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Inaccessible Crisis Hotlines <br />National hotlines for domestic violence, sexual <br />assault, and stalking are perhaps one of the <br />most widely advertised avenues for help for <br />survivors. These hotlines include the National <br />Domestic Violence Hotline, the National Sexual <br />Assault Hotline, and the National Human <br />Trafficking Hotline, as well as numerous <br />hotlines offered by local communities. These <br />hotlines provide immediate access to an <br />advocate who can listen and provide support <br />in a crisis, make referrals to a victim services <br />program, and provide information and <br />education. But the services provided by these <br />hotlines remain largely inaccessible to <br />members of Deaf communities across the <br />country. <br />These hotlines are mostly operated by phone, <br />and Deaf and hard of hearing people have two <br />options for communicating with hearing <br />advocates over the phone and both are <br />ineffective. First, most hotlines offer a <br />dedicated TTY number for Deaf and hard of <br />hearing callers. Unfortunately, while some <br />older Deaf individuals and those without <br />access to the internet still use TTY, TTY is an <br />outdated technology and is no longer widely <br />used by Deaf and hard of hearing individuals. <br />Moreover, it isn't an effective method of <br />communication, especially when discussing <br />emotionally difficult or emergent situations, as <br />it requires Deaf people to communicate with <br />hearing people by typing messages back and <br />forth in English, which is a second language for <br />most Deaf people, over the phone line using a <br />special device. <br />I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I <br />16 <br />