LET'S SHARE THE GOOD NEWS
It’s October
26, 2007, and
we are nearing the end of Domestic Violence Awareness month. DV has been in the
headlines all through this month - Richard McIver, Seattle City Councilmember,
was arrested on domestic violence charges; former American Idol contestant
Corey Clark pleaded guilty to a felony
charge of aggravated harassment involving domestic violence; a Burien man was
killed by his former girlfriend, the University of
Washington was fined $2,100 for endangering the late Rebecca Griego and other
employees by not communicating workplace safety policies; and more.
As DV Awareness month rolls
around every year, these questions always re-emerge. Is our work having an impact?
Are things changing? Is it all bad news all the way?
The good news - well, last night
at the King County Coalition Against Domestic Violence Take Action Awards
reception I heard from everyday people who dedicate huge chunks
of their lives to making change. Our own Ginny NiCarthy, former Chaya
board member, writer, activist, changemaker, received an award honoring her
decades of work on domestic violence. 13 year old Jazmyne
Leighton received an award for spearheading the creation of a support
group for teens because she knew what she and her siblings needed, Victoria Throm
for starting the DV Taskforce in Covington that has become an organizing
force in that community (some of you may have heard of the purple light bulb
campaign), two API fraternities for taking on peer education
in their communities - and there were
many other awardees. The scope and breadth of work in King County is inspiring.
And, during a recent session of
“walk ‘n talk” with Ginny one sunny day, I learned about an
article on the
substantial decline (40%) in child abuse numbers between 1992 and 2000 . My first response - Why haven’t I
heard about this? Is the same true for domestic violence?
Honestly, I always get depressed when I quote
statistics on DV. Its like bad news over and over again- but this
is the reality, right? I feel
overwhelmed at the breadth of the problem when I think about these numbers.
· Nearly
one-third of American women (31 percent) report being physically or sexually
abused by a husband or boyfriend at some point in their lives.
· That
on average, more than three women are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends
in this country every day. In 2000, 1,247 women were killed by an intimate
partner.
· That
approximately one in five female high school students reports being physically
and/or sexually abused by a dating partner.
· That
three in four women who reported they had been raped and/or physically
assaulted since age 18 said that a current or former husband, cohabiting
partner, or date committed the assault. (Check out these and more stats)
I needed, wanted, hoped to
find statistics that showed positive changes, numbers that would give me hope
that the work we do is having some impact – and this is what I found on the DOJ site.
· “The number of women killed by intimates was stable for nearly two decades. After 1993, the number declined reaching the lowest level recorded in 2004. “ Intimates are defined to include spouses, ex-spouses, boyfriends, and girlfriends.
· The number of intimate victims in
each race and gender group declined during that period and “the number of black
males killed by intimates dropped by 83%, white males by 61%, black females by
52%, and white females by 6%.” (Check out these and more stats.)
Its
good to hear about positive trends, right? We are clearly doing something
right. And optimist that I am, I believe that we are making a difference.
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