[di meliora]

In the US, the Violence Against Women Act was enacted in 1994: An Unwavering Commitment to End Violence Against Women

Much has been done in the years since the VAWA became law, but domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse are still too prevalent in our communities.

In America, 1 in 4 women and 1 in 13 men will experience domestic violence in their lifetimes. Nearly 1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men have been raped at some time in their lives. Each day, on average, three women die as a result of domestic violence.

These crimes impact not only the immediate victims, but their families, neighbors, friends, and indeed their entire communities. This is a problem that affects people of every background, ethnicity, age, ability or sexual orientation. The Violence Against Women Act is a key tool in the fight against these crimes. The proposed VAWA legislation combines tough new penalties to both prosecute offenders and offer aid and support to victims.

While waiting on Congress to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, the federal government continues to take steps (PDF) to stop the violence. At the White House today, President Barack Obama signed a presidential memorandum (PDF) that will require federal agencies to develop policies to address the effects of domestic violence and provide
assistance to employees who are experiencing domestic violence.

The Department of Justice will continue to use every tool at our disposal to protect citizens and support victims of violence.

Futures Without Violence is an advocate for ending violence and abuse:

Mission

Everyone has the right to live free of violence. Futures Without Violence, formerly Family Violence Prevention Fund, works to prevent and end violence against women and children around the world.

Our Work

Creating futures without violence has been our vision for over thirty years. Now, it is also our name. From domestic and dating violence, to child abuse and sexual assault, Futures Without Violence works to end some of the most pressing global issues of our time.

We advance the health, stability, education, and security of women and girls, men and boys worldwide. In 1994, Futures Without Violence was instrumental in developing the landmark Violence Against Women Act passed by the US Congress. Striving to reach new audiences and transform social norms, we train professionals such as doctors, nurses, athletic coaches, and judges on improving responses to violence and abuse. As well, we work with advocates, policy makers and others to build sustainable community leadership and educate people everywhere about the importance of respect and healthy relationships – the relationships that all individuals, families, and communities need and deserve.

To learn more about what has driven us for over thirty years, get the facts about the prevalence and devastating effects of violence. http://www.futureswithoutviolence.org/section/aboutus/
http://www.futureswithoutviolence.or...ter/detail/754

Futures Without Violence also supports the International Violence Against Women Act: http://www.futureswithoutviolence.or...%20-%20FAQ.pdf

Despite efforts to curb violence against women, much, much more needs to be done before the violence is reduced and ultimately eliminated to any significant degree.

A case in point: Crimes Without Punishment: Violence Against Women in Guatemala: http://cgrs.uchastings.edu/pdfs/MUSA...nal%204_19.pdf

What might we do? Perhaps a good start would be to teach our boys using women and girls as punching bags or worse is not acceptable.

[Big Mama]

Thought provoking message. Don't know what to say really. I like your quote at the end. It is very true. I don't know how to put the quote you used down here. But if you are reading this and have lived threw this this quote is right on the money.

Surprised how high the domestic violence numbers are for men.

[egalitarian_activis]

The "1 in 71 men have been raped" stat from the CDC survey doesn’t tell the whole story. It defines "rape" as the attacker penetrating the victim, which excludes women who use their vagina to rape a man (rape by envelopment) which is counted as “made to penetrate”. The very same survey says “1 in 21 men (4.8%) reported that they were made to penetrate someone else,” which is far more than 1 in 71. Also, the study says that 79.2% of male victims of “made to penetrate” reported only female perpetrators, meaning they were raped by a woman.

The above, lifetime stats do show a lower percentage of male victims (up to 1.4% rape by penetration + 4.8% made to penetrate = 6.2%) than female victims (18.3%) although it is far more than the 1 in 71 you stated. However, if you look at the report’s stats for the past 12 months, just as many number of men were “forced to penetrate” as women were raped, meaning that if you properly define “made to penetrate” as rape, men were raped as often as women.