[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 18]
[House]
[Page 24304]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH

  (Mrs. CAPITO asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of declaring 
October National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
  Domestic violence encompasses all acts of violence against women 
within the context of a family or intimate relationships. It is an 
issue of increasing concern because it has a negative effect on all 
family members, especially the children.
  It is also leading cause of injury to women in the United States, 
where they are more likely to be assaulted, injured, raped or killed by 
a male partner than by any other type of assailant.
  During 1998, an average of two domestic homicides occurred in my 
State of West Virginia each month. Across the United States, it is 
estimated that as many as 4 million instances of domestic abuse against 
women occur yearly.
  We must fight this scourge. These statistics are devastating, but 
behind every statistic there is a face, a family, a woman, a child who 
is in a violent relationship and the children are trapped in these 
violent unstable homes living in fear.
  I am asking every Member of Congress to spread the word about 
domestic violence so we can help these women and children live a life 
free of fear. This epidemic is something in our communities that we 
need to be aware of, and October is a month to shine a light on the 
problem of domestic violence throughout our country.

                          ____________________