[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 161 (Wednesday, October 18, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S15283-S15284]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 WE MUST END THE CYCLE OF VIOLENCE IN AMERICA AND MAKE EVERY HOME SAFE

  Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, I know we are about to go into recess, 
and I thank my colleagues for their graciousness. I appreciate this 
time. I come before the Senate to underscore my commitment to ending 
domestic violence in America. As I have said on the floor before, every 
time a person in my State of Minnesota dies at the hand of an abuser, I 
will make sure that their story becomes a part of the Congressional 
Record.
  As my colleagues know, October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. 
It is a month that is designated to raise awareness about domestic 
violence. In addition, the YWCA has designated this week as their call 
for a ``Week Without Violence.'' Today, in particular, their efforts 
will focus on confronting violence against women. So, Mr. President, it 
is for this reason that I have chosen this special day to come to the 
floor of the Senate to make this statement.
  It is with some sadness, pain, and anger that I will read the names 
of five Minnesota women and one Minnesota child who were apparently 
killed at the hands of someone they knew. The circumstances are 
described in the record compiled by the Minnesota Coalition for 
Battered Women. Mr. President, I must state at the onset that none of 
the people charged in these murders has been convicted yet. Therefore, 
I will not use the victims' real names.
  I come to the floor of the Senate to describe these cases so that we 
will remember how deeply this violence scars our society. And most 
importantly, as a reaffirmation of any commitment--and I hope the 
commitment of all of my colleagues, Democrats and Republicans alike--to 
work toward ending the cycle of violence. Indeed, Mr. President, if we 
are ever going to stop the violence in our communities, in our 
workplaces, and in our streets, we are going to have to begin by 
stopping violence in our homes.
  Mr. President, domestic violence continues to be the single most 
significant cause of injury to women in the United States of America. 
Yet, this violence knows no boundaries of age, or gender, or race, or 
geography, or income, or education. The violence goes on year after 
year and generation after generation. A study by the Office of Juvenile 
Justice and Delinquency Prevention at the Department of Justice found 
that mistreated youngsters who grow up in violent homes were twice as 
likely to commit brutal crimes as were children from nonviolent homes. 
Not surprising. If you grow up in brutal circumstances, that can very 
well make you brutal.
  In Minnesota, in 1994, at least 19 women and 7 children were brutally 
killed by a spouse, a former partner, or someone they knew. So it is 
with pain, but also with great determination, I ask that we honor the 
memory of individuals who apparently died as a result of domestic 
violence. We should be mindful of the fact that these women could be 
your friends, they could be your neighbors, they could be your 
coworkers, they could be your sisters, they could be your mothers, they 
could be your wives.
  It is from my heart that I ask that we end this kind of violence, 
that we do everything we can to end this kind of violence that has such 
a painful cost for individuals, their families, and their communities.
  Individuals: Sue, 31. A sheriff's deputy found the bodies of her and 
her ex-husband in a bed in their home. Authorities had no doubt the 
homicides were murder-suicide, and believe her ex-husband shot her as 
she slept, and then shot himself. Both were wearing nightclothes, and a 
single-shot, 12-gauge shotgun was found by the side of the bed.
  Joyce, age 27. She and her boyfriend were found dead in the apartment 
they shared. The police said that the boyfriend apparently shot her and 
then turned the gun on himself. A shotgun was found near the bodies.
  Marie, 30. She was found dead from stab wounds. Her husband was 
arrested and charged with second-degree murder.
  Deborah, age 51. She was found buried in a wilderness area. Her son 
was charged with first-degree murder in the strangulation death of his 
mother. He admitted to killing her because she did not like his 
girlfriend. He said he strangled his mother with the power cord of his 
radio, and then put her body in the trunk of the car and drove to the 
wilderness area and buried her.
  Carol, age 40. Her 6-year-old son reported that she and her boyfriend 
were seated on the couch and fighting. Her boyfriend had a rifle 
pointed at her head and told her he would kill her if she contacted the 
police. She then reportedly said, ``Go ahead.'' And her son 

[[Page S 15284]]
said he then heard two shots. The boyfriend has been charged with 
second-degree murder.
  Anne, age 3. She died after being stabbed in the head. Her stepfather 
has been charged with first-degree murder in her death and attempted 
murder and second-degree assault in the stabbing of his wife. The 
details of her death are too gruesome to talk about on the floor of the 
Senate.
  Mr. President, these are the recent cases of victims only in 
Minnesota, and only those that have been documented and well-
publicized. Looking at the national statistics, I know there must be 
many more cases that go unreported.
  An American Medical Association report cites some horrifying 
statistics: Nearly one quarter of the women in the United States of 
America--more than 12 million--will be abused by a current or former 
partner sometime during their lives--one quarter of the women in the 
United States of America; 47 percent of husbands who beat their wives 
do so three or more times a year; according to FBI statistics, at least 
30 percent of murdered women are killed by their intimate male partner; 
every 13 seconds, a child in the United States of America is reported 
abused or neglected; and more than three children--more than three 
children--die each day in the United States as a result of abuse or 
neglect.
  Mr. President, we can no longer stand by and say it is someone else's 
problem. What are we waiting for? Too many have spoken with their 
voices and with their lives, and this violence must end.
  Last year, the Congress passed new laws to protect victims and to 
prevent violence. Senator Biden has taken a major leadership role in 
helping to pass the Violence Against Women Act.
  The first comprehensive piece of legislation on the subject of 
violence against women was milestone legislation for this Congress and 
for this Nation. We all must continue to fight any efforts to weaken 
the crime bill, including efforts to scale back the Violence Against 
Women Act or the funding for it.
  Mr. President, domestic violence is also a critical issue to me when 
we talk about reforming the welfare system.
  I said on the floor before, it took Monica Seles 2 years to play 
tennis again after being stabbed. Can you imagine what it would be like 
if you were beaten over and over and over again?
  We must make sure that States have the option to give exemptions to 
women who have been beaten or children who have experienced this. They 
may not be able to work in 2 years. The last thing you want to do is 
cut them off of assistance and give them no other choice but to go back 
into very dangerous homes.
  There is much to be done. We must be a voice for the victims; the 
women, the men, and the children who live in fear every moment of their 
lives, never knowing when the abuse will come or how lethal the next 
attack will be.
  We must be unrelenting in our campaign to say as Senators what my 
wife Sheila says wherever she goes in Minnesota: We will not tolerate 
the violence; we will not ignore the violence; and we will no longer 
say it is someone else's responsibility.
  I urge all of my colleagues to work with the survivors, the 
advocates, the medical professionals, the justice systems in our 
States, and to support full community funding and full community 
involvement in ending this violence. I urge my colleagues to work with 
passion and conviction to make this a priority of our work in the U.S. 
Senate. We must do everything we can to make homes the safest places 
that they can be.
  I yield the floor. I thank my colleague from North Carolina for 
giving me this opportunity.

                          ____________________