For several years, many music fans and critics alike have speculated that Kelly Rowland was/is jealous of her more successful band mate Beyoncé Knowles. On May 15, Rowland confirmed this in the first verse of her new single, “Dirty Laundry,” that there was a time that she envied Beyoncé’s solo success. She sings, “when my sister was on stage, killin’ it like a (expletive)/ I was enraged, feelin’ it like a (expletive)/ Bird in a cage, you would never know what I was dealing with/ Went our separate ways, but I was happy she was killin’ it/ Bittersweet, she was up, I was down…”

While there may have been a time that critics would have reveled in such a confession, a much more harrowing revelation came as the song played out. In the second and third verses Rowland revealed a dark secret that she had been holding onto: she had been in an abusive relationship for many years.

Rowland sings, “this (expletive) puttin’ his hands on me…I was battered, he hit in a window like it was me until it shattered/ He pulled me out, he said ‘Don’t nobody love you but me / Not your mama, not your daddy and especially not Bey.’”

While Rowland and Knowles have since rekindled and strengthened the bond between them, the abuse is still a sensitive subject for the former. “It was very emotional. It took me days to record,” Rowland said in an exclusive interview with Billboard. “I had to get past being so upset and actually sing the song, not sob through it. I always hope that my music can inspire someone, the same way other artists inspire me.”

Since the song’s premiere, many fans of Destiny’s Child have made a connection to one of DC3’s last songs as a group, “Girl.” In this song the trio sings to a friend who has been going through a hard time in a relationship. In the first verse Beyonce sings, “in your face I can see the pain, don’t you try to convince us that you’re happy./ We’ve seen this all before, But he’s taking advantage of the passion/Because we’ve come too far for you to feel alone, you don’t let him walk over your heart.” In the accompanying video, the member that was being sang to was none other than Rowland. Fans flocked to YouTube and other social media outlets to express shock and sadness as well as admiration for Rowland’s willingness to share her traumatic ordeal with them.

While no one knows for sure who the man that Rowland was referring to is, her ex-fiance, NFL player Roy Williams, assured her fans and his as well that he was not the abuser. “So Kelly has a new song. Called #DirtyLaundry.. & what ever she’s saying in it ppl thinks it’s me. #wow #imnottheonlypersonshedated #wasntme,” he tweeted.

While the speculation of which ex is guilty of abusing the songstress continues, fans can focus their attention on “Talk a Good Game,” Rowland’s fourth studio album led by “Kisses Down Low,” which will arrive in stores on June 18.

Image credit: Kelly Rowland on Instagram

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Rape, domestic violence, abuse, sex-slave, child-marriage, dowry, prostitution – The first word that many associate with these concepts is ‘women’. For centuries, women all over the world have been subjected to oppression and till date, despite their achievements and contribution to society, a lot of women do not get justice. In a country like Saudi Arabia, women are not allowed to drive; in the South East Asia, young girls are forced to marry at an early age; and women are killed in many parts of the world by so-called ‘honor killings’. Women are victims of violence by both society and their families, and many of their stories go unheard.

Connecther and Harvard College Social Innovation Collaborative (SIC) this year present Girls Impact World The Film Festival 2013, where high school and undergraduate university students submit 3-5 minutes long short films that address global women’s issues such as: education for girls, maternal health, violence against women and girls among others. This will bring into light many issues and stories of women who are deprived of protection and other privileges.

Azmina Karim, a Bangladeshi undergraduate student from Asian University for Women majoring in Asian Development Studies, made a film which focuses on the violence on women in rural parts of Bangladesh. To watch the video click here

Toonari Post(TP): When did you decide to make this documentary about violence on women in Bangladesh?

Azmina Karim(AK): When I heard of Girls Impact the world film festival, I chose to portray ’violence against women’ in order to raise awareness about this topic. Girls Impact the world is a platform where women can speak for themselves and other women, where we can express that as women we need a safe place in the world to live and it is our right to speak up.

TP: Even though Bangladesh is developing, most people are still old-fashioned and traditional minded, how did you find the courage to take such an initiative? Did you face any difficulties (from government/society/family etc) while filming?

AK: Though Bangladesh is developing, the position of women in a patriarchal society is hard to change. Women are still objectified and thought as submissive to men. The notion of patriarchy has seeped into the psyche of men as well as women.

Women in our society take it as their fate, or some even think of it as their duty, to lock themselves into these modern day slavery practices in their very own homes. While filming, I particularly didn’t face difficulties from government or other social institutions. Maybe because these interviews were not taken in a larger scale to trigger any provocations. However, it was difficult to convince the battered and deprived women to share their stories as they were reluctant to speak up.

I discovered many were scared that we may take legal actions and many other women like Sonia Akhter, thought it was pointless to talk about this. Sonia Akhter shed some light on this topic when she mentioned, that prior to her interview with me, she shared her story to a news reporter and the news organization sent her back to her husband. This caused her husband to increase the level of torture because she’d seeked help from others. There is an underlying fear among these women that sharing their stories won’t bring any changes in their lives but rather make it worse.

Moreover, the notion of patriarchy legitimizes the violence against women in our society, so the women themselves accept that it is normal to be beaten by her husband or any male member of their family. Thus they don’t speak up.

I didn’t face any problem from my family in general while making these interviews, they were supportive, one of the reason being that I don’t have any brothers. My parents raised us four sisters by giving us the equal rights that they might have given to their sons.

TP: Have you received enough support from family/friends and/or other organizations?

AK: I didn’t work under any organization while making these interviews. My family members supported me; they even escorted me to different slums to cover the stories.

TP: What was your main inspiration for the film?

AK: Inspiration for covering this topic or even participating in this competition came from the latest incidents that took place around the world. The way women are being raped, the number of deaths due to domestic violence etc. – they made me want to speak up against male dominance.

TP: Have you seen domestic violence in your family or among your friends, where the woman got pressured to not report the case?

I grew up in a different environment where you can challenge the traditional structure of the society. My parents gave me and my other three sisters the opportunity to get education, and freedom so that we can choose our path and discern what is right from wrong.

However, living in Bangladesh the case of domestic violence is so obvious that almost every day we encounter stories of this kind of violence, be it from neighbours, stories of relatives, stories from friends and also in newspapers and tv channels. Most of these stories remain unheard, these women do not have any means to report these cases.

We don’t have strict laws against these violent acts, nor do we have good policies to support the women who fight for their right. Also the state does not provide shelters or protection so when violence happens, these women have nowhere to go. Nor do their family members support them in this case. The result in most of these cases is then that they go unreported, leading to only one option – living with their male partners, even if they are tortured all their life.

TP: What do you hope to achieve by your film?

AK: I hope to raise awareness and to prove a point that it’s about time we all get a safe place to live. I want to create collective identity for women, by sharing their stories and say it’s okay to speak up. I hope to get justice for women like Sonia Akhter and many others. I want to give a voice to women like her.

TP: Are you involved in any activities, such as protesting or rallying, to spread your message to the public in Bangladesh?

AK: No, I am not involved in any protest or rally as such because we haven’t had any such movements lately. So far, Girls Impact the film festival is the only platform that I have used to raise public awareness about these topics. Moreover, this documentary has been widely shared on Facebook and Twitter, so I hope people get the message that we, as women, have had enough of these prejudices against us for being born as a woman. We want to stop the occurrence of violence as a regular practice of a male dominated society. I firmly believe initiatives like mine will bring some positive change in our society.

TP: Do you think the women of newer generations also suffer from domestic violence?

AK: Women all over suffer from domestic violence of some sort, be they educated, working,  from rich backgrounds or part of the new generation – they can all potentially fall victim to such acts. The dominance in society over female populations is still quite the same towards generations of educated, working class people. Even though these women might be educated and open minded, the structure of society did not change, neither did the mindset of their family often.

TP: What measures do you think the public or government should take regarding domestic violence?

AK: Gender studies should be included in the national curriculum. Women need to be made aware of their rights and feel free to share their problems. Often when NGOs intervene in domestic affairs, they tend to solve the problem from their perspective and make decisions from their points of view (the top-down approach). I think they should rather take measures based on what the victims really want.

TP: In your opinion, what is the solution to eradicate domestic violence in Bangladesh?

AK: There is no particular solution. Through a single initiative, we can’t remove it from our society. We have to create awareness step by step, not just from person to person, but through government. The social institutions or NGOs should step forward to ensure justice for the victimized women, our social structure should provide equal rights. Even the victims should be mentally prepared to make initiatives for themselves so others can help them too.

TP: Did Sonia Akhter get justice in the end?

AK: No. We could not take any action against her husband because Sonia Akhter herself resisted from taking any action, she wants to wait for her husband and hopes one day he will come back.

TP: What would you like to say to all those women who are subjected to domestic violence today?

AK: Speak up! That’s the only phrase I would like to emphasize. They have a huge responsibility, if they don’t speak up for themselves, then we will be left with a society where their daughters and granddaughter will undergo the same acts of violence. Because nobody dared to speak up for their rights.

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When one thinks of a mother’s relationship with her son, one thinks of being a role model, providing unconditional love, helping him through school, and attending extracurricular activities. For mothers who have been separated from their sons for a long time, once reunited, usually try to do all of those things in efforts to make up for time lost.

While that is the case with Mistie Rebecca Atkinson, 32, resident of Napa County in California, and her sixteen-year-old son, the relationship between the mother and son took a sick and twisted turn, which involved incest.

Atkinson claims that this is not a case of incest but instead a case of “genetic attraction.” According to MailOnline, “She was found in a Ukiah, California motel room with the 16-year-old boy, who had recorded his mother giving him oral sex on his phone.” Also recorded on her son’s phone was the two of them having sexual intercourse.

Atkinson, who had not seen her son since he was only one-year-old, after losing custody rights to him, tracked him down on the social networking site, Facebook. Soon thereafter, she began texting him nude photographs of herself. While Atkinson and her son had no contact for 15 years, the son claims he was aware that she was in fact his mother.

According to police reports, Atkinson began her intimate relationship with her son after several domestic violence reports were filed against her at the time by a live-in boyfriend.

The son and mother were then found in the motel room on March 2, 2012.

Yet Atkinson sees nothing wrong with her behavior. She wrote a letter to the court in Napa County stating, “I don’t feel like I should have the charge of incest because there is something called genetic attraction that is a very powerful [phenomenon] that happens to 50 [per cent] of people becoming reunited with a long-lost relative,” she wrote.

DailyMail described genetic sexual attraction as “a phenomenon where close biological family members, such as siblings or cousins, become attracted to each other when they meet as adults. If family members do not know each other during the critical years of development, they risk finding each other attractive. Little research has been carried out into the phenomenon but some psychologists claim it exists due to shared personality traits, which are desirable in a partner. GSA is rare between people brought up together, due to reverse sexual printing, where people become desensitized to finding family members attractive to prevent inbreeding.”

In May Atkinson pleaded no contest to incest, oral sex with a minor and obscene contact with a minor.

She was found guilty on all counts and was sentenced to four years and eight months in prison, and will serve her time behind bars in Napa, California.

She can get out in half the time with good behavior.

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Harrisburg, U.S.A - In its first year, Direct Energy and The Patriot-News’ 2012 Harrisburg Volunteer Citizen of the Year award is honoring Nancy Chavez of Camp Hill, PA. Chavez founded “Randi’s Race: A 5K Run and Walk for Courage” in honor of her beloved daughter, Randi, who was tragically murdered in 2005 as a result of domestic violence. Chavez, a survivor of domestic violence herself, has since then devoted her life to raising money, creating awareness and speaking on behalf of victims of domestic violence.

Since its inception, Randi’s Race has raised over $245,000 for Domestic Violence Services in Cumberland and Perry Counties. All proceeds go to providing counseling, emergency shelters, and legal advocacy and outreach programs for domestic violence victims.

Most recently, some of those proceeds have helped to fundraise for Chavez’s newest endeavor: Randi’s House of Angels. Chavez created Randi’s House of Angels in 2011 not only to help cope with her own healing, but to provide a healing place for others that are victims of or exposed to domestic violence. Randi’s House of Angels offers support, therapy and counseling to victims.

In February of 2007, Chavez formed a group called “Restoring Our Souls” (ROS), a support group for mothers and other family members that have lost a loved one to domestic violence. ROS is the first group of its kind in Harrisburg and Chavez uses her own personal experience to help others cope with their loss.

Continuing her crusade against domestic violence, she also established Randi’s Camp for Hope, an organization specifically for children that are affected by domestic violence in their homes. Through educational, interpersonal and fun activities, children engage in activities designed to increase their self-esteem, self-concept and confidence in their own abilities. Randi’s Camp of Hope empowers children to believe that their thoughts, feelings and actions are important, worthy of expression and that they are valuable contributors to the whole family unit.

By winning the Harrisburg Volunteer Citizen of the Year Award, Nancy will receive a $1,000 cash prize and a $5,000 donation to Randi’s House of Angels. The donation will be used to hire licensed therapists that specialize in working with children who are victims of domestic violence or have had a family member murdered as a result of domestic violence. Additionally, for adult victims, attorneys will be hired to provide legal representation in custody and divorce hearings.

“Nancy has been through a horrific tragedy that no parent should ever have to face. Her perseverance to overcome and honor her daughter’s memory and help her community is truly remarkable,” said Cory Byzewski, Vice President and General Manager for Direct Energy US North Residential.

Lee Carlson, General Manager for the Patriot-News said, “We received a lot of outstanding nominations and they were all very admirable but Nancy’s story about how she is using her heartbreak to help others is nothing short of amazing. We are honored to be able to help her in her campaign to end domestic violence.”

A special event honoring Nancy Chavez will be held at the Pennsylvania State Capitol Building Rotunda on Monday, June 4, 2012.

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Recently, a young woman named Morgan Myers was tragically stabbed to death in a parking lot in the town of Rapid City, SD. Her alleged attacker, Michael Young, was a former boyfriend. The Rapid City Journal recently reported that Myers had placed a restraining order against Young after a domestic dispute.

This event, while horrific in itself, highlights just how dangerous domestic violence can get. Even though this particular event occurred in a very public setting, violence between domestic partners and former lovers happens all too often behind closed doors. Many times the violence continues on in silence until it is too late, and the worst happens.

Those that commit these violent acts are often charming or well-meaning individuals who do not initially intend to hurt their victims, and it is this fact that often leads to the recipients of this type of violence not realizing just how dangerous this person is that they are in contact with. In this case, Young took several steps to ensure her safety. She filed a restraining order against him, and tried to remove herself from danger, but that still did not prevent her untimely death.

With the clarity of hindsight it can be easy to point out the additional steps she could have taken to protect herself, but the truth is that she thought that she had done enough. Her story highlights the limits of restraining orders in ensuring one’s safety. It is simply not feasible for the police to conduct 24 hour protection for everyone who files a restraining order against another individual.

But this does not mean that nothing can be done. One thing is to just never be alone. Even if it’s just a short trip to the gas station, always have another adult with you who can be a second set of eyes to keep watch. He or she can also act to discourage any unwanted contact. This can be a hassle, or just not logistically possible, depending on if there is someone who has the time to always be around.

If you are alone and someone comes to you that you have a restraining order against make sure to alert bystanders by screaming for help or run away. Don’t assume being in public will make you safe. If you need to get a restraining order, remember that if you see the person, don’t delay in removing yourself from that location or even calling the police for help.

It can be very helpful to carry some type of weapon for self defense. There are a wide variety of weapons that can be effective such as mace which is best for those not familiar with other types of weapons, although a stun gun can be effective as well. Self defense courses can also prove essential; If you lose your weapon or it gets knocked from your hand, you are not defenseless. It can also help to increase your confidence and encourage those who are concerned about the consequences of leaving their abuser to file a no contact order.

Unfortunately, people often take restraining orders for granted, thinking it is all that is needed to keep them from dangerous situations. A tragedy like that which struck Morgan Myers, while horrible, helps to remind us of the dangers in the world and the things that we can do to try prevent it from happening again.

Whatever reasoning Young might have had is not yet clear, but one thing is certain. This tragic event has inspired those who knew Myers, and the community at large, to rally together and support her young family that she was forced to leave behind, as well as honor the memory of a young woman whose friendly personality touched those around her in her community.

A memorial fund has been set up for anyone wishing to donate to Morgan Myer’s family. Contributions to this fund can be made at any Great Western Bank or Black Hills Federal Credit Union.

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On April 17^th, Johanna Orozco, an advocate for the prevention of dating violence, spoke to high school students at Salem Senior High School in Salem, Ohio. Orozco addressed warning signs to look out for, which could indicate an abusive relationship, and gave an in-depth, detailed and compelling story of her very own experience with dating violence.

Orozco has witnessed first hand and  knows all too well what a violent, volatile and abusive relationship can do to someone.

Her first love started out like most others. At the beginning, it seemed like a fairy tale come true. Orozco met her first love, Juan Ruiz, when they were kids, and started dating when Orozco was in the tenth grade. “They were the ideal couple. Everyone wanted to be like Johanna and Juan,” said Lincoln West High School drama club supervisor Catherine Zak. “They were outgoing, personable and very much in love.”

However, their relationship made a drastic turn for the worse when Ruiz grew controlling, jealous and abusive. When Orozco removed pictures of them together, Ruiz snuck into her bedroom in the middle of the night and raped her at knifepoint. After authorities were contacted, Ruiz was arrested.

According to ABC News, “Ruiz was released from the detention center and placed on house arrest when he visited Orozco March 5, 2007. While she was sitting in the driver’s seat of her SUV in her grandparents’ driveway, he shot his former girlfriend in the face. Glass and blood covered the floor of the vehicle. Orozco was rushed to the hospital.”

After Orozco was shot, “she was missing her entire chin, most of her neck and her upper lip.” She also lost almost all of her teeth in the attack and now suffers from paralysis of her lower lip. Her surgeon, Dr. Michael Fritz, performed over a dozen procedures in order to get Orozco’s face to look as much as possible like she did before the shotgun blast. In order to see Orozco’s transformation please visit, http://abcnews.go.com/2020/slideshow?id=8762450.

After she was released from the hospital, Orozco went back to high school and even attended prom and graduation. Her original plans were to go to college, but after all that she had endured and the support in letters, e-mails and cards from people all over the country, she had a change of heart and decided she wanted to become an advocate to help young people learn the dangers of abusive relationships. And despite all she has endured at the age of just 23, she is moving forward and speaking out, telling her inspirational story of perseverance, strength and courage.

Orozco is now very active in the Cleveland region where she was raised, and speaks at engagements regularly to spread the word about dating violence. Since her tragedy, laws have been passed in the state of Ohio in order to further protect victims of abusive relationships. In 2010, the Ohio Senate approved a bill that allows judges to protect teens in abusive relationships.

As for Ruiz, he pleaded guilty for everything he had done to Orozco in 2007 and was sentenced to 27 years in prison without the eligibility for parole.

According to the book, “Dating Violence Against Adolescent Girls and Associated Substance Use, Unhealthy Weight Control, Sexual Risk Behavior, Pregnancy, and Sociality,” one in five female high school students report being physically and/or sexually abused by a dating partner. And according to the Alabama Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 30% to 50% of female high school students have reported some form of teen dating violence. But what about the teenagers who aren’t reporting what’s happening to them?

Whether you have been a victim of an abusive relationship or not, it is increasingly important to raise awareness about what is happening to the youth of today’s society. To learn more statistics about dating violence amongst teenagers, warning signs to look out for and how to be safer and smarter when it comes to dating, be sure to check out www.acadv.org. If you feel that you are at risk, please contact the domestic violence hotline at 1-800-650-6522.

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CADVA is teaming up with NYU Operation Dreamcatchers for an empowerment session with an art exhibit depicting domestic violence: ”Taking Domestic Violence Beyond the Social and Traditional Expectations of the Caribbean-American Community.”

It’s Part I in this series themed: ”REFLECTIONS; FACES OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE .”This interactive session was embraced by other Caribbean Communities recently featuring the work of renounced Guyanese Artist, Carl Anderson.

February 25, 2012 marked the historic launching of  CADVA, INC. in Orlando, Florida, USA. Caribbean American Domestic Violence Awareness is a registered organization in the State of Florida, United States.

CADVA’s Goal: Leave a legacy and a roadmap behind for any one person who thinks he or she cannot make a difference.

CADVA’s Vision: “When Victims have no more strength, CADVA will be their strength. When they have been silenced, CADVA will be their voice. When they have been made to feel worthless, CADVA will transform them into priceless gems”

Work began long before the formal launch under Break the Silence, Say No to Violence, a message coined by Dianne Madray. This organization encourages, facilitates and teaches those having knowledge of abuse to speak up through the processes of empowerment, how to react when witnessing abuse and taking each peculiar circumstance into consideration. CADVA guides victims to make choices best suited for their own particular circumstances. CADVA brings ‘grass roots’ open discussion sessions to targeted communities.

CADVA was founded by a survivor, Sukree Boodram, author of Breakout: Surviving Abuse and Alcoholism. This is My Story. See more on her story at: www.sukreeboodram.com.

Launch venue as follows:

Location: 
The Kimmel Center
60 Washington Square South
Room 914
NYC, NY 10012
April 9, 2012 6-8pm

Event Organizer: 
Melissa Bhikham 347-837-1010
mab718@nyu.edu
New York University
Founder & President, NYU Operation Dreamcatchers

CADVA launched in Orlando, Florida and Guyana, South America this year.  Refer to www.cadva.org for more information and how to help support Caribbean-American first Domestic Violence Organization.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Email:           help@cadva.org
US Phone#:  (407)-404-0331 Sukree Boodram, Founder and President
US Phone#:  (917)-399-5764 Dianne Madray, Chief Operations Officer/Program Director
Website:       www.cadva.org
Facebook:    CADVA (Caribbean American Domestic Violence Awareness)
Twitter:         CADVA

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It looks as if women’s rights are the hot button on the political landscape this year. There was fighting at the contraception mandate front, as well as over the efforts in Virginia and Ohio to force ultrasounds before an abortion, even in cases of rape or incest.

A measure in February attempted to cut off all financial aid to Planned Parenthood. Something that would seem to be more clear-cut than the previous legislations, The Violence Against Women Act, is up for renewal, and some provisions within the act are putting Republicans in an even greater quandary than they were before.

No politician wants to look like he or she is not against domestic violence. The title alone, as some Republican politicians are pointing out, can make the legislation politically risky to oppose, particularly in an election year. As Senator Roy Blunt put it, “Obviously, you want to be for the title. If Republicans can’t be for it, we need to have a very convincing alternative.”

There is no alternative as of yet, and so Republicans are forced to grapple with the current version. According to the New York Times, it would extend federal grants that are already in place to battered women’s shelters, as well as to local law enforcement. Same-sex couples are included in programs as well, as are transgender victims. So are immigrants without status, that have been victims of domestic violence, and more of them would be able to claim temporary visas. The act would also expand efforts to reach the Indian tribes in some rural areas.

According to Fox News, the measure would also give tribes the authority to prosecute persons who are not members of the tribe. The concern is that this move gives tribal courts too much authority over individuals who are not formally part of a tribe.

It is particularly the last provisions that make the legislation so hard to swallow for Republican politicians. They believe that the overall message is being diluted with these extra provisions. Furthermore, they see some groups as undeserving of this aid.

Republicans allege that the timing of the Act is part of a larger Democrat strategy to “rig legislation that the GOP can’t back,” according to the Huffington Post. This is particularly touchy in an election year in which Congress has a 9 percent approval rating.

Senate Democrats hope to bring up the bill before Easter break.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/gageskidmore/

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Avon Global Ambassador & Honorary Chairman of the Avon Foundation for Women Reese Witherspoon and Avon Chairman and CEO Andrea Jung  awarded four global non-governmental organizations with the inaugural Avon Communications Awards: Speaking Out About Violence Against Women for their campaigns that are bringing attention to the need to end violence against women.

Witherspoon and Jung presented the awards, funded by the Avon Foundation, at the 2nd World Conference of Women’s Shelters in Washington, D.C., which brought together more than 1,400 advocates, activists and leaders from 96 countries to collaborate to change attitudes about such violence. The awards are part of the Avon Speak Out Against Domestic Violence program, which has donated nearly $40 million globally to end violence against women.

Avon Communications Awards Winners
The Avon Foundation recognized the U.K.’s Women’s Aid, YWCA Canada, Rwanda Women Network and India’s Breakthrough for their exemplary communications campaigns. A global panel of judges selected the winners from among 19 finalists identified through an Avon Foundation-funded global survey to determine strengths and challenges in communicating efforts aimed at reducing violence against women.

Survey results revealed that communications campaigns have evolved significantly over the past two decades and the portrayal of women has changed from victim to survivor, empowered by the tools and services available to her.

To view the award-winning campaigns in each of the four categories – Storytelling, Innovative Campaign, Break the Silence, and Global Excellence in Communications – as well as other finalists’ campaigns, please visit: http://www.avonfoundation.org/globalspeakout/avon-communications-awards.html. These materials and many others will be available in June 2012 on an online global hub, the Communications X-Change, funded by the Avon Foundation and managed by Futures Without Violence.

Storytelling Award Winner:
Women’s Aid (UK) – CUT the movie campaign 
This movie starring Keira Knightley shows a woman suffering a brutal assault. On the day of CUT’s launch, the story was the most read entertainment story on the BBC News website, and within six days, the film received over a half a million hits.

Innovation Award Winner: 
YWCA Canada – “Safety Siren” app and campaign 
This “Safety Siren” app promotes healthy dating and provides specific ways to help stop violence against women. The unique app, which has been downloaded more than 4,000 times, is activated with a press of a button or a quick shake, turning a mobile device into a multifunctional safety device.

Break The Silence Award Winner:
Rwanda Women Network campaign
The poster shows a disturbing image of a man physically abusing a woman with witnesses watching the assault, demonstrating that violence against women is a societal problem by encouraging community responsibility and victim assistance.

Global Award for Excellence in Communications Winner: 
Breakthrough (India) – “Bell Bajao! (Ring the Bell!)” campaign 
This campaign is helping bring domestic violence to a halt through real life scenarios of neighbors interrupting violence behind closed doors. These powerful public service announcements show that “ringing the bell” is one way to break through and end domestic violence incidents without confrontation.

Other Avon Foundation Initiatives at World Conference of Women’s Shelters:
Avon Foundation-Funded Domestic Violence Counts Survey
The National Network to End Domestic Violence released its annual Domestic Violence Counts survey, funded by the Avon Foundation. The survey, a one-day snapshot of services provided across the United States, found that more than 9,500 requests from domestic violence victims for services and assistance go unmet every day in the United States.

That is almost 3.5 million families that aren’t getting the help they need every year, and 60 percent of those victims are seeking emergency shelter or transitional housing.

Reese Witherspoon Shares Three Ways to Speak Out Against Domestic Violence
In honor of International Women’s Day on March 8th, Reese Witherspoon also is offering “Three Ways to Speak Out” against domestic violence through a video she is encouraging people to share (http://origin-qps.onstreammedia.com/origin/multivu_archive/VOD/46212_a_3Ways_0228.zip).

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National children’s charity, School-Home Support UK (SHS), revealed that of the 13,000 children they support each year, most of them on Free School Meals (FSM), nearly half don’t feel safe at home. SHS identifies and supports children who have trouble being in school and being ready to learn.

SHS’s annual survey revealed that, in the preceding twelve months, their school-based professionals dealt mainly with children in homes where financial problems or poverty, the threat of homelessness, poor housing conditions, domestic violence, family breakdown or bereavement and mental health issues were prevalent.

SHS Chief Executive, Jan Tallis, commented “Children worry greatly about home and this can mean that they find it difficult to fully engage with their education. Nearly one million kids truant on a regular basis but many are afraid to leave home for school in case something awful happens or because their basic support needs – such as clean clothes or breakfast – are not being met. When we do get them into school they often exhibit poor concentration and disruptive behaviour.

This affects their ability to learn, affects peer learning in the classroom and creates a route to poor attainment and success later in life. With the highest ever recorded number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET) this is clearly a very big issue.”

Tallis says they expect to see an increase in these figures over the next twelve months as economic hardship escalates, impacting on other issues such as mental and domestic wellbeing. SHS creates early interventions to tackle these problems in the personal and home lives of children so they can improve attendance and behaviour at school.

“Our main aim is to ensure all children stay in school and do well so they can achieve their dreams and enjoy good lives. A recent survey among disadvantaged children revealed many don’t think they will go to university, have a good job or earn good money. This is tragic,” says Tallis.

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To celebrate National Marriage Week (Feb. 7-14), Family Research Council’s Marriage and Religion Research Institute has released a new paper entitled 162 Reasons to Marry. This important new study demonstrates that marriage is beneficial across a wide range of personal outcomes, including family, religion, education, finances, crime and health.

162 Reasons to Marry shows that married persons:

• enjoy stronger relationships with their children;
• worship more regularly;
• participate more actively in their children’s education;
• work more productively;
• enjoy greater financial stability;
• have better mental and physical health; and
• are less likely to commit crime or abuse or to be victims of domestic violence.

Furthermore, those raised in intact married families are more likely to practice sexual chastity, to worship more regularly, to expect and attain more educationally, and to exhibit better physical and mental health. They are also less likely to experience poverty as children or to experience or commit violence.

Dr. Patrick Fagan , Director of the Marriage and Religion Research Institute, writes:

“Marriage is the foundational relationship for all of society, and therefore we can be sure that there are many more than the 162 reasons for marriage enumerated here. All other relationships in society stem from the father-mother relationship, and these other relationships thrive most if that father-mother relationship is simultaneously a close and a closed husband-wife relationship.”

Fagan says the outcomes evaluated (family, religion, education, marketplace and government) represent all five of the major institutions, or tasks, of society.

Fagan said:

“The family is one of the five major institutions of society. Within a family built on a good marriage, the child gradually learns to value and perform the five fundamental tasks of every competent adult and of every functional society – raising a family, practicing religion, receiving an education, working in the marketplace and participating in government.

Children raised in strong families are mentored in all these areas, often unconsciously, and gradually they learn to act similarly. That is how we grow a great society.  There is no short cut on this one.”

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The cycle of domestic violence affects nearly one in four women, one in nine men, and over 3 million children across the country.  In 2011, Verizon invested more than $22 million as part of its longstanding commitment to domestic violence prevention and awareness.

Part of the money donated by Verizon in 2011 included more than $4.2 million in cash grants from HopeLinefrom Verizon to nearly 450 domestic violence prevention and awareness programs across the country.  In addition to contributions through HopeLine, the Verizon Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Verizon, awarded $10 million in grants in 2011 to nonprofit organizations that support those affected by domestic violence.

Verizon Wireless, through HopeLine, provided more than 29,000 phones with a total of 87.1 million minutes of wireless service to shelters and agencies nationwide for use by clients – enough minutes to stay connected nonstop for 165 consecutive years.

Of the 1 million phones collected, nearly 24,000 were properly disposed of using environmentally sound methods – keeping more than 59 tons of wireless phones and batteries from entering community landfills.  For the fifth consecutive year, Verizon Wireless collected more than 1 million no-longer-used wireless phones through its HopeLine from Verizon program.

“Domestic violence is a silent epidemic that affects our entire society–regardless of race, education or socioeconomic level,” said Marquett Smith, vice president of communications for Verizon Wireless.  ”To combat this serious issue, Verizon leverages its technology and resources to help victims and continue the battle against domestic violence.”

Through HopeLine, Verizon’s phone recycling program, the company collects no-longer-used wireless phones, batteries and accessories in any condition from any carrier and puts them to work in the community by turning them into support for domestic violence survivors.  Phones collected through HopeLine recycling drives are either refurbished and sold or recycled, and proceeds are donated to organizations that work against domestic violence in the form of cash grants and prepaid Verizon Wireless phones for survivors.

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On average, 24 people per minute are victims of rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner in the United States, according to findings released December 14 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Over the course of a year, that equals more than 12 million women and men. Those numbers only tell part of the story – more than 1 million women reported being raped in a year and over 6 million women and men were victims of stalking in a year, the report says.

“This landmark report paints a clear picture of the devastating impact these violent acts have on the lives of millions of Americans,” said Secretary of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “The information collected in this ongoing survey will serve as a vital tool in the Administration’s efforts to combat domestic violence and sexual abuse. And the report underscores the importance of ourAdministration’s work to combat domestic violence and sexual assault.”

The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, or NISVS, is one of CDC’s latest public health surveillance systems and is designed to better describe and monitor the magnitude of sexual violence, stalking and intimate partner violence victimization in the United States. It is the first survey of its kind to provide simultaneous national and state-level prevalence estimates of violence for all states. Launched in 2010, NISVS also provides data on several types of violence that have not previously been measured in a national population-based survey.

“This report highlights the heavy toll that sexual violence, stalking, and intimate partner violence places on adults in this country. These forms of violence take the largest toll on women, who are more likely to report immediate impacts and long-term health problems caused by their victimization,” said Linda C. Degutis, Dr.P.H., M.S.N., director of CDC′s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. “Much victimization begins early in life, but the consequences can last a lifetime.”

The report findings also underscore violence as a major public health burden and demonstrate how violence can have impacts that last a lifetime. For instance, the findings indicate female victims of violence had a significantly higher prevalence of long-term health problems, including irritable bowel syndrome, diabetes, frequent headaches, chronic pain, and difficulty sleeping. And nearly twice as many women who were victims of violence reported having asthma, compared to women who did not report violence victimization.

“The health problems caused by violence remind us of the importance of prevention,” said Howard Spivak, M.D., director of the Division of Violence Prevention in CDC’s Injury Center. “In addition to intervening and providing services, prevention efforts need to start earlier in life, with the ultimate goal of preventing all of these types of violence before they start.”

NISVS provides data that can help inform policies and programs aimed at preventing violence as well as addressing the specific information needs of state and national governmental and nongovernmental organizations, while providing an initial benchmark for tracking the effectiveness of prevention efforts.

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Newly released data that looks at the drinking patterns of more than 200,000 criminal offenders monitored 24/7 for alcohol consumption shows that even when Big Brother is watching, drinking increases nearly 27% between Thanksgiving and January 2nd.

Denver-based Alcohol Monitoring Systems, Inc., (AMS) has monitored more than 200,000 criminal offenders since 2003 using a technology that tests your perspiration every 30 minutes, 24/7, to ensure clients are abstaining from alcohol. According to AMS, the rate of daily violations for offenders monitored with their technology jumps a whopping 27% during the holiday season.

AMS Chairman and CEO Mike Iiams says that the trending highlights how the pressures — and the pleasures — of the holiday season are difficult for everyone. “Whether it’s your in-laws or the economy or just temptations at the office party, the fact that we see such a statistically significant increase in violations for a group of people who are being tested — and know they are being tested — every 30 minutes for drinking underscores just how difficult an issue this is,” says Iiams.

Larry Vanderwoude, LCDC, CEO of Dallas-based Recovery Healthcare, agrees. “Emotions run very high during the holiday season, especially when it comes to meeting family expectations. And the natural coping skill for the alcoholic is to drink,” says Vanderwoude. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that two to three times more people are killed by drunk drivers during the holidays than any other time during the year.

According to AMS, which has monitored offenders in 48 states with its SCRAMx System (for Secure Continuous Remote Alcohol Monitor), as the company enters its 8th year providing monitoring during the holiday season, the courts seem to have two approaches for addressing the social and behavioral issues that go hand-in-hand with the holiday season.

“Some programs, usually dealing with lower risk offenders, may opt to give people a break during the holidays, lightening up on some requirements or delaying them until after the first of the year,” says Iiams. “But each year, the courts dealing with the highest risk alcohol offenders clamp down even harder on the drinking during the holidays,” he says.

“They know if these offenders aren’t drinking, then they’re not drinking and driving, and they’re not drinking and abusing a spouse or child,” he adds. According to the U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics, 75% of cases of domestic violence involve an offender who was drunk at the time of the offense.

To Iiams, their data trending, which is based on more than 18 million alcohol tests, serves as a cautionary tale for both courts and communities. “These are the hardcore drinkers who know they’re going to get caught and that there will be consequences, and they’re still struggling not to drink during the holidays. Imagine what’s happening with the ones who know they can get away with it,” he says.

Vanderwoude, whose company has monitored more than 17,000 offenders in Texas and Oklahoma with the SCRAMx System, says that the intensive monitoring they provide during the holidays can actually provide a sense of security for both the courts and even many of their clients. “It’s a type of safety net, working to deter relapse during the hardest time of the year,” he says.

“The ones that drink get caught, and there can be a sense of relief in knowing that for people who really struggle with addiction. But the ones that stay sober through the season often report that it’s the most rewarding and cherished holiday of their life,” he adds.

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