[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 32 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 32

   Designating the month of February 2011 as ``National Teen Dating 
               Violence Awareness and Prevention Month''.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 27, 2011

   Mr. Crapo (for himself and Mr. Lieberman) submitted the following 
             resolution; which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Designating the month of February 2011 as ``National Teen Dating 
               Violence Awareness and Prevention Month''.

Whereas while dating, domestic, and sexual violence and stalking affect women 
        regardless of age, teens and young women are especially vulnerable;
Whereas according to Liz Claiborne's 2009 Parent/Teen Dating Violence Poll, 
        approximately 1 in 3 adolescent girls in the United States is a victim 
        of physical, emotional, or verbal abuse from a dating partner, a rate 
        that far exceeds victimization rates for other types of violence 
        affecting youth;
Whereas according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 10 
        percent of high school students have been hit, slapped, or physically 
        hurt on purpose by a boyfriend or girlfriend in the past year;
Whereas according to the American Journal of Public Health, more than 1 in 4 
        teenagers have been in a relationship where a partner is verbally 
        abusive;
Whereas according to a Youth Risk Behavioral Survey, almost 20 percent of teen 
        girls who were exposed to physical dating violence did not attend school 
        on 1 or more occasions during the past 30 days due to feeling unsafe at 
        school or on the way to or from school;
Whereas violent relationships in adolescence can have serious ramifications for 
        victims, putting such victims at higher risk for substance abuse, eating 
        disorders, risky sexual behavior, suicide, and adult revictimization;
Whereas being physically and sexually abused leaves teen girls up to 6 times 
        more likely to become pregnant and more than twice as likely to contract 
        a sexually transmitted disease;
Whereas nearly 3 in 4 ``tweens'', individuals who are between the ages of 11 and 
        14, report that dating relationships usually begin at age 14 or younger 
        and about 72 percent of eighth and ninth graders report ``dating'';
Whereas 1 in 5 tweens say that their friends are victims of dating violence, and 
        nearly half of tweens who are in relationships know friends who are 
        verbally abused;
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 dating 
        relationships of tweens;
Whereas teen dating abuse most often takes place in the home of 1 of the 
        partners;
Whereas according to Liz Claiborne's 2009 Parent/Teen Dating Violence Poll, 
        although 82 percent of parents are confident that they could recognize 
        the signs if their child was experiencing dating abuse, a majority of 
        parents (58 percent) could not correctly identify all the warning signs 
        of abuse;
Whereas 74 percent of teenage boys and 66 percent of teenage girls say that they 
        have not had a conversation with a parent about dating abuse in the past 
        year;
Whereas digital abuse and ``sexting'', or sending or receiving nude pictures of 
        other young people on a cellphone or on the Internet, is becoming a new 
        frontier for teen dating abuse;
Whereas according to a National Crime Prevention Council survey, 43 percent of 
        middle and high school students reported experiencing cyberbullying in 
        the past year;
Whereas 1 in 4 teens in a relationship say that they have been called names, 
        harassed, or put down by their partner through cellphones and texting;
Whereas according to a survey by The National Campaign, more than half of teen 
        girls say pressure from a boy is a reason girls send suggestive messages 
        or images, while only 18 percent of teen boys say pressure from a girl 
        is a reason for such behavior, and 12 percent of teen girls who have 
        sent suggestive messages or images say they felt ``pressured'' to do so;
Whereas according to a 2009 survey by Cox Communications, 19 percent of teens 
        revealed that they had been harassed, embarrassed, or threatened online 
        or by text message;
Whereas 3 in 10 young people have ``sexted'', and 61 percent of young people who 
        have ``sexted'' report being pressured to do so at least once;
Whereas targets of digital abuse are almost 3 times more likely to contemplate 
        suicide as those who have not encountered digital abuse, and targets of 
        digital abuse are nearly 3 times more likely to have considered dropping 
        out of school;
Whereas according to Liz Claiborne's 2010 College Dating Violence and Abuse 
        Poll, 63 percent of college students report having a college friend who 
        experienced violent and abusive dating behavior;
Whereas according to Liz Claiborne's 2010 College Dating Violence and Abuse 
        Poll, 41 percent of dating college students report experiencing violent 
        and abusive dating behaviors;
Whereas 65 percent of college students who were in an abusive relationship 
        failed to realize that they were in an abusive relationship, and 53 
        percent of such students said that no one helped them;
Whereas the severity of violence among intimate partners has been shown to be 
        greater in cases where the pattern of violence was established in 
        adolescence;
Whereas primary prevention programs are a key part of addressing teen dating 
        violence, and many successful examples of such programs include 
        education, community outreach, and social marketing campaigns that are 
        culturally appropriate;
Whereas skilled assessment and intervention programs are also necessary for 
        youth victims and abusers; and
Whereas the establishment of National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and 
        Prevention Month will benefit schools, communities, and families 
        regardless of socioeconomic status, race, or sex: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) designates the month of February 2011 as ``National 
        Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month'';
            (2) supports communities in empowering teens to develop 
        healthier relationships throughout their lives; and
            (3) calls upon the people of the United States, including 
        youth, parents, schools, law enforcement, State and local 
        officials, and interested groups to observe National Teen 
        Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month with appropriate 
        programs and activities that promote awareness and prevention 
        of teen dating violence in their communities.
                                 <all>