On May 5, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing, “The Increased Importance of the Violence Against Women Act in a Time Of Economic Crisis.”
Chair Patrick Leahy (D-VT) began his remarks by lauding the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) (P.L. 103-322), saying, “Our communities and families are safer today because of this law.” However, Sen. Leahy noted, “The importance of VAWA could not be clearer than it is today as our country copes with a troubled economy. The safety net VAWA has provided survivors over the years is now a lifeline for many. The economic pressures of a lost job, home, or car can add stress to an already abusive relationship. The loss of these resources can make it harder for victims to escape a violent situation. And just as victims’ needs are growing, state budget cuts are resulting in fewer available services, including emergency shelters, transitional housing, counseling, and child care…Economic insecurity is among the most formidable obstacles for survivors of domestic and sexual violence. Abusers often retain their control through economic dependence, sabotaging a victim’s credit history or her ability to work productively. Between 25 and 50 percent of domestic violence victims report that they lost a job at least in part due to their abuse. Similarly, almost 50 percent of sexual assault survivors lose their jobs following a crime. Senator [Patty] Murray [(D-WA)], a longtime supporter of VAWA, has introduced a bill [the Security and Financial Empowerment (SAFE) Act (S. 1740)] I am proud to cosponsor to provide victims with unpaid leave for legal and medical appointments, eligibility for unemployment insurance, and protection from employment and insurance discrimination based on their history of abuse. These policies make good business sense, and they are the right thing to do. We must take additional steps to ensure the economic independence of victims.”
Discussing the VAWA grant programs in depth, Susan Carbon, director of the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) at the Justice Department, said, “With VAWA funding, communities are forging effective partnerships among federal, state, local, territorial, and tribal governments, and between the civil and criminal justice systems and victim advocates, and are providing much-needed services to victims. Since 1995, grants and cooperative agreements totaling over $4 billion have been awarded to communities across the United States under the VAWA programs. VAWA-funded services reach hundreds of thousands of victims every year. For example, in the six-month reporting period from January to June 2009 alone, OVW grantees reported that:
Ms. Carbon continued, “The resources authorized by VAWA and subsequent legislation have never been more important than they are today. In the best of economic times, a victim worries about finding a job and housing and providing for her children; these problems intensify during a recession. During an economic downturn, a victim of domestic violence faces additional obstacles to leaving her abuser. Shelters and service providers that serve victims have been facing economic crises of their own – state funding cuts and declining charitable donations threaten their ability to survive and serve. As documented in a national census of domestic violence services conducted by the National Network to End Domestic Violence on one day in September 2008, 8,927 requests for services went unmet due to lack of resources. When the census was re-conducted in September 2009, that number had risen to 9,280 unmet requests. The National Domestic Violence Hotline, which was created by VAWA and is administered by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), reports that calls to the hotline increased 19.4 percent in the 12 months following September 2008. A shelter in Dane County, Wisconsin compared their service numbers for the first quarter of 2008 with the first quarter of 2009 and found a 44 percent increase in persons sheltered, a 74 percent increase in crisis response, and an astounding 124 percent increase in calls to the crisis line requesting information about shelter.”
Dr. Richard Gelles, dean of the School of Social Policy and Practice and Joanne and Raymond Welsh Chair of Child Welfare and Family Violence at the University of Pennsylvania, discussed the relationship between economic conditions and violence against women, saying, “Because poverty, unemployment, and social stressors are factors strongly related to increased risk of violence against women, it is reasonable to assume that a sharp economic downturn, such as the one that began in 2008, would impact the well-being of women, children, and families in the United States. Is violence against women rising as a consequence of the housing crisis, banking crisis, recession, and rising unemployment? At first, this appears to be an easy question to answer. First, as mentioned above, economic adversity is a risk factor for violence against women. Second, research that examined the effectiveness of arresting misdemeanor domestic violence offenders found that male offenders who were unemployed and living in communities with high rates of unemployment were not deterred by arrest and even escalated their violence after an arrest for domestic violence.” Dr. Gelles continued, “Unfortunately, a definitive answer to the question of whether the economic downturn is increasing violence against women is elusive. The most reliable trend data on criminal violence and violence victimization are collected by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). The FBI collects data on homicide, while the BJS collects information on crime victimization…The reporting of FBI and BJS data [is] lagged by one year, thus the most recent data are for year 2008, the first year of the economic downturn.” He noted that “the most prominent individual and community-level risk factors for violence against women are unemployment, underemployment, and poverty.”
Dr. Gelles cites specific statistics from previous recessions: “FBI data on fatal violence toward women and men indicate that there was an increase in male-to-female domestic homicide after the 1990-1991 recession, but there was no increase during or following the recession of 2000-2001. Of note, female-to-male homicide has declined consistently from 1976 to 2005, and the decline was not interrupted or enhanced during or after economic downturns. Data from the National Crime Victimization Survey only cover the 2000-2001 recession. There was no major change in the rate of domestic violence after the 2000-2001 recession. A more refined examination of the NCVS data indicates that in the two years after the 2000-2001 recession, there was an increase in the rate of female victimization by intimates among the most violent age group – males 20 to 24 years of age.”
“I am here to address this opportunity to expand VAWA in the upcoming reauthorization to focus on providing long-term, sustainable safety for victims and their families,” said Auburn Watersong, economic justice specialist at the Vermont Network Against Domestic and Sexual Violence. “Many VAWA programs contribute to the overall economic stability of victims and play a crucial part in victims’ long-term safety and self-sufficiency. These programs should be maintained, improved, and given sufficient resources to respond to victims’ needs. The VAWA reauthorization process also presents an opportunity to build upon the best practices in the field and provide support and economic protections for victims to address their complex economic needs. By reducing the barriers to survivors’ economic independence, we provide survivors and their children real opportunities to escape the violence and heal. Our nation should ensure that victims of violence have the support they need to remain economically independent, which ultimately benefits not just survivors and their children, but the economy and the nation as a whole.” She continued, “Domestic and sexual violence impact victims from all socio-economic backgrounds, yet there are links between economic factors and domestic and sexual violence. We know that ‘access to independent economic resources…is central to abused women’s decision-making and safety planning.’ Two-thirds of people know someone who is or has been a victim of economic abuse. Economic abuse is a central part of domestic violence – from controlling the finances to actively working against survivors’ efforts to become financially independent. This abuse is not only part of the immediate control over a victim’s life but a massive barrier to a victim’s ability to flee and eventually develop economic self-sufficiency. If victims do not have the economic ability to flee and rebuild their lives, they are more likely to stay. A lack of financial education, limited access to consumer protections, and no economic opportunities are deterrents for victims hoping to escape abusive relationships or to heal from the trauma of sexual violence.” Ms. Watersong added, “The harsh economic climate has widened the unconscionable gap between desperate need and available resources. In a 2009 survey, domestic violence service providers reported letting go or not replacing almost 2,000 positions because of a lack of funding and cited “not enough funding” as the number one reason they were unable to serve victims on the survey day. In a recent survey, out of 27 states reporting, 13 states indicated that state domestic violence services funding had been cut.”
Lolita Ulloa, managing attorney in the Victim Services Division in the Hennepin County (MN) Attorney’s Office, also testified.
