During Domestic Violence Awareness Month, people wear purple to highlight the need for protecting victims and helping them build a better life. The issue will be more prominent, and there will be calls to learn more or volunteer to help.
Make no mistake, though, domestic violence is with us all year, whether the general public is paying attention or not. And if calls for help are any indication, the problem is getting worse.
In 2023, the National Domestic Violence Hotline fielded more calls, texts and chats than ever before. More than 460,000 people had conversations on the hotline with trained responders, and more than 150,000 took advantage of online self-service opportunities. That is in addition to contacts through 24-hour, well used state hotlines, in Virginia and elsewhere, and calls made to 911 and social service agencies.
Unfortunately, despite the good work hotlines and agencies do, there are also the unfortunate people who were in trouble but didn’t have time to get help, didn’t know where to call, or were too afraid.
Despite this, Congress cut federal funds to organizations that help survivors of domestic violence and child abuse across the country by about $600 million for fiscal year 2024.
The federal legislature set a funding cap for 2024 of $1.35 billion — drastically reduced from the previous year — for the Crime Victims Fund, administered by the Justice Department. Under the Victims of Crime Act of 1984, the main source of money for the fund is not tax dollars but fines paid for federal criminal offenses. The amount that comes in is unpredictable, and despite spending caps intended to keep reserves healthy, the fund has been dwindling.
People who work with victims of domestic violence and child abuse are worried that the federal funds they depend on will drop even more next year. The magnitude of the decrease this year is already having dire effects, as agencies across the country that help survivors of violence and abuse are cutting staff and programs.
Saving a victim from imminent harm or even death in a domestic abuse crisis is only the beginning of the process of helping that victim — more often than not a woman — move into a better life. A victim may need medical treatment. She usually needs a safe place to stay. She may need legal assistance. Counseling may be needed to help her understand the abusive situation and resist pressure to return to it.
A survivor of domestic abuse needs long-term help. Providing that help costs money.
Congress needs to find a better way to finance the Crime Victims Fund, but today’s deeply divided Congress finds it difficult to deal with such matters.
Everyone who cares about vulnerable women and children should keep pressure on the state and federal governments to fund these important programs adequately.
Domestic violence is all too prevalent, and too often undetected. Lives are at stake. We must not look away, this month and all year round.
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