Section I examines barriers that have traditionally restricted minority persons from becoming active in victim assistance programs. These barriers are a mistrust of the criminal justice system, the criminal justice system's focus on the rights of the defendant/offender to the neglect of victims' needs, language/communication problems, and the lack of victim resources in poor minority communities. Section II provides information on becoming a victim advocate and encourages minority crime victims to demand action from the court system. Some recommended steps in becoming an advocate for victims' rights and services are to determine what relevant resources are available in the community, assist victims in contacting appropriate service agencies, determine what community groups are already active in the community and get them involved in victim assistance, and assist victims by helping to repair and secure homes that have been burglarized. In Section III the various types of victim assistance services are profiled, along with suggested activities for establishing those services in a community. Section IV focuses on special needs of domestic- violence, hate-violence, and elderly crime victims. The concluding section provides information for facilitating the use of existing community resources to serve crime victims. 8 references