Tackling Intimate Partner and Domestic Violence in the United States:

Creating strategies that promote social change and protection for victims

Date of Event: Tuesday, January 14th 2025

Time of Event: 9:30 AM — 1:00 PM PST

Place of Event: Webinar

Key Speakers

Overview

The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NSADC) states in one of their Fact Sheets that “on average, nearly 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States. During one year, this equates to more than 10 million women and men.” (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence) Severe partner violence that is physical is described as being sexual violence, slapping and hitting, stalking, injury, instilling fear, post-traumatic stress disorder, and more. NSADC says that 1 in 4 women and 1 in 9 men will experience this type of partner violence in America. One of the most alarming aspects of intimate and domestic partner violence is that it leads to severe behavior and situations, particularly rape, stalking, homicide, children abuse, economic hardship, and deteriorating physical and mental health. (NSADC) The National Domestic Violence Hotline reports that women aged 18 to 24 and 25 to 34 are the groups that experience the highest rates of intimate partner violence. This is also prevalent between younger groups of populations, being teenagers and young adults. The National Domestic Violence Hotline adds that “9.4% of high school students reported being hit, slapped, or physical hurt intentionally by their partner in the previous 12 months.” (The National Domestic Violence Hotline)

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention discusses how “data from U.S. crime reports suggest that about 1 in 5 homicide victims are killed by an intimate partner.” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - CDC) The American Government is taking legislative steps to prevent these statistics from continuing to rise and providing help for victims. An example of this is the 2013 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act known as VAWA. “VAWA created and supports comprehensive responses to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking, including providing federal resources to support coordinated community approaches.” (National Resource Center on Domestic Violence) Additionally, in order to provide support and a safe space for victims to speak up, there is the Victims of Crime Act, or VOCA. “VOCA funding supports services to 4 million victims of all types of crime each year, through 4,400 direct service agencies such as domestic violence shelters, rape crisis centers, and child abuse programs.” (National Resource Center on Domestic Violence) Additionally, in May of 2023 the White House released a new bill to end Gender-Based Violence, which was developed in partnership with the Gender Policy Council. The U.S. Plan to End Gender-Based Violence provides a roadmap towards building up existing federal initiatives that support victims and enforce preventive measures of this phenomenon. Additionally, it informs of new research and statistics periodically. This Plan specifically focuses on promoting online safety and educating communities on how to protect themselves in cyber spaces and platforms.

While there are several legislative pieces supporting those that suffer or have suffered from intimate and domestic partner violence, there are many gaps that still need to be addressed. The National Domestic Violence Hotline states that “over 70% of US workplaces don’t have a formal program or policy to address workplace violence.” (The National Domestic Violence Hotline) The CDC continues to add that in order to stop this issue before it starts, more policies need to be enacted to protect citizens, including: teaching safe and healthy relationship skills in schools and work spaces; engaging influential adults and peers into programs and dialogues; disrupt the developmental pathways toward partner violence; create protective environments within schools and communities; strengthen economic support for families; and lastly support survivors to increase safety and lessen harms in victim-centered services and other housing programs. (CDC) This symposium seeks to address the gap between intimate and domestic partner violence and the legislations that help prevent a culture of abuse and discuss ways to strengthen current programs in place to help victims feel safe and protected.

Program

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