[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]

 
                           DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

  (Mr. MENENDEZ asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call attention to the 
growing problem of domestic abuse.
  At the Federal level, we have taken many important steps to reduce 
domestic violence, including passage of the Violence Against Women Act, 
but we must also commit ourselves to increasing public awareness of 
this problem at the community level. In my home State, the New Jersey 
Coalition for Battered Women has worked diligently over the last 15 
years providing support services to abuse victims and their children. 
Although the coalition runs 22 shelters, tragically it is not enough. 
In the last year, there has been a 44-percent increase in the number of 
women and children who had to be turned away from shelters because 
there was no room for them.
  Physical and mental abuse in the home has shattered the lives of 
thousands of women and left many children victims as well.
  On this national day of remembrance for victims of domestic abuse, we 
renew our commitment to ending domestic violence and look forward to 
the day when our shelters stand empty.

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