In other news earlier this week -- on June 26, 2009 -- the White House made an outstanding move by naming Lynn Rosenthal to be the new White House Advisor on Violence Against Women. I believe Rosenthal is brilliant -- and an ardent, sophisticated advocate. This is really one of the best appointments I've seen so far. So please indulge me the opportunity to say so.
Vice President Joe Biden, the author of the landmark Violence Against Women Act, announced the appointment of Rosenthal. She is one of the nation’s foremost experts in domestic violence policy, and has worked at the local, state and national levels to create an environment where violence against women is not ignored and perpetrators are held accountable. This is a newly created position at the White House, dedicated specifically to advising the President and Vice President on domestic violence and sexual assault issues.
“My proudest legislative achievement in the Senate was passing the Violence Against Women Act. We’ve made great strides since its passage -- shining a light on an all too silent issue and reducing violence against women in significant numbers. But we have to do more,” said Vice President Biden, in a recent press release. “... It’s an honor to announce the first ever White House Advisor on Violence Against Women, Lynn Rosenthal. Lynn is passionate about these issues and knows them backwards and forwards. And as a former director of a shelter, she’s also seen the human face of this tragic problem. She will be a leader in this White House in stopping the violence and sexual assault of women and will be an integral part of this Administration.”
Also quoted in the press release is Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor and assistant to the president of Intergovernmental Relations and Public Engagement. Jarrett said: “Lynn Rosenthal has been a life-long advocate for women and she has been a real leader in developing effective policies to combat domestic violence. She will be a tremendous asset to the President, Vice President and the entire Administration as we continue the battle against domestic violence and sexual assault.”
Progress is being made! This is huge step to help ensure that government agencies continue, and hopefully advance, the efforts of many organizations across the country who work everyday to help the countless women who fall victim to relationship violence.
Help is available to callers 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Hotline advocates are available for victims and anyone calling on their behalf to provide crisis intervention, safety planning, information and referrals to agencies in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Assistance is available in English and Spanish with access to more than 170 languages through interpreter services. If you or someone you know is frightened about something in your relationship, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or TTY 1-800-787-3224.
Statistics on domestic violence:
On average more than three women a day are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends in the United States. In 2005, 1,181 women were murdered by an intimate partner. In 2008, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published data collected in 2005 that finds that women experience two million injuries from intimate partner violence each year.
Nearly one in four women in the United States reports experiencing violence by a current or former spouse or boyfriend at some point in her life.
Women are much more likely than men to be victimized by a current or former intimate partner. Women are 84 percent of spouse abuse victims and 86 percent of victims of abuse at the hands of a boyfriend or girlfriend and about three-fourths of the persons who commit family violence are male. There were 248,300 rapes/sexual assaults in the United States in 2007, more than 500 per day, up from 190,600 in 2005. Women were more likely than men to be victims; the rate for rape/sexual assault for persons age 12 or older in 2007 was 1.8 per 1,000 for females and 0.1 per 1,000 for males. The United States Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics estimates that 3.4 million persons said they were victims of stalking during a 12-month period in 2005 and 2006. Women experience 20 stalking victimization per 1,000 females age 18 and older, while men experience approximately seven stalking victimization per 1,000 males age 18 and older.
