computer and internet technologies by “users with low vision”, please see the report on the results of the September 2018 survey from WebAIM, Survey of Users with Low Vision #2 Results.

Additional Resources

• American Foundation for the Blind, “Statistical Snapshots from the American Foundation for the Blind.” Retrieved from http://www.afb.org/info/blindness-statistics/2.
• Bell, E. C., & Silverman, A. M. (2018). Rehabilitation and Employment Outcomes for Adults Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired: An Updated Report. Journal of Blindness Innovation and Research, 7(1). Retrieved from https://nfb.org/images/nfb/publications/jbir/jbir18/jbir080101.html. doi: 10.5241/8-148.
• Brault, Matthew W., United States Economics and Statistics Administration, United States Bureau of the Census. “Americans with disabilities: 2010.” Current population reports. no. 131 (2012). Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2012/demo/p70-131.html.
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Vision Health Initiative (VHI): Data & Statistics.” Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/visionhealth/data/index.html.
• National Center for Special Education Research, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from http://ies.ed.gov/ncser/.
• Eye Institute, “Blindness, Statistics and Data [NEI].” Retrieved from https://www.nei.nih.gov/eyedata/blind.
• Blindness America, “Vision Problems in the US: Prevalence of Adult Vision Impairment and Age-Related Eye Disease in America.” Last modified 2012. Retrieved from http://www.visionproblemsus.org/index.html.
• United States Bureau of the Census, “American FactFinder.” Retrieved from http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/index.xhtml.