TITLE
Title
PROCLAIM OCTOBER 2016 AS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PREVENTION AWARENESS MONTH
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SPONSOR
Sponsor
Commissioner Cashion
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PROCLAMATION
Proclamation
WHEREAS, domestic violence is a pattern of control in an intimate relationship where one person uses coercion and violence to gain power and control over his or her partner; and
WHEREAS, domestic violence includes not only physical abuse, but also mental abuse, financial abuse, isolation, and sexual violence; and
WHEREAS, intimate partner violence does not discriminate age, race, class, sexual orientation or gender; and
WHEREAS, the national average shows that more than three individuals are murdered every day by an intimate partner, and that one in three women will experience intimate partner violence in her lifetime; and
WHEREAS, in 2015, the North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence reported that 72 women, men, and children were murdered in domestic violence-related homicides in our state; with Guilford County reporting 1 domestic violence related death in 2015; and
WHEREAS, locally, Family Service of the Piedmont responded to approximately 3,186 crisis line calls in the last fiscal year, and the Greensboro and High Point Police Departments along with the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office collectively reported over 18,589 calls for service involving domestic and/or sexual violence; and
WHEREAS, the Guilford County Department Health and Human Services Division of Social Services in 2015 received more than 5,884 reports to Child Protective Services and 765 reports of elder abuse and neglect to Aging and Adult Services; and
WHEREAS, children who witness domestic violence are more likely to transmit violent behavior from one generation to the next and are more likely to exhibit behavioral and physical health problems, and
WHEREAS, in a community partnership, the Guilford County Family Justice Center (FJC) has successfully brought together agencies throughout the County to provide victims with easier access to comprehensive resources in a single location through a coordinated collaborative effort, which has empowered family violence victims to live free from violence and abuse and hold offenders accountable; since its opening in mid-June of 2015 the FJC has served over 6,000 citizens in crisis; and
WHEREAS, by working together and promoting awareness in this community we can protect the vulnerable, stop the violence, restore hope, and make our community safer for everyone.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Guilford County Board of Commissioners that it does hereby proclaim October 2016, as “DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH” and urges our citizens to increase their awareness and education of this destructive force which deeply affects a large number of families in our State and local community each year. We ask everyone to play an active role in preventing and ending domestic violence by joining efforts to make our community a safer place for all. During National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, we recommit to making sure that no one suffers alone, and to assisting those who need help in reaching a safer tomorrow.
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