October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month
Each year, October casts a spotlight on a mostly unseen, unspoken issue affecting millions of people, mostly women, throughout our country and the rest of the world: domestic violence. Locally this year, that spotlight is shining even more intensely due to two homicides resulting from domestic violence. Families were devastated. Communities shocked. Government leaders vowed to put more attention and resources to the issue. And while these incidents caused many to consider, discuss, and even rally around the issue with the hope that they can help reduce/eliminate future incidents, the facts remain:
- Every 9 seconds in the United States, a woman is assaulted or beaten.
- In the US, an average of 20 people are physically abused by intimate partners every minute. This equates to more than 10 million abuse victims annually.
- 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men have been physically abused by an intimate partner.
- 1 in 5 women and 1 in 7 men have been severely physically abused by an intimate partner.
- 1 in 7 women and 1 in 18 men have been stalked. Stalking causes the target to fear she/he or someone close to her/him will be harmed or killed.
On October 15, join Family of Woodstock’s Domestic Violence Services team in supporting domestic violence survivors at a special gathering in Kingston. The event will honor Alicia McDonald, long-time advocate for domestic violence survivors and their rights. We will also launch our Survivor Safety and Relocation Fund, designed to help people in crisis that need assistance with housing, supplies and other necessities.
Please join us for this special, important evening and find out how you can be part of the solution.
Food and beverages provided. The event is free, but please RSVP to: glarin@fowinc.org.
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Family of Woodstock – Domestic Violence Hotline – 24/7
(845) 679-2485
