[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 17]
[Senate]
[Page 22253]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




      NATIONAL TEEN DATING VIOLENCE AWARENESS AND PREVENTION WEEK

  The resolution (S. Res. 621) designating the week of February 5 
through February 9, 2007, as ``National Teen Dating Violence Awareness 
and Prevention Week'' was considered and agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution (S. Res. 621), with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 621

       Whereas 1 in 3 female teens in a dating relationship have 
     feared for their physical safety;
       Whereas 1 in 2 teens in serious relationships have 
     compromised their beliefs to please their partner;
       Whereas nearly 1 in 5 teens who have been in a serious 
     relationship said their boyfriend or girlfriend would 
     threaten to hurt themselves or their partner if there was a 
     breakup;
       Whereas 1 in 5 teens in a serious relationship report they 
     have been hit, slapped, or pushed by a partner;
       Whereas more than 1 in 4 teens have been in a relationship 
     where their partner verbally abuses them;
       Whereas 13 percent of Hispanic teens reported that hitting 
     a partner was permissible;
       Whereas 29 percent of girls who have been in a relationship 
     said they have been pressured to have sex or engage in sex 
     they did not want;
       Whereas nearly 50 percent of girls worry that their partner 
     would break up with them if they did not agree to engage in 
     sex;
       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 who are 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 increase if the pattern has been 
     established in adolescence;
       Whereas 81 percent 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 the 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 5 through February 9, 
     2007, 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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