[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 12]
[House]
[Pages 16554-16555]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS

  (Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize 
October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Far too many families 
fall victim to domestic violence. In fact, one in four women will 
experience domestic violence at some point in their lives.
  I want to recognize and thank the organizations, their staff, and 
their volunteers across my district for what they do to help victims of 
domestic violence.
  To cite just one example, Mr. Speaker, last week the Berks Women in 
Crisis held their annual Silent Witness Project march and ceremony to 
honor and remember victims lost. A group of about 75 people marched 
from the Berks Women in Crisis center to the Reading Area Community 
College, carrying 25 red silhouettes of women, men, and children killed 
due to domestic violence. Each cutout held a brass shield with the 
summary of that victim's story.
  By spreading awareness of these horrors of domestic violence and 
encouraging victims to speak up, we can and must help reduce the number 
of women victimized.

[[Page 16555]]

  I applaud the efforts of this annual ceremony and march and want to 
let them know that their work is recognized by the community. Indeed, 
the work of all the organizations, their staff, and volunteers is 
critical.

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