Urging the United States Senate and House of Representatives to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act so that we may continue the nationwide effort to prevent and address violence against women.

WHEREAS, The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) was passed in 1994 in an effort by battered women's movements, advocates for victims of violent crimes, the law enforcement community, prosecutors' offices, courts, and other groups to form a comprehensive response to violence against women; and

WHEREAS, VAWA was reauthorized in 2000 and 2005 with strong bipartisan support and was expanded in scope to address sexual violence and stalking; and

WHEREAS,

VAWA took a strong and previously unprecedented approach to domestic violence by establishing certain acts of violence as federal crimes, mandating nationwide state cooperation in the enforcement of protection orders, and placing an affirmative obligation on the government to prevent and address domestic violence; and

WHEREAS, VAWA established federal grant programs to encourage a coordinated community response in order to hold perpetrators accountable for

violence against women. These grants provide funding to local, state and tribal governments, courts, non-profit organizations, community organizations, schools, colleges, and universities in an effort to develop effective approaches to address the problem of domestic violence

through activities including direct services, crisis intervention, transitional housing, legal assistance to victims,

court improvement, and training for law enforcement and courts

; and

WHEREAS, In its current form, as introduced in November 2011, VAWA maintains critical support and services for victims, including prevention initiatives focusing on children, as well as programs to engage men as leaders in the effort to end violence against women; and

WHEREAS, Federal, state and local funding for anti-violence programs is more important than ever as the demand for services rises while state and local budgets tighten and private donations drop. Indeed, the National Network to End Domestic Violence reported that in one day in 2010 there were 9,541 unmet requests for services at programs throughout the country; and

WHEREAS, Domestic violence disproportionately affects women and is a common cause of homelessness in Philadelphia; now therefore,

RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That Council hereby urges the United States Senate and House of Representatives to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act so that we may continue the nationwide effort to prevent and address violence against women.

FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be forwarded to all Pennsylvania members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives as evidence of the grave concern of this legislative body.

End