[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 177 (Thursday, November 20, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10751-S10752]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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   SENATE RESOLUTION 710--DESIGNATING THE WEEK OF FEBRUARY 2 THROUGH 
  FEBRUARY 6, 2009, AS ``NATIONAL TEEN DATING VIOLENCE AWARENESS AND 
                           PREVENTION WEEK''

  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:

                              S. Res. 710

       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

[[Page S10752]]

     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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