[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 29, Number 43 (Monday, November 1, 1993)]
[Page 2198]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 6619--National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, 1993 and 
1994

 October 28, 1993

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    Home should be a place of warmth, unconditional love, tranquility, 
and security. And for most of us, home and family can, indeed, be 
counted among our greatest blessings. Tragically, for many Americans, 
these are blessings that are tarnished by violence and fear.
    Domestic violence is more than the occasional family dispute. 
According to the Department of Health and Human Services, it is the 
single largest cause of injury to American women, affecting six million 
of all racial, cultural, and economic backgrounds.
    In our country, a woman is battered every 15 seconds, and 40 percent 
of female homicide victims in 1991 were killed by their husbands or 
boyfriends. Yet unbelievably, more than half of women in need of shelter 
may be turned away due to a lack of space.
    Women are not the only targets. Young children and the elderly are 
also counted among the victims, and sadly, emotional scars are often 
permanent.
    A coalition of organizations has emerged to directly confront this 
crisis. Law enforcement officials, those involved with shelters and 
hotline services, health care providers, the clergy, and other concerned 
citizens are helping in the effort to end domestic violence. We must 
recognize the compassion and dedication of these volunteers and 
professionals, applaud their efforts, and increase public understanding 
of this important problem.
    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the 
Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 
1993 and October 1994 as National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. I 
urge all Americans to observe these months by becoming more aware of the 
tragedy of domestic violence, supporting those who are working toward 
its end, and participating in other appropriate efforts.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-eighth 
day of October, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-
three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two 
hundred and eighteenth.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 3:06 p.m., October 28, 
1993]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on 
November 1.