Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise to add my voice in support of the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, of which I am proud to say I am a cosponsor. In Virginia, this act has doubled the resources available for prevention and intervention of sexual violence in communities and on campus. The funding provides crisis services in nearly every locality in Virginia. Funds have helped develop State databases like the protective order registry in the Virginia Criminal Information Network, VCIN, and the I-CAN system housed with the Virginia Supreme Court. These databases have helped improve responses across the Commonwealth to sexual and domestic violence. Some startling Virginia domestic and sexual violence incidence statistics highlight just how critical this legislation is to anyone in my State and across the country who may find themselves in need of help. Virginia has seen a 12 percent increase over the past 2 years in the number of men, women and children staying in domestic violence emergency shelters on an average night. Nearly 1 million women and more than 600,000 men in Virginia have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner. According to the State's medical examiner, one in three homicides in Virginia is due to family or intimate partner violence. As these statistics show, the services authorized through VAWA continue to be a necessity.…”