CEDV Calls for ‘Fresh Start’ on Violence Against Women Act

PRESS RELEASE

Contact: Rebecca Stewart

Telephone: 513-479-3335

CEDV Calls for ‘Fresh Start’ on Violence Against Women Act

WASHINGTON / October 16, 2019 – Noting the six-month impasse in reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act in the U.S. Senate, the Coalition to End Domestic Violence is calling for a Fresh Start to re-examine the assumptions, problems, and concerns associated with this historic law.

First passed in 1994, VAWA policies rested on three assumptions, all of which have been challenged or refuted (1):

Domestic violence initiated by women is non-consequential.
Domestic violence was assumed to be the result of men’s need for patriarchal power and control.
The most appropriate response to domestic violence was to actively engage the criminal justice system.

There is no evidence that VAWA has succeeded in reducing levels of intimate partner violence (2). According to Angela Moore Parmley of the U.S. Department of Justice, “We have no evidence to date that VAWA has led to a decrease in the overall levels of violence against women.”

Other areas of concern include:

Domestic violence programs often shortchange the victims they purport to be helping (3).
VAWA-funded programs have created a new class of victims: the falsely accused (4).
VAWA policies have contributed to the problem of family dissolution (5).
VAWA policies have been a major cause of over-criminalization (6).

The Coalition to End Domestic Violence urges members of Congress to thoughtfully consider these concerns and draft a new domestic violence law that addresses these problems.

For more information, visit www.EndToDV.org .

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