Declaring February 14, 2005 as "Victory Over Violence Day", V-Day.

WHEREAS, The Institute for Safe Families (ISF) is dedicated to illuminating and addressing the causes of family violence and to offering an alternative vision for wholeness, healing, family health, and personal empowerment; and

WHEREAS, The Philadelphia Department of Public Health and the Philadelphia Department of Human Services (DHS) work to protect families from violence and to create a system of supports in an effort to maintain safe families; and

WHEREAS, In the United States, a woman is battered, usually by her intimate partner, every 15 seconds. A woman is raped every 90 seconds. One in three girls and one in five boys will suffer some form of sexual abuse before the age of 18 and boys who witness their fathers’ violence are 10 times more likely to engage in spousal abuse in later adulthood than boys from non-violent homes; and

WHEREAS, V-Day, recognized annually on Valentine’s Day has grown into a global movement to stop violence against women and children. It promotes creative events to increase awareness, raise money, and revitalize the spirit of existing anti-violence organizations; and

WHEREAS, Realizing that the collective energy of partnerships make good things happen, the collaboration of ISF, the Department of Public Health and the Department of Human Services helps to continue and to expand awareness of family violence issues, especially among men and adolescent males, while generating a broader attention for the fight to stop worldwide violence against women and girls; now therefore

RESOLVED, BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF PHILADELPHIA, That we hereby declare February 14, 2005 “V-Day” in the City of Philadelphia.

FURTHER RESOLVED,

That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to the Institute for Safe Families, the Philadelphia Department of Public Health and the Philadelphia Department of Human Services for their efforts to end family violence as evidence of the sincere sentiments of this legislative body.

End