How Did YOUR State Rank during National Teen Violence Awareness Week?

The results are already in. Out of 50 States, only 3 received an "A" grade when it came to National Teen Violence Awareness week! Congrats to California, Oklahoma and New Hampshire.

What about the other 47 states?  Why is our country still sweeping this major societal crime under the carpet?  Why do parents and school systems believe it doesn’t happen in their communities (or at least not to their children)? 

Do you know one of the largest factors in under-reporting?  It’s the state laws. They aren’t in place for your children. The laws in many states make it difficult for children to come forward and get the protection they need. Does your state have these items in place in the domestic violence law?

  1. Are protective orders and restraining orders available to minors in your state?
  2. Are dating relationships not recognized as valid domestic relationships for obtaining restraining orders in your state?

Did you know that only the New Hampshire law specifically allows minors of any age to go to court by themselves to apply for a protective order?

We need to give minors the ability to be proactive in their lives. Many minors don’t report what is going on because the reporting needs to go through adults. The good news is more and more children are becoming comfortable talking to educators, crisis centers, and law enforcement about what is really going on in their lives.

See how your state did.  Visit www.breakthecycle.org today.

Written by Mike Domitrz on February 8, 2008

Teenagers in North Texas Address Teen Dating Violence

As we find ourselves right in the middle of National Teen Dating Violence Awareness Week, I am encouraged to see teens and schools around the country participating in making a difference.

What we fail to realize is dating violence is often learned in schools from peers. Educating our teens about healthy relationships and raising awareness will greatly reduce the cycle of violence.

The Family Place and the Allstate foundation in the Dallas area in particular have done a wonderful job in creating awareness and providing tools for teens and families. The two teams joined forces to develop a 10 week teen dating violence awareness curriculum. The curriculum is being taught in 25 schools around the Dallas area and meets the requirements of the Texas mandate requiring all schools to develop a dating violence policy.

I look forward to the day that all schools offer this type of violence and awareness training. 

Read more at: http://www.sunherald.com/447/story/348843.html 

Written by Mike Domitrz on February 5, 2008

Parent need to talk with teenagers about teen dating violence and abuse.

Do you realize how common teen dating violence is?  Look at these stats below:

  1. One in three female teens in a dating relationship report having feared for their safety.
  2. About 30% of teens in a dating relationship have been text-messaged 10, 20 or 30 times an hour by a partner finding out where they are.
  3. One in five teens in a serious relationship report having been hit, slapped or pushed by a partner.
  4. One in four girls in a relationship report having been pressured to go further sexually than they really wanted.

**Source: Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Institute

Take the time to speak with your teen about violence. If it’s not happening to them it’s happening to someone they know.

Written by Mike Domitrz on February 5, 2008

Wichita Teen Speaks Out Against Dating Violence

With this week being dedicated nationally to addressing Teen Dating Violence, we are working hard to provide you insightful tips, stories, and inspirations throughout this week.  Today’s focus?  How do teens recover from violence?  What outlets can we give them to express themselves?

Brian Latta, a Digital Productions teacher at Northwest High School in Wichita, Kansas assigned his class a project. He challenged his students to create a public service announcement about teen dating abuse. The public service announcement they were creating could only be one minute in length.

Not a lot of time to send an entire message. Not until one of his students took the challenge head on!

Ashley Hoyle experienced teen dating violence first hand. She is a survivor.

She wanted to express to teens, adults, law enforcement, and educators just how serious the problem is and how hard it is to recognize the signs. Ashley was able to tell others through her video what she wasn’t able to verbalize about her experience. Her message was so strong that she was selected to be the National Spokeswoman for National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week which started yesterday (on Sunday).

Not only was she given the opportunity to warn and help others but she also has found a way to experience healing for herself.  As I travel the country, I continually meet incredible survivors who share how writing, performance, or some form of expressing themselvs is what really sped up the healing and recovery process for them as survivors.  Many of the surivors in the book "Voices of Courage" have talked about how powerful writing their chapter for the book was for their own personal journeys.  Then to hear from other survivors who have praised the book — has simply made the journey that much more meaningful for them.

Being part of an abusive relationship eats away at self esteem. The abuser uses control and manipulation to slowly or quickly eliminate a victim’s self esteem.  Providing the ability for a survivor to do something constructive with his/her experience re-builds the self-esteem.

When working with abused teens, explore what re-builds their self-esteem.  What projects and contests can you sponsor or create in your schools and communities?  Who will you team up with?  Local TV, local cable access networks, print media, retailers, etc…

Self-esteem can also grow through finding ways to experience success in other venues:  a sport, hobby or interest. Help survivors recognize how special they are to the world.  Remind them of their many talents that make them remarkable.  More than anything, help them realize how incredible they are for THEMSELVES.

This posting was inspired by the following article:
"Wichita teen a national speaker on abuse" by JILLIAN COHAN with Wichita Eagle.  Click here to read full article.

Written by Mike Domitrz on February 4, 2008

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