Boston Area Rape Crisis Center

CONTACT:

99 Bishop Allen Drive
Cambridge, MA 02139
617-492-8306
www.barcc.org

Gina Scaramella, Executive Director

DESCRIPTION:

BARCC was founded in 1973 — the first rape crisis center in Massachusetts, and the second in the nation. It began as a one-room, volunteer-staffed, hotline to answer calls for help from rape survivors; today it is Massachusetts’ largest, with 11 full-time staff and 150 volunteers. A national leader in its field, BARCC was one of only four National Demonstration Projects chosen in 2001 by the Department of Justice for its collaborations with Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANE) and the Victim Rights Law Center (VLRC) to address the emotional, medical and legal dimensions of sexual assault as interrelated issues. By securing better quality forensic evidence and caring for the survivor through multidiciplinary teamwork, rape convictions occur in 94% of cases tried, as against 1% nationwide. It receives 3500 callers annually, in Spanish, English, French, and Haitian Creole. Its advocates accompany over 300 victims and their families in medical emergency rooms — half of Massachusetts' cases — providing immediate information and emotional support through the forensic rape examination. BARCC counselors are on-hand in hospitals, in legal offices, and at educational events that reach 9,000 people annually, and — no surprise — BARCC was the first group in the state to provide counseling for male survivors of clergy sexual abuse. BARCC has transformed the way rape survivors are treated — and you can help them be even more effective.

(2004: HUMAN SERVICES: Girls and Women: Domestic Violence and Sexual Abuse)