The Violence Against Women Act’s current authorization expired in 2018. In 2019, the House of Representatives passed VAWA, which was blocked by Republican Senate leadership. On March 17, 2021, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 1620, the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2021 with a bipartisan vote of 244-172. The bill introduced by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) includes crucial survivor-centered enhancements including restorative justice practices, VAWA-funded legal services for survivors, investment in prevention via the Rape Prevention and Education Program, and culturally specific service programs. Now, a Senate bipartisan VAWA, S. 3623, was introduced on February 9th and awaits a floor vote.
TAKE ACTION
Call both your members of the U.S. Senate and urge them to vote YES on VAWA when it’s time to vote. Contacting Republican senators to urge support is particularly important. And, thanking the 11 Republican sponsors (linked here) is a good idea and please ask them to encourage their colleagues to join them in supporting VAWA.
Call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and be connected to your Senator’s office. Here is the directory: U.S. Senate: Senators. If you call during the time when Senators are home in your state, you can also call one of their several in-state offices. Just check their Senate websites to find contact information.
WHY IT MATTERS
According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV), 10 million people are physically abused by an intimate partner each year in the United States. The National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV) reports that nationwide, an average of 3 women are killed by an intimate partner every day. Additionally, immigrant survivors and survivors of color encounter more barriers to accessing safety resources and survivor services.
In a society structured to sustain gender-based violence, NOW urges the Senate to pass the reauthorization of VAWA to support and protect survivors and ensure resources are available, especially for those in the LGBTQIA+ community and women of color who face disproportionate impacts of violence.
This is an excerpt from NOW’s action alert email. View the entire alert online here: https://now.org/action-alert-reauthorize-vawa-now/
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