[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 41 (Monday, October 13, 2003)]
[Pages 1341-1345]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks on Domestic Violence Prevention

October 8, 2003

    President Bush. Thank you all for coming, and welcome to the White 
House. In a few moments, I will sign a proclamation naming October 
National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. I do so to focus attention 
on this urgent and very important issue. I will announce two initiatives 
we are launching to combat domestic violence in our country.
    A home, a family, should be a place of support, should be a peaceful 
place, not a place of cruelty and brutality. Domestic violence betrays 
the most basic duties of life. It violates the law. It's wrong. It is a 
crime that must be confronted by individuals, by communities, and by 
government.
    All of you here today have taken up the vital cause--the really 
important cause--of defending the vulnerable from domestic violence. Too 
often its victims suffer in secret and in silence. You make it easier 
for them to step out of the shadows and get the help and love they need. 
Your compassion is saving lives. Your country is grateful. Thank you for 
what you do.
    I appreciate Tommy Thompson being here. He's the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services. Many of the initiatives on family violence come from 
his Department. As Governor of Wisconsin, he made a name for dealing 
with domestic violence, and he's carried his passion, as have I, to 
Washington, DC, to help.
    I appreciate Jack Potter, who is the Postmaster General. There's a 
reason he is here. It has something to do with a stamp that I'll be 
describing here. [Laughter]
    I appreciate very much Diane Stuart, the Director of the Office of 
Violence Against Women, from the Department of Justice. Thank you for 
coming. Thank you for being a leader.
    We've got a special Senator here with us today, a person who flew 
all the way back from his home State of Colorado. He's here because he 
sponsored the legislation creating the Stop Family Violence stamp. I'm 
honored that you've come back, Senator Campbell. Ben Nighthorse Campbell 
is a compassionate, decent human being, and I'm proud to call him 
friend. Thanks for coming.
    I want to thank Sheryl Cates, who is the executive director of the 
National Domestic Violence Hotline and the Texas Council on Family 
Violence. She's on the stage with me. The hotline received its one 
millionth call in August. That's a lot of calls, but it's a lot of help 
as well. And I want to thank Sheryl for being here, my fellow Texan. 
[Laughter] Lynn Rosenthal is the executive director of the National 
Network to End Domestic Violence. Lynn is with us as well here. Thank 
you for coming. And Rita Smith, the executive director of the National 
Coalition Against Domestic Violence, is on the stage as well. These 
three women are leaders in the attempt to make somebody's life better, 
and I really appreciate you all coming.
    As well we've got Monique Blais who's with us today. Monique brought 
her mother, Marci, to the White House. [Laughter] The reason Monique is 
here is that she designed the artwork for the Stop Family Violence 
stamp. And I really appreciate your talents, and when people see the 
stamp, they'll--when I say ``talent,'' they'll know what I mean when I 
say ``talent,'' because it's really a great piece of work. We want to 
thank you for coming. And I want to thank you all for being here.
    Domestic violence cuts across every line of geography and income. 
Abuse is found in every community in our country--every community--and 
it must be fought in every community. Hundreds of thousands of incidents 
of domestic violence are reported every year. The sad news is, many go 
unreported. About a third of women murdered each year in America are 
killed by this type of violence, and nearly half the households

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where domestic violence occurs also has a child under 12 years old. 
There's more than one victim.
    Women and children are facing dangers in this country, and they need 
strong allies. That's what we're here to talk about. I'm not only here 
to thank you for being strong allies, I'm asking others around our 
country to work with the people here. There's plenty of opportunities 
for our fellow citizens to step forth and be a partner in helping save 
and heal lives.
    Fortunately, there are people, victims who can find help. That's the 
good news about America. The bad news is, there's too much domestic 
violence. The good news is, people can find help. Faith-based and 
community groups provide refuge and counseling and good legal advice. 
And a lot of time, an abused woman needs good, solid legal advice.
    Industry groups are recycling old cell phones. It's an interesting 
contribution, isn't it? They're saying, ``Here's an opportunity for you 
to be able to call to get help.''
    Lifetime television--I know some folks representing Lifetime 
television are here--is promoting domestic violence awareness in its 
programming and public service campaigns, and we thank you for that. 
Part of making sure that we help save lives is to educate people about 
the opportunities available.
    Business Strengthening America is a private organization of business 
leaders who are responding to a call I gave them earlier, after 
September the 11th. I said, ``Why don't you become an active 
participant, as responsible business leaders, in helping meet our 
society's needs?'' They've joined forces with the Corporate Alliance to 
End Partner Violence. Those two groups are working to raise awareness of 
the issues in the workplace, and as importantly, they're encouraging 
employees to become volunteers in the efforts to help those who have 
been abused.
    I want to thank the responsible corporate leaders in America for 
hearing the call that in a responsible society, you've got to behave 
responsibly yourself and encourage others to follow their heart.
    The fight against domestic violence is a national movement. I urge 
people to join the movement. Part of an awareness month is not only 
making people aware but a call to service. Today all of us up here are 
calling people to service, to serve your community and your country. If 
you want to love your neighbor like you'd like to be loved yourself, 
there's ample opportunity to do so in the fight against domestic 
violence.
    Our Government is engaged in the fight, as it should be. Government 
has got a duty to treat domestic violence as a serious crime. It's part 
of our duty. If you treat something as a serious crime, then there must 
be serious consequences. Otherwise, it's not very serious. Last year, 
Federal prosecutors for violence against women crimes increased--Federal 
prosecutions increased by 35 percent. Our prosecutors are doing their 
job. They're finding the abusers, and they're throwing the book at them. 
And that's important.
    People who commit crimes must understand with certainty, there is a 
consequence. One way to change behavior is to make it clear to people in 
our society, if you break the law, if you beat up a woman, if you abuse 
your wife, you will be held to account. There must be certainty in the 
law, and we must have prosecutors who understand that we expect them to 
be tough. And they are.
    The administration has also increased funding for Justice 
Department's Violence Against Women's programs by $100 million this 
year. We're now spending money at the highest levels in our Nation's 
history, and it's money well spent. Programs which help local 
communities combat domestic violence and sexual assault and stalking and 
helps the victims of those crimes are now funded at $390 million a year. 
And I want to thank Ben and the Members of the Congress for working to 
see that our appropriations request was met.
    I'm going to talk about two other measures that I think will help in 
the fight against domestic violence. First, I've directed $20 million in 
2004 to help communities create family justice centers, where victims of 
domestic violence can find the services they need in one place, one 
central location. Too often, the services designed to help victims are 
uncoordinated and scattered throughout communities.
    Imagine what it would be like if you were an abused person trying to 
find help, and you

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went from one place to another. With laws and police and all the rules 
and regulations of a free society, it must be confusing and 
disheartening. The victim has been so traumatized, and then she has to 
tell her story over and over again, which repeats the trauma. There's a 
better way to do this. There's a better way to help people who need help 
in our society.
    San Diego figured it out. They've got a city attorney named Casey 
Gwinn--who's right there--who recognized that there's a more 
compassionate way to help people who have been abused. And so he did 
something about it. He created what's called the San Diego Family 
Justice Center. It's a full-service center for domestic violence 
victims, where police officers and prosecutors and probation officers 
and civil attorneys and counselors and doctors and victims advocates and 
chaplains all come together to help somebody. The runaround is over in 
San Diego. There's a central location where somebody who desperately 
needs help can find compassion and help. Victims can pick up food 
vouchers. They can get help with transportation. They can file for a 
temporary restraining order against their abusers. They can sign up for 
supervised visitation programs to keep their children safe. They can get 
their cell phone there. They can find help.
    The San Diego Family Justice Center opened a year ago. It has 
already served thousands of victims. They tell me the story of Caitlin 
Effgen, who is a brave woman who lives in San Diego. It's probably, 
unfortunately, a typical story I'm about to tell you. What's atypical is 
that she found help in a brand new way of helping victims of domestic 
violence. Her boyfriend started hitting her. She tried to break up with 
him, and he began to stalk her. In other words, he was not only abusing 
her one way, he decided to abuse her another as well. And she went to 
the authorities and got a restraining order, which, as the experts will 
tell you, sometimes it works and sometimes it didn't, because in her 
case, the boyfriend continued to harass her, just wouldn't leave her 
alone. You can imagine the fear she felt. He pled guilty to charges, but 
he still stalked and haunted her mind.
    And then she discovered the center. They helped her get counseling. 
They got another restraining order. A victims advocate joined her and 
her dad in court. In other words, she got all the help she needed. I can 
imagine the relief that she must have felt when somebody who heard the 
call to love a neighbor did just that. The guy ended up in--behind bars, 
which was the right thing to do, and I congratulate the San Diego law 
enforcement officers. But more important, she got to remember what life 
was like without her misery. Those are her words, not mine. She found 
compassion.
    The funding I've set aside will help begin a national movement 
toward more of these centers. Twelve will be funded through this 
initiative. When they work, there's another twelve and maybe even more. 
Maybe we can escalate the request. But the point is, we have found what 
can work in order to provide efficient help, to channel the compassion 
so somebody can get their life back together. So I want to thank you for 
coming, Casey. Good job. You're doing your duty as a public servant.
    The second initiative will expand the good work of community and 
faith-based groups as they provide counseling and mentoring and other 
services to children who have witnessed domestic violence. The children 
who witness domestic violence are prone to depression and anxiety. 
That's natural. You could imagine what it would be like for a little 
child to witness such an act. They need help and love. We have a moral 
obligation in our society to help relieve the suffering and to show that 
there is a better life.
    I like to remind people, you know, that--I wish Government could 
make people love one another. I would sign the piece of legislation. 
[Laughter] But I know that there are loving people who are willing to 
love. It's a--by the way, a lot of times it's from a higher law; it's 
not the law of government. And so what we want to do is spend $5 
billion--$5 million this year on initiatives--[laughter]--a million 
here, a million there. [Laughter] Let's start small--what do you think--
[laughter]--to start an initiative called Safe and Bright Futures for 
Children. That's what we want to start. The Department of Health and 
Human Services will provide funding to

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community and faith-based groups to help children escape the cycle of 
violence, to get counseling, to get mentoring, to become involved in 
healthy activities like sports or scouting or community services.
    The money will support programs at sites all across America. We 
believe it will be--make a difference in lives. One such program is run 
by the Reverend Cheryle Albert, who is with us today. She works with 
Safe Haven Interfaith Partnership Against Domestic Violence in Boston, 
Massachusetts. Probably rooting for the Red Sox, aren't you? [Laughter] 
She teaches congregations about domestic violence. She helps train them 
to help troubled families through crisis intervention and counseling. 
Here's what she says: ``The power behind domestic violence is that it's 
a secret. We work with the faith community because we feel it's the best 
way to break the silence.''
    When men and women face violence and injustice, it is important for 
our Government to understand that oftentimes they turn to their churches 
or synagogues or mosques for help, as they should. These are places of 
love. They exist because of love. They are wise to do so, and our 
Government should not fear the faith-based programs which help save 
lives. Matter of fact, we ought to welcome the faith-based programs into 
helping people who suffer.
    Oftentimes, it requires faith to help heal a heart and to help bring 
a bright future into some child's life. This initiative welcomes the 
faith-based programs all across our society. This initiative takes 
taxpayers' money to encourage faith-based programs to become important 
partners in the fight against domestic violence.
    I am not the least bit hesitant to encourage our Government to use 
Federal tax money to rally the armies of compassion which exist in every 
society in America. We must not fear faith in America. We must welcome 
faith in America to help solve our problems.
    Now, to the stamp. And the stamp will be placed out in the hall; you 
can see it on the way out. The Safe and Bright Futures program will be 
supported by the sales of the stamp. There have been three such stamps. 
This is the third where the revenues collected from the sales of the 
stamps, designed by one of our Nation's budding artists--[laughter]--
will be--will use that money. And as I understand it, the stamp is for 
sale today? That's why the head of the Post Office is here. [Laughter]
    Audience member. Buy them.
    President Bush. Buy them? Well, and so anybody who wants to support 
effective programs in our fight against domestic violence ought to buy 
the stamp. The money goes to these programs, and it's a great way for 
people to use the mail and to express their desires to make their 
communities a better place.
    I want to thank you all for coming today. I want to thank you for 
your commitment. For those who are involved with saving lives, it's a 
hard job. It's got to be hard to provide a shoulder onto which someone 
can cry or a sympathetic ear for some child who wonders what their 
future is like. That can only be accomplished, however, when loving 
Americans hear the call. If any American is interested in serving, one 
good way to do so is to become involved in these programs that are 
saving lives as a result of the brutal crime of domestic violence.
    The strength of our country is not our military. It's not our 
wallet. The strength of our country is the heart and soul of the 
American people. And today I'm honored to be in the presence of 
Americans who serve your country and your community by helping people 
who have been hurt.
    May God bless your work. May God bless those who are victims of 
domestic violence. And may God continue to bless our country. Thank you.

Note: The President spoke at 3:13 p.m. in the East Room at the White 
House.

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