[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 710 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 710

    Designating the week of February 2 through February 6, 2009, as 
    ``National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week''.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 20, 2008

Mr. Crapo (for himself, Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Lieberman, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. 
 Schumer, and Mr. Bayh) submitted the following resolution; which was 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
    Designating the week of February 2 through February 6, 2009, as 
    ``National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week''.

Whereas 1 in 11 adolescents reports being a victim of physical dating violence;
Whereas dating violence occurs more frequently among black students (13.9 
        percent) than among Hispanic (9.3 percent) or white (7 percent) 
        students;
Whereas 1 in 5 teenagers in a serious relationship reports having been hit, 
        slapped, or pushed by a partner;
Whereas more than 1 in 4 teenagers have been in a relationship where a partner 
        is verbally abusive;
Whereas 30 percent of teenagers in a dating relationship have been text messaged 
        10, 20, or 30 times per hour by a partner attempting to find out where 
        they are, what they are doing, or who they are with;
Whereas 40 percent of the youngest ``tweens'', those between the ages of 11 and 
        12, report that their friends are victims of verbal abuse in dating 
        relationships;
Whereas nearly 3 in 4 tweens say that dating relationships usually begin at age 
        14 or younger;
Whereas 29 percent of girls who have been in a relationship said that they have 
        been pressured to have sex or to engage in sexual activities that they 
        did not want;
Whereas 69 percent of all teenagers who had sex by age 14 said they have 
        experienced 1 or more types of abuse in a dating relationship;
Whereas 1 in 5 teenagers (20 percent) between the ages of 13 and 14 say their 
        friends are victims of dating violence;
Whereas in 2003, in a national survey of over 14,000 high school students 
        conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, just over 8 
        percent of boys and girls reported physical dating violence 
        victimization and were more likely to engage in risky behaviors 
        including sexual intercourse, attempted suicide, episodic heavy 
        drinking, and physical fighting;
Whereas Native American women experience higher rates of interpersonal violence 
        than any other population group;
Whereas violent relationships in adolescence can have serious ramifications for 
        victims, putting them at higher risk for substance abuse, eating 
        disorders, risky sexual behavior, suicide, and adult revictimization;
Whereas the severity of violence among intimate partners has been shown to be 
        greater in cases where the pattern of violence has been established in 
        adolescence;
Whereas more than 3 times as many tweens (20 percent) as parents of tweens (6 
        percent) admit that parents know little or nothing about the tweens' 
        dating relationships;
Whereas a majority of parents surveyed either believe dating violence is not an 
        issue or admit they do not know if it is an issue; and
Whereas the establishment of National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and 
        Prevention Week will benefit schools, communities, and families 
        regardless of socio-economic status, race, or sex: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) designates the week of February 2 through February 6, 
        2009, as ``National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and 
        Prevention Week''; and
            (2) calls upon the people of the United States, high 
        schools, law enforcement, State and local officials, and 
        interested groups to observe National Teen Dating Violence 
        Awareness and Prevention Week with appropriate programs and 
        activities that promote awareness and prevention of the crime 
        of teen dating violence in their communities.
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