Disabled Women Research

Disable women research papers can be custom written on how disabled women still are discriminated against. This social problem can be integrated into a sociology research paper or any other type of paper that discusses disabilities.

Eighty-three percent of disabled women can expect to experience sexual abuse in their lifetime. As many as 68 percent of girls with developmental disabilities will be sexually abused before their eighteenth birthday. Based on statistics such as these, it is no surprise that a survey by Berkeley Planning Associates found that the number one concern of disabled women is abuse and violence. It is unfortunate that the most vulnerable people in our society, women with developmental disabilities, receive so little protection or help from community services designed to protect. Law enforcement, victim advocates, emergency shelters, medical institutions and even justice departments fail to provide adequate accommodations for women with developmental disabilities.

Organizations That Assist Disabled Women

It seems that organizations designed to help women with developmental disabilities are not equipped to help with abuse and violence, and organizations established to help female victims of abuse are ill equipped to work with women that have disabilities. The alarming statistics are of even greater concern when one considers that the American with Disabilities Act is over 10 years old. The ADA was created to protect the rights of all people with disabilities to ensure equal access to and treatment by the following:

• Employers
• State and local government services
• Public accommodations
• Commercial facilitates
• Transportation services.

Further, the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 which works to improve programs that address domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking such as advocacy, emergency shelter, law enforcement protection and legal aid has also fallen short in helping developmentally disabled victims of abuse. Indeed, earlier this year, victim's advocates in northern California criticized police and dispatchers for their slow response to a sexual assault report by a 57-year old developmentally disabled women. In another case, two arrests were finally made of employees of a developmental center who had been physically abusing clients since 1996. In Indiana, police found a 21-year old developmentally disabled woman beaten to death by her parents and brother.