The grants to indian tribal governments program assists tribal governments, and authorized designees of tribal governments, to 1) decrease the incidence of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual…

The Penobscot Indian Nation was awarded a $1,198,019 Project Grant from the Department of Justice's Office on Violence Against Women under the Violence Against Women Discretionary Grants for Indian Tribal Governments program (CFDA 16.587). The 36-month grant, effective October 1, 2024, will enable the Penobscot Nation Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Advocacy Center to: 1) maintain and increase staffing and training to support direct victim services; 2) provide culturally specific advocacy, support groups, traditional healing, and individual counseling; 3) conduct community awareness and outreach events; 4) provide emergency shelter and transitional housing assistance; 5) offer legal assistance; and 6) deliver culturally specific advocacy and support for youth victims. The grant aims to decrease the incidence of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, sex trafficking, and stalking in the Penobscot tribal community, strengthen the tribe's capacity to respond to these crimes, and hold perpetrators accountable.

The grants to indian tribal governments program assists tribal governments, and authorized designees of tribal governments, to 1) decrease the incidence of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, SEX trafficking, and stalking in tribal communities; 2) strengthen the capacity of tribes to exercise their sovereign authority to respond to these violent crimes; and 3) ensure that perpetrators of these violent crimes are held accountable for their criminal behavior. The penobscot indian nation, is a federally recognized tribe located in penobscot county, maine. The penobscot nation domestic violence and sexual assault advocacy center (PN advocacy center), an agency of the penobscot nation tribal government, works to address violence against american indian/alaska native women by providing comprehensive community coordination and advocacy services for adult and youth (ages 11-24) victims, legal assistance, transitional housing, emergency shelter, and community awareness, prevention, education, and collaboration on issues of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, and SEX trafficking. With this funding, PN advocacy center will: 1) maintain and increase staffing capacity and training to support direct victim services; 2) culturally specific advocacy and support groups, talking circles, traditional healing opportunities, and individual counseling; 3) conduct monthly community awareness and outreach events and other effective education, awareness, and outreach activities; 4) provide emergency shelter and transitional housing assistance; 5) provide legal assistance; and 6) provide culturally specific advocacy and support for youth (ages 11-24 years old) victims that have witnessed or experienced domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, SEX trafficking, or stalking. The penobscot indian nation has partnered with the wabanaki womens coalition, a tribal coalition, to plan this project. The timing for performance of this new award is 36 months.