The FBI “Uniform Crime Reports 2016” (which includes crimes reported to law enforcement) found that: There were an estimated 1,248,185 violent crimes. There were an estimated 7,919.035 property crimes. The overall violent crime rate rose 3.4 percent compared with the 2015 rate; and the property rate declined two percent. “FBI Uniform Crime Reports, 2016,” State Crime Statistics It’s a good idea to know crime statistics that are specific to your state, and even to your community. You can access the FBI’s Uniform Crime Statistics by state (including violent and property crimes) at . Your local law enforcement agencies should be able to provide you with statistics for your jurisdiction, and the “My Local Crime” website offers crime statistics by specific address and zip code at . In addition, in January 2018, the Pew Charitable Trusts Public Safety Performance Project published a report which found that, between 2008 and 2016, 35 states cut their crime and prison rates simultaneously. A summary report and Infographic with data are available at . How to Promote “Expand the Circle. Reach All Victims.” One-page Poster Sometimes, simple messages are the most effective. Accompanying this CAP TIP is a one-page poster that addresses the 2018 NCVRW theme, “Expand the Circle. Reach All Victims” with 14 tips to improve victim services and implement victims’ rights based upon the theme. Please consider this poster a “starting point” – it can be easily adapted to your organization, community, and your specific 2018 NCVRW activities. You can use this poster for victim/survivor and public awareness leading up to and during 2018 NCVRW in several ways: Print the poster in its entirety for wide dissemination in your jurisdiction (and include contact information for your organization at the bottom of each poster). Beginning on Sunday, March 25 (two weeks before NCVRW), create a Twitter campaign that runs through April 8 (or the end of NCVRW on April 14), which features a daily tweet with one of the poster’s suggestions with the hashtags: #2018NCVRWExpandTheCircle
#2018NCVRWReachAllVictims During the entire month of March prior to NCVRW, ask your Planning Committee members to include one tip on how to promote “Expand the Circle. Reach All Victims” on the bottom of their daily emails. Use these “tips” to create your own theme-related messages that are specific to your organization, state and/or NCVRW 2018 CAP activities. Develop a Local Perspective on the 2018 NCVRW Theme Every state or jurisdiction is unique in terms of its strategies to promote the theme, “Expand the Circle. Reach All Victims” And the concept of the 2018 NCVRW theme is also unique to every victim-serving profession within a jurisdiction! As such, it’s important to personalize the 2018 NCVRW theme to your state or community. Consider for a moment the range of agencies, organizations, professionals and volunteers who assist victims of crime; for example: Crime victims and survivors Community-based victim assistance organizations Social service organizations State coalitions System-based victim services in the criminal, juvenile, civil, Tribal and Federal justice systems: Law enforcement Pre-trial and jails Prosecutors Judiciary and the courts Community corrections Institutional corrections Appellate-level agencies Juvenile justice agencies and organizations Victim legal clinics Mental and behavioral health Public/medical health Schools Colleges/universities Civic organizations Multi-faith communities Department of Defense Organizations that assist traditionally- underserved populations Private sector/businesses Others It’s a good idea to conduct proactive outreach to these important constituents, and engage them in “defining the 2018 NCVRW theme” in a manner that personalizes it to your jurisdiction and 2018 NCVRW activities. Here are three recommended approaches: Conduct direct outreach to crime victims and survivors that solicits their input, based upon their personal experiences.
Be a leader. Interact with the community. Welcome newbies Identify and nurture power users. Showcase and cross-promote user-generated content. Reward contributors. Be timely about posting user-generated content. Allow profile creation (personal profile information, preferences and even content statistics). Engage with popular existing communities (such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube) Betancourt’s excellent article can be accessed at Social Media and Teenagers The many CAP recipients who included teen and youth outreach in their applications can benefit from the findings of Piper Jaffray’s twice-yearly teen survey, “Taking Stock with Teens” (October 2017) which identified the following percentages of teens who say which social networks are “most important” to them: “Taking Stock with Teens” – Promote the 2018 NCVRW Theme with Youth and Schools Youth and schools are wonderful partners in promoting 2018 NCVRW. Important general messages include victim/survivor awareness, crime/violence prevention, and resources available for assistance; and specific messages that reflect youth problems with victimization such as in-person and online bullying, harassment, child abuse and neglect, sexual assault and dating violence. The 2018 CAP recipients’ applications demonstrate a wide variety of activities geared toward youth and schools, including: Resource fairs Carnival games Online town hall Creative and visual arts Rock painting Art contests and shows Student poster/essay contests Balloon releases Music festivals Scavenger hunts An upcoming CAP TIP will feature guidelines and creative artwork and activities that engage children specific to the 2018 theme – with some available in English and Spanish. In addition, previous CAP TIPs relevant to teenagers and children (available online at ) include: Cybercrime and Cyberbullying (2015, CAP TIP #10) Sponsoring a Student Poster/Essay Contest (2009, CAP TIP #2)