Download This PaperThe Impact of COVID-19 on Survivors of Gender-Based Violence and Service Providers in Miami-Dade County: A Case Study
26 Pages Posted: 14 Mar 2022
Date Written: March 10, 2022
Abstract
Many commentators have referred to domestic and gender-based violence in the age of COVID-19 as a “double pandemic.” This chapter offers a local view on that phenomenon. We elaborate on the results of a mixed-methods study on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on gender-based violence (GBV) in South Florida, conducted by the Human Rights Clinic of the University of Miami School of Law, in close collaboration with community-based organizations. The study sought to elucidate the pathways that link pandemics such as COVID-19 and GBV, determine the magnitude of the problem, highlight linkages with other social and economic factors, seek greater clarity on the conditions and systems that actually lead to safety, and inform intervention and response options. More specifically, the study was designed to assess the impact of COVID-19, racism, and exclusionary policies on GBV survivors using an intersectional gender lens that places the focus on the most marginalized and vulnerable communities in South Florida who experience bias and marginalization due to immigration status, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disability, socio-economic status, and other factors. This chapter summarizes a forthcoming report on the study, which offers key results, a human rights analysis, and recommendations to inform local and national advocacy. Initial results show just how underfunded and unprepared many organizations have been to respond to victims during this pandemic. The study’s analysis and recommendations offer approaches that respond to the most affected communities’ needs and priorities, and insist on improved policy and government responses during the current crisis and its aftermath.
This study built off the fact-finding work of our Human Rights Clinic’s COURAGE in Policing Initiative (COURAGE = Community Oriented and United Responses to Address Gender Violence and Equality), which works with community-based organizations, police departments, and GBV experts locally, nationally, and globally on improving law enforcement responses to GBV. The project aims to increase access to safety and justice for all survivors, with a particular focus on black and brown women, immigrant women, disabled women, indigenous women, LGBTQI individuals, and other underserved populations. In collaboration with partners, the project is developing surveys, model policies, trainings, supervision protocols, reports, online resources, and systems of accountability for law enforcement responses to GBV, including research and tools specific to the COVID-19 context. But as the national dialogue transitioned away from law enforcement-centric solutions, and of course, as the pandemic set in in March 2020, the COURAGE project transitioned into its new iteration, which focused on a series of new research questions, namely (1) how the COVID pandemic had impacted the service providers that care for GBV survivors in South Florida, (2) what these service providers were doing to respond to the new challenges, and (3) what the evolving needs of survivors and service providers were. The ultimate goal was to produce a series of recommendations that could then be implemented across Miami-Dade County and surrounding municipalities, to address pressing immediate needs and to better prepare for future public health or other massive crises.
Below, we first discuss the “double pandemic” phenomenon of domestic and gender-based violence in times of COVID-19. Next, we explore the intersectional impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, as it relates to GBV. Then, we offer a synopsis of our study and our conclusions. Finally, we offer a human rights analysis of our study findings as well as law and policy recommendations.
Keywords: Domestic Violence, COVID-19, Coronavirus, Gender-Based Violence, Lockdown, DV/SA, Service Providers
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
Caroline Bettinger-Lopez
University of Miami - School of Law ( email )
P.O. Box 248087
Coral Gables, FL 33146
United States
305-284-5923 (Phone)
HOME PAGE: http://https://www.law.miami.edu/faculty/caroline-bettinger-lópez