By Tehan Dukaye, Prevention and Media Coordinator
While sexual violence impacts thousands in Maryland, many groups face additional challenges in accessing adequate support services, including immigrant communities. As of 2023, there are more than 90 million immigrants in the U.S, or 27% of the total population (Batalova, 2024). In Maryland alone, there are more than 1,000,000 immigrants or 17% of the total state population (MPI, 2022). When it comes to tracking the prevalence of sexual abuse among immigrants in the state, and even in this country, more recent research is needed. Older research shows that immigrants are more vulnerable to sexual assault, including married women and women in intimate partner relationships (Mindlin et al., 2013). Immigrant women are also less likely to seek help following an assault (Mindlin et al., 2013). There is little research that shows whether or not these rates have improved across most immigrant groups.
However, what is known about sexual violence within immigrant populations are the experiences of survivors and the laws intended to protect immigrant survivors’ rights. Research shows that immigrants are less likely to report sexual abuse due to fear of deportation (especially for undocumented survivors), discouragement from family or friends, language barriers, and fear of ostracization within their communities. A culture of victim-blaming, shame, and restrictive gender and sexual norms that place responsibility on a survivor but not the abuser can all contribute to a survivor's fear of backlash or lack of support from family, friends, or their community (NSVRC; Mindlin, 2013).
The same factors that affect a survivor’s decision to not report abuse may also impact or deter a survivor from seeking help. For example, while hotline and in-court language interpreters trained to interpret on behalf of survivors who do not speak English as their first language are a resource, they may not be widely available (API, 2019). Language barriers may be especially concerning for Marylanders whose first language is not English. Out of the more than 1,000,000 immigrants in the state, an estimated 38% or nearly 387,000 Maryland residents have limited English proficiency (MPI, 2022).
Despite these numerous challenges, there are laws that protect a survivor’s rights following a sexual assault. In October 2000, Congress passed the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act (including the Battered Immigrant Women’s Protection Act), enabling law enforcement agencies to better investigate and prosecute crimes that impact immigrant women regarding cases that involve domestic violence, sexual assault, trafficking of noncitizens and other crimes (USCIS, 2024). Furthermore, if an undocumented or non-citizen immigrant witnesses or is a victim of a violent crime, such as rape, sexual assault, or stalking, the immigrant is eligible to apply for and receive a temporary emergency visa to live and work in the United States for up to four years, also known as a U Visa. However, only 10,000 U Visas are allowed per year and the victim may be required to continue to cooperate with law enforcement while under U Visa status (USCIS, 2024).
It is important to keep in mind that even with laws that protect immigrants, non-citizens, and undocumented immigrants, these laws are not always utilized or applicable for all immigrants who experience sexual assault. Immigrant survivors of sexual assault may sometimes face hostility from law enforcement and therefore may be unwilling to continue to seek support with these agencies (Mindlin, 2013).
Regardless of the laws intended to protect and support immigrants, it is clear that more effective and comprehensive services are necessary. Whether it is through preventative efforts or follow-up care, effective programs and assistance must be improved to not only reduce the prevalence of sexual violence within immigrant communities, but to stop sexual violence from happening at all. Preventative efforts should include educating community members and service providers about how to minimize factors related to sexual violence through a culturally-specific approach. It is also crucial to continue to provide culturally-specific and up-to-date sexual violence training to interpreters, law enforcement, and other service providers.
MCASA and other service providers have resources available for immigrant survivors who need assistance, including for survivors who do not speak English as their first language:
There are also many culturally-specific providers that can support survivors from many backgrounds and experiences including:
If you or someone you know would like to reach out to an advocate or would like to get more information, help is always available. For legal services and technical assistance please contact MCASA’s Sexual Assault Legal Institute at 301-565-2277. If you are in need of additional resources please contact us at 301-328-7023 or at [email protected] for more information.
References
Batalova, J. (2024). Frequently requested statistics on immigrants and immigration in the United States. Migration Policy Institute. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/frequently-requested-statistics-immigrants-and-immigration-united-states-2024
Migration Policy Institute. (2022). State immigration data profile: Maryland. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/data/state-profiles/state/language/MD
Mindlin, J., Orloff, L. E., Pochiraju, S., Echavarria, E., & Baran, A. (2013). Dynamics of sexual assault and the implications for immigrant women. National Immigrant Women’s Advocacy Project. https://niwaplibrary.wcl.american.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/Ch1-DyanimcsSexualAssaultImplications-07.10.13.pdf
National Sexual Violence Resource Center. Immigrant victims of sexual assault. https://www.nsvrc.org/sarts/toolkit/6-12
Asian Pacific Institute on Gender-Based Violence (2019). Survivors with limited english proficiency: barriers to access. https://api-gbv.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/LEP-survivors-accessibility-9-2016-formatted-20191.pdf
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. (2024) Policy Manual. Part C - Victims of Crimes. https://www.uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume-3-part-c-chapter-1
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. (2024) Victims of criminal activity: U nonimmigrant status. https://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/victims-of-criminal-activity-u-nonimmigrant-status
