Michigan’s First Lady Sue Snyder has announced the launch of a new web portal to better connect all Michiganders who are survivors of sexual assault and abuse with resources.

Snyder shared the news at her recent Let’s End Campus Sexual Assault summit.

“Our state has tremendous resources available to connect survivors with the immediate and long-term support they deserve,” Snyder said. “This new website streamlines all these resources into one place, making it easier to navigate. I’m proud that Michigan continues to be a leader in changing our culture and creating a more supportive environment for survivors.”

The new portal includes an extensive collection of information resources about sexual assault and abuse, health options, legal options and rights, and how to help a survivor.

Michigan’s sexual assault hotline is a major focus of the website. As MLive reported, through Snyder’s leadership, in August, Michigan became the second state in the U.S. to have its own 24/7 free sexual assault hotline.

Sarah Prout Rennie, executive director of the Michigan Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence, told MLive that prior to the launch of the statewide hotline, “40 percent of Michiganders didn’t have access to direct sexual assault services.”

“First Lady Sue Snyder took a bold step when she initiated the Let’s End Campus Sexual Assault campaign,” Carolyn Cassin, president and CEO, Michigan Women Forward and co-chair of CMF’s Michigan Grantmakers for Women and Girls Affinity Group (MGWG) said. “Starting that dialogue with educators, students and the public was a wonderful and effective first step in changing the culture around universities’ response to unconscionable past practices.  She had a profound impact on the safety and well-being of young women in high education institutions throughout our state. The new hotline is a much-needed resource to ensure that survivors of assault will be heard.”

“I salute Sue Snyder’s commitment to sexual assault survivors and to improving resources to address this issue,” Peg Talburtt, advisor, Lovelight Foundation and co-chair MGWG affinity group said. “She has worked tirelessly to address sexual assaults on campus and off.”

Snyder’s initiative, the Campus Sexual Assault Grant Program which provides funding for innovative approaches schools can implement, is currently accepting its fourth round of grant applications.

Snyder shares that it was bipartisan support that led to a $1 million appropriation from the state’s general fund to support the grant program, the largest investment in the program to date.

Here are a few highlights of how CMF members are providing support to survivors of sexual assault and abuse:

• Through the McGregor Fund’s recovery and restoration arm of its strategic grantmaking, the fund supports Wayne County SAFE which helps the agency provide comprehensive sexual assault services to the community.

• Earlier this year, the Morning Sun reported that the Gratiot County Community Foundation helped to fund a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner program to ensure survivors of sexual assault could receive exams and treatment close to home.

• As CMF reported earlier this year, the final untested rape kits in Detroit were processed through the work of Michigan Women Forward’s (MWF) Enough SAID campaign. MWF said while the end of the backlogged kits was a critical milestone, the campaign will continue until all cases have been investigated and all suspects prosecuted.

Want more?

Check out the new web portal.

Connect with CMF’s Grantmakers for Women and Girls Affinity Group.