The National Domestic Violence Hotline: Serving and Supporting Survivors Since 1996

Note from the CREDO team: This May, the National Domestic Violence Hotline is among three amazing groups that will receive a share of our monthly grant. Funding from the CREDO community will help The Hotline meet the soaring need for services by making critical investments in hiring more advocates and implementing technology solutions to decrease wait times.

Read this important blog post from the National Domestic Violence Hotline, then click here to visit CREDODonations.com to cast your vote to help determine how we distribute our monthly grant to this organization and our other amazing grantees this May.

The National Domestic Violence Hotline (The Hotline) is a vital service for millions of people. Our mission is to answer the call to support and shift power back to those affected by relationship abuse — 24/7/365. Established in 1996 and headquartered in Austin, Texas, The Hotline is the only national domestic violence hotline providing compassionate support, life-saving resources, and personalized safety planning via phone, online chat, and text.

Every year, the number of people who reach out to The Hotline seeking support and hope for a life free from violence grows. Demand for our services has soared in the last year. To date, we have answered more than 6.5 million calls, chats, and texts.

The Hotline continually adapts to best support survivors’ evolving needs and put resources into the hands of those who need them. A lot has changed since our phone lines first opened and we made referrals using paper maps. In 2013 we began offering services through online chat, and in 2021 we added text messaging capabilities on The Hotline’s toll-free number (previously they were only available through our healthy relationships and prevention platform, love is respect).

Hotline services are available in English and Spanish and in more than 200 other languages through interpretation. Our professional advocate staff provides high-quality, trauma-informed education, validation, and connection to services that empower victims and survivors to make life-changing decisions with dignity and respect. Our team meets survivors and their loved ones without judgment, no matter where they are in their experience with relationship abuse.

Offering services through phone, chat, and text allows survivors to reach out in the way that is best and safest for them. Even with these options, however, some survivors may still not feel safe reaching out for support from a live advocate. For this reason, we published our entire database of 5,000 vetted local providers and resources online, including shelter and transitional housing, counseling, culturally and linguistically specific programs, and legal services. The directory is available here.

With each person served, we are able to better understand the experience of survivors and the individual and systemic challenges they face in accessing safer outcomes for themselves and their loved ones.

Through The Hotline’s policy advocacy, we build power for survivors so they can fully access the resources and support they need to be free from violence. You can get involved by joining our Action Center and encouraging your elected officials to advance policies that support survivors. 

We see everyday that hope can power lasting change for survivors and their loved ones. In the words of one survivor after speaking with a Hotline advocate “You have given me such clarity and hope and tools to make the best decision for myself.”

To join our mission to shift power back to those affected by relationship abuse, please visit our website. You can also follow us on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook.