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Serving Transgender Victims of Sexual Assault
Message From the DirectorAbout This Guide
Transgender 101Sexual Assault in the Transgender CommunityTips For Those Who Serve Victims
June 2014
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Tips for Those Who Serve Victims

Having a gender identity that differs from the sex you are assigned at birth can be challenging, and any challenges may be more complicated if you are a victim of sexual violence. This section discusses some of the challenges that affect the work of professionals who serve transgender victims of sexual violence and offers tips to help improve services. Topics are grouped into three categories:

  • Victim Issues, which discusses transgender-specific issues as they relate to sexual assault.
  • Perpetrator Issues, which discusses issues involving the perpetrators of sexual assault against transgender people.
  • Standard Practices, which discusses procedural issues as they relate to sexual assault involving transgender victims.

This section also provides some quick reminders to help you serve transgender victims effectively (see Five Keys) and tips to help you reach out to the transgender community (see Outreach).

We strongly recommend that you review Transgender 101 before reading this section. By doing so, you will gain an understanding of transgender identities and experiences or, if you already have significant knowledge, you will gain a greater understanding and will be better able to provide culturally competent services.