How to Help Someone

Do you suspect or know a friend or family member living in Bergen County who is a victim of domestic violence?

Give them the 24/7 Hotline number for:

Center for Hope & Safety
(201) 944-9600

Providing access to information may be the most important way you can help.

What you can say:

“I’m worried about you and I want you to know that I’m always there for you, if you think you ever need anything.”

Resist the urge to give up on them even though it looks like they are making poor decisions by “putting up with the abuse.” Instead try statements like, “I see you are really struggling and surviving some difficult/tough things; I want you to know you can count on me if you ever need any help.”

“I’m afraid for your safety; there are places you can call for help like Center for Hope & Safety.”

For more information visit:

A good resource book for reading is Walking on Eggshells by Brian Ogawa.

Bergen County Resources

Alternatives to Domestic Violence, Hackensack, NJ
Offers crisis intervention, counseling, legal advocacy and assistance, court appearance preparation, court accompaniment, individual, group, and family counseling, information and referral, community education, and professional training. 24-hour hotline 201-336-7575.

Bergen Family Center (BFC), Hackensack, NJ
Domestic violence counseling program in Spanish and Korean. BFC also has services that provides child care assistance, after school programs, adult day care, home care management, a Family Success Center, and Home Instruction for Parents of Pre-School Youngsters.

healingSpace of YWCA  (formerly Rape Crisis Center of Bergen County), Hackensack, NJ
Provides crisis intervention, individual counseling, medical and legal accompaniments, community education and training, and support groups. 24-hour hotline 201-487-2227.

Abused Deaf Women’s Advocacy Services
Provides support and crisis information for Deaf battered women.

The Anti-Poverty Network (APN)
The Anti-Poverty Network (APN) is an information-oriented forum open to all concerned with ending or eliminating poverty. The network includes faith-based groups, people living in poverty, advocacy organizations, labor unions, and others. 

The Center for Women’s Global Leadership
The Center for Women’s Global Leadership (Global Center) develops and facilitates women’s leadership for women’s human rights and social justice worldwide.

The Center for Research on Women with Disabilities (CROWD)
The Center for Research on Women with Disabilities (CROWD) is a research center that focuses on issues related to health, aging, civil rights, abuse, and independent living.   

FVPF (Family Violence Prevention Fund) 
The FVPF is a national non-profit organization that focuses on domestic violence education, prevention and public policy reform.

Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community
Provides an interdisciplinary vehicle and forum by which scholars, practitioners, and others concerned with family violence in the African American community can articulate their perspectives.

Legal Services of New Jersey
Legal Services of New Jersey is an independent non-profit organization, which coordinates the statewide Legal Services system. LSNJ strives to ensure equal access to justice under law to all people of New Jersey, providing free legal assistance to low-income people in civil matters.

Lesbian.org 
Promoting lesbian visibility on the internet.

Manavi
Manavi is a non-profit organization for women who trace their cultural heritage to Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Manavi’s goal is to increase awareness of women’s rights in society and encourage social change to end all violence against women.

National Center on Domestic and Sexual Violence
This organization started by advocates Deborah D. Tucker and Sarah M. Buel provides training and consultation; police and military training; technical assistance; public policy advocacy, on domestic violence and sexual assault issues.

National Council for Aging Care 
This site contains comprehensive information on elder abuse including guides, statistics, and resources.

National Center for Victims of Crime
The NCVC purpose is to forge a national commitment to help victims of crime rebuild their lives.

National Coalition Against Domestic Violence 
NCADV is dedicated to the empowerment of battered women and their children and is therefore committed to the elimination of personal and societal violence in the lives of women and children.

National Women’s Health Information Center
US Department on Health and Human Services Office on Women’s Health Data bases for statistics on demographics; mortality; maternal health; violence and abuse; prevention; reproductive health, etc.

New Jersey Coalition for Battered Women
New Jersey Coalition for Battered Women is a statewide association that provides leadership, support and resources on the prevention of violence against women in New Jersey through advocacy, training, public awareness, and research.

New Jersey Mental HealthCares
New Jersey Mental HealthCares is the Mental Health Association in NJ’s free, confidential statewide mental health information and referral helpline, available 24/7. Our staff of mental health professionals uses their experience and understanding of the state’s mental health resources to connect you to the services you need.

NJ Coalition Against Sexual Assault
NJCASA’s mission is to promote the compassionate and just treatment of survivors and their loved ones; foster collaborative relationships between community systems; and affect attitudinal and behavioral changes in society as we work toward the elimination of sexual violence against all people.

NJ Department of Law and Public Safety
This is the NJ State Police site where you can access domestic violence statistics from the Uniform Crime Reports.

One in Three Women
A global awareness campaign to raise awareness about violence against women.

RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network) 
The National Hotline for survivors of sexual assault.

The R.O.S.E. Fund
The Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital R.O.S.E Partnership – the Reconstruction of Faces and Self- Esteem. The R.O.S.E. Fund was formed to help women heal the physical scars of abuse as well as the emotional ones.

Teen Dating Helpline: Love is Respect
Loveisrespect.org is the online home of the National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline. We’re a community where you can find support and information to understand dating abuse. You can talk one-on-one with a trained advocate 24/7 who can offer support and connect you to resources. Call toll free 1-866-331-9474 or TTY 1-866-331-8453. One-on-one live chat is also available from 4-midnight Central Standard Time, 7 days a week. No names. No judging. Only help — anytime you need it.

VAWnet Library
An online resource for advocates working to end domestic violence, sexual assault, and other violence in the lives of women and their children.