Call on Congress to Fund the Services Survivors Need

December 18, 2013

As Congress begins the work of allocating funding for Fiscal Year ’14, NNEDV is urging Congress to invest in programs that provide safety and support to victims in need.

Domestic violence programs and rape crisis centers across the country work every day to provide safety and justice for survivors, but must do so on increasingly meager budgets having weathered funding cuts from many sources. On just one day in 2012, domestic violence programs provided services to 64,324 victims and their children. However, on that same day, over 10,470 requests for services went unmet due to a lack of funding and resources.

When the demand for services far outweighs available resources, far too many victims are left with nowhere to turn. In a recent multistate study, domestic violence survivors were asked to contemplate the consequences to their lives if the domestic violence programs were not available. They said that they: would be homeless, would have lost everything including their children and, would have faced continued uncertainty, continued abuse or even death. Victims trying to protect themselves and their children from violence need emergency shelter, crisis intervention, protection orders, legal advice, advocacy, and other supportive services. When victims are at their most vulnerable it is unacceptable that they have to be turned away due to programs’ lack of resources.

Please join NNEDV in calling on Congress to support full funding for the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and the other vital programs that address domestic violence. Click here to take action now!