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    Takeaways: Violence Against Women Act

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    Independent Women's Forum
    While we all want to work to reduce violence against women, the Violence Against Women Act needs reform to make it more effective and accountable.

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    Takeaways: Violence Against Women Act

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    Independent Women's Forum
    495 views1 page
    While we all want to work to reduce violence against women, the Violence Against Women Act needs reform to make it more effective and accountable.

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    While we all want to work to reduce violence against women, the Violence Against Women Act needs reform to make it more effective and accountable.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    495 views1 page

    Takeaways: Violence Against Women Act

    Uploaded by

    Independent Women's Forum
    While we all want to work to reduce violence against women, the Violence Against Women Act needs reform to make it more effective and accountable.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 1

    — TOP TAKEAWAYS —

    The Violence Against


    Women Act
    While we all want to work to reduce violence against
    women, the Violence Against Women Act needs
    reform to make it more effective and accountable.

    PROBLEM #1
    VAWA programs aren’t being
    evaluated for effectiveness in
    reducing intimate partner violence.
    • I ntimate partner crimes (and all violent
    crime rates) were falling prior to VAWA.
    •R  ates of violent crime overall have
    declined significantly more than
    have rates of domestic violence.
    •V AWA programs have never undergone
    scientifically-rigorous evaluations to ensure
    they are achieving their intended results.

    SOLUTION: Authorize funding for scientifically


    rigorous evaluations of VAWA programs to
    determine whether these programs actually
    produce their intended effects.

    PROBLEM #2
    VAWA leaves many victims
    without access to services.
    •T
     he Department of Justice Inspector General
    found that a significant amount of funds are not
    being spent on servicing victims.
     s the National Research Council reports,
    •A
    treatment is often “driven by ideology and
    stakeholder interests rather than by plausible
    theories and scientific evidence of fact.”

    SOLUTIONS: Refocus the law to:


    I nclude all victims rather than singling out specific
    groups for special protection based on gender,
    sexual orientation, or other group status.
    I ncorporate strong auditing and accountability
    measures.
    C onsolidate duplicated programs to ensure
    that VAWA funds are spent on services, not
    bureaucracy.

    PROBLEM #3
    VAWA overlooks many proven causes of
    violence and can backfire on victims.
    • There’s a strong correlation between domestic and
    sexual violence and substance abuse, psychological
    disorders and single-parent homes—yet virtually
    no VAWA programs address these factors.
    • The Bureau of Justice reported that, “Females
    living in households comprised of one female
    adult with children experienced intimate partner
    violence at a rate more than 10 times higher than
    households with married adults with children.”
    •A  Harvard study found the mandatory arrest
    policies funded by VAWA may lead to more intense
    levels of violence.

    SOLUTION: Return flexibility to states and


    localities so they might tailor programs to meet the
    needs of their particular communities, encouraging
    a more comprehensive approach to treating the
    complex causes of intimate partner violence.

    PROBLEM #4
    VAWA currently ignores Female
    Genital Mutilation and child marriage,
    which also threaten the well-being
    of women and girls in America.
    •T
     here is no solid data on how many girls or
    women in the United States have been subject to
    FGM. Yet there is evidence that some communities
    are seeking to continue their native land’s
    tradition of FGM here in America and transport
    their daughters to other countries for this
    procedure. We need to combat these practices.
    •C
     hild marriage, or marriage before 18, is legal in
    every US state. Child marriage is often forced
    marriage. Research by the nonprofit group
    Unchained found that “a quarter-million children
    as young as 12 were married in the US between
    2000 and 2010—mostly girls wed to adult men.”
    VAWA should prioritize preventing these abusive
    relationships.

    For more information, read IWF’s policy focus,


    The Violence Against Women Act, and this Forbes
    article, Let’s Prioritize Protecting Girls.

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