[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 142 (Tuesday, October 4, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 4, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
       NATIONAL DAY OF REMEMBRANCE FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC ABUSE

  (Mr. PRICE of North Carolina asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PRICE of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition 
of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month and in honor of this 
National Day of Remembrance for victims of domestic abuse and their 
families. Domestic violence is the largest single cause of injury to 
women in the United States, forcing more than 1.5 million women to seek 
medical treatment each year. Spouse abuse accounts for more visits to 
hospital emergency rooms than car crashes, muggings, and rape combined, 
and the annual costs for medical care amount to an incredible $44 
million.
  Unfortunately, North Carolina has not escaped this dreadful epidemic. 
In one month alone, the Orange-Durham Coalition for Battered Women 
received 155 calls from battered women in the two counties, and Annette 
Sheppard, the director of Advocacy and Community Education at the 
Coalition, has testified that in 1993, ``on an average night, 400 women 
and children sought refuge at a battered women's shelter somewhere in 
our State.'' No community is immune, and none of us can afford to stand 
by idly as violence engulfs our communities.
  Americans are awakening to the threat of crime and violence and 
forcing responses at all government levels. Fortunately, the Federal 
government is now doing more to support the foot soldiers in this 
battle. The Violence Against Women Act, which is included in the anti-
crime bill signed by the President, will provide support to local 
governments to encourage aggressive enforcement and prosecution in 
domestic violence cases and will make stalking and interstate domestic 
violence Federal crimes. The bill provides support for rape prevention 
programs and creates a National Task Force on Violence Against Women. 
Overall, the bill authorizes $1.6 billion over 6 years to fight 
violence against women.
  As a member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on the Departments of 
Commerce, Justice and State, I am pleased that we have appropriated for 
fiscal year 1995 the full $26 million for violence-against-women grants 
authorized by the crime bill--quite an achievement in light of our 
current budget constraints.
  Awareness alone won't solve the problem. We must provide real help 
for organizations like the Orange-Durham Coalition, and Federal grants 
that enable groups to provide training and other services are real 
help.
  Let me conclude by saying that there are no single or simple 
solutions. And the strategies we invoke must not be merely or even 
mainly governmental. Much of the problem is rooted in the erosion of 
personal responsibility, the breakdown of families, and the 
deterioration of community life. Each of us can contribute to the task 
of renewal. That is why lawmakers' insistence on sound policies that 
protect and assist victims, law enforcers' steadfastness in punishing 
perpetrators, advocates' commitment to providing counsel and much 
needed services, and health professionals' willingness to broaden their 
sphere of responsibility are so heartening. Together, we can undertake 
the varied efforts required to turn this threat around.

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