WHEREAS, Home should be a place of warmth, unconditional love, and security; however, for many Americans, home is tainted with violence and fear; and

WHEREAS, Domestic violence is much more than the occasional family dispute; and

WHEREAS, Domestic violence, also known as intimate partner violence, is a pattern of assaultive or coercive behaviors that may include inflicted physical injury, psychological abuse, sexual assault, progressive social isolation, stalking, deprivation, intimidation, and threats; these behaviors are perpetrated by someone who is, was, or wishes to be involved in an intimate or dating relationship with an adult or adolescent, and are aimed at establishing control by one partner over another; and

WHEREAS, According to the Surgeon General, United States Public Health Service, domestic violence is a societal problem of epidemic proportions; and

WHEREAS, Domestic violence is a serious criminal justice and public health problem. In the most recent (July 2000) National Violence Against Women Survey, 1.5 percent of surveyed women and 0.9 percent of surveyed men said they were physically assaulted or raped by a partner in the previous 12 months; according to these estimates, approximately 1.5 million women and 835,000 men are physically assaulted or raped by an intimate partner annually in the United States; cumulatively, an estimated 25 percent of women and 8 percent of men in the United States have been physically or sexually abused by an intimate partner at some point in their lives; and

WHEREAS, Many victims are victimized more than once and the number of intimate partner victimizations exceeds the number of intimate partner victims annually. Thus, approximately 5 million intimate partner rapes and physical assaults are perpetrated against women in the United States annually, and approximately 3 million intimate partner physical assaults are committed against men in the United States annually; and

WHEREAS, Women are 10 times more likely than men to be victimized by an intimate partner, and young women, women who are separated, divorced, or single, low-income women, and African American women are disproportionately victims of assault and rape. More than 11 percent of women who lived with a woman as part of a couple reported being raped, physically assaulted, or stalked by a female cohabitant, and over 30 percent of the women who married or lived with a man as part of a couple reported this type of violence by a husband or male cohabitant; and

WHEREAS, Approximately 15 percent of the men who lived with a man as a couple reported being raped, physically assaulted, or stalked by a male cohabitant and 8 percent of the men who married or lived with a woman as a couple reported this type of violence by a wife or female cohabitant; and

WHEREAS, Most intimate partner victimizations are not reported to the police, so that approximately only one-fifth of all rapes, one-quarter of all physical assaults, and one-half of all stalkings perpetrated against females by intimate partners were reported to the police, and even fewer rapes, physical assaults, and stalkings perpetrated against males by intimate partners were reported; and

WHEREAS, Domestic violence has serious health consequences: the immediate injuries sustained by victims during violent episodes can be severe and sometimes fatal, while physical and psychological abuse has been linked to a number of adverse medical health effects; domestic violence is linked to 8 of 10 of the leading indicators for Healthy People 2010; the health effects of intimate partner violence often persist for years after the abuse has ended; and

WHEREAS, The costs of domestic violence are substantial. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated in 1995 that the total cost of intimate partner violence against adult women was approximately $5.8 billion; the great majority of these costs, more than $4 billion, were for health care services; and

WHEREAS, The millions of members of the United States medical community annually treat millions of intimate partner rapes and physical assaults. Of the estimated 4.8 million intimate partner rapes and physical assaults perpetrated against women annually, approximately 2 million result in an injury to the victim and almost 600,000 result in some type of medical treatment of the victim. Of the estimated 3 million intimate partner physical assaults perpetrated against men annually, almost 600,000 result in an injury to the victim, and almost 125,000 result in some type of medical treatment of the victim. Many medically treated victims receive multiple forms of care, including, but not limited to, ambulance services, emergency room care, or physical therapy, as well as multiple treatments, including, but not limited to, several days of hospitalization for the same victimization; and

WHEREAS, Women who are battered have more than twice the health care needs and costs than those who are never battered. Approximately 17 percent of pregnant women report having been battered, and the results include miscarriages, stillbirths, and a two to four times greater likelihood of bearing a low birth weight baby. Abused women are disproportionately represented among the homeless and suicide victims. Victims of domestic violence are being denied insurance in some states because the victims are considered to have a preexisting condition; and

WHEREAS, The health consequences of intimate partner violence are not limited to the adult partner being abused; between 3.3 million and 10 million children witness violence in their homes and studies have indicated that violent juvenile offenders are four times more likely to have grown up in homes where they saw violence, and children who have witnessed violence at home are also five times more likely to commit or suffer violence when they become adults; and

WHEREAS, According to the United States Department of Labor, one million people are assaulted and injured every year as a result of workplace violence, one thousand people are killed every year due to workplace violence, 30 percent of battered women lose their jobs due to harassment at work by abusive husbands and boyfriends, domestic violence rates are five times higher among families below poverty levels, and severe spousal abuse is twice as likely to be committed by unemployed men as by those working full time; and

WHEREAS, Intimate partner violence, regardless of gender, affects families across America in all socioeconomic, racial, and ethnic groups; and

WHEREAS, Identifying and responding to abuse can make a difference. Models developed to identify other chronic health problems can effectively be applied to intimate partner violence; routine inquiry of all patients by skilled health care professionals increases opportunities for both identification and effective interventions, validates intimate partner violence as a serious public health issue, and enables providers to assist both victims and their children; and

WHEREAS, More than one-half of the number of women in need of shelter from an abusive environment may be turned away from a shelter due to lack of space; and

WHEREAS, Women are not the only targets of domestic violence: young children, elderly persons, men, and those with disabilities are also victims in their own homes; and

WHEREAS, Emotional, physical, and psychological scars are often permanent; and

WHEREAS, A coalition of organizations has emerged to confront this crisis directly. Law enforcement agencies, domestic violence hotlines, battered women and childrens’ shelters, health care providers, community centers, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, the courts, and the volunteers that serve those entities are helping in the effort to end domestic violence; and

WHEREAS, It is important to recognize the compassion and dedication of the individuals involved in that effort, applaud their commitment, and increase public understanding of this significant problem; and

WHEREAS, The first Day of Unity was celebrated in October 1981 and was sponsored by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence for the purpose of uniting battered women’s advocates across the nation in an effort to end domestic violence; and

WHEREAS, That one day has grown into a month of activities at all levels of government, aimed at creating awareness about the problem and presenting solutions; and

WHEREAS, The first Domestic Violence Awareness Month was proclaimed in October 1987; now, therefore, be it