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Politics

Susan Brooks, Lois Frankel Urge Paul Ryan, Nancy Pelosi to Support Violence Against Women Act

July 17, 2018 - 10:30am
Susan Brooks and Lois Frankel
Susan Brooks and Lois Frankel

With the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) expiring at the end of September, the two congresswomen in charge of the Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues are calling on the leaders of the U.S. House to provide additional funding for the program. 

On Monday, U.S. Rep. Susan Brooks, R-Ind., and U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, D-Fla., wrote to U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., and U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., on the matter. 

The congresswomen pointed to how the VAWA has impacted Americans since being launched back in 1994. 

“Since VAWA was first passed in 1994, serious victimization by an intimate partner declined by 72 percent for women and 64 percent for men,” Frankel’s office noted. “However, it is estimated that as many as 45 million adults experience physical violence, rape and/or stalking by an intimate partner at some point in their lives.

“In addition to the emotional toll, this issue [violence against women] has great economic impacts for our country,” Brooks and Frankel wrote. “Recent studies report the financial cost of rape to be more than $120,000 per victim with more than half of that cost coming from the lost workforce productivity. We believe it is critical to invest in increased prevention services in the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, scheduled to expire at the end of this fiscal year, so we can ultimately stop this cycle of violence before it begins.”

Brooks and Frankel were named to lead the caucus at the end of 2016. In 2015 and 2016, Frankel and Brooks served as the co-vice chairs of the caucus. 

The caucus, which celebrated its 40th anniversary last year, has focused on issues regarding womens health, economic opportunities and protecting women from domestic abuse and sexual assault.

First elected to Congress in 2012, Frankel has been active in Florida politics for decades, including leading Democrats in the state House and serving two terms as mayor of  West Palm Beach. During her time in Washington, Frankel has served on the Foreign Affairs and Transportation and Infrastructure Committees and has risen up the ranks with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC). Frankel is already guaranteed another term as she faces no opposition in November. 

Comments

I'm sorry. I can't get excited over constituent pandering ("dah" votes) to special interest groups rather than laws that directly benefit society as a whole. How about working to pass the difficult stuff like making our tax cuts permanent and our border wall fully funded?

Why do so many people in Congress violate their oath to office? Why do we the people allow them to break the law? There is NO authorization for money to be used this way. The Constitution clearly states the enumerated powers of Congress and this is not one of them. Lawlessness reigns.

Sorry, but there should be no special laws that single out women! These are the ones that are yelling for equality!

Certainly, ending violence against all people should be the goal. However, if this program through its education efforts has decreased violence against women, it should be funded. Public service announcements/ public programs such as this one get a lot of flack, but they are effective. Look at the decrease in the number of women choosing abortion since the privately funded "public service announcements" have shown women the truth about how quickly babies develop (heartbeat at 6 weeks). Women are now more knowledgeable than in the past when abortion was just considered "a procedure" and no information was provided.

Stick with violence against PEOPLE! Otherwise you will have a litany of Violence Against Acts covering every permutation of gender we now have. We should be concerned about VIOLENCE AGAINST PEOPLE. Don't try to break it down to specific people or types of violence. Violence Against People should be the goal.

Try telling THAT to Congress !

The holder of the ONLY ''confirmed kill' (in "The War On Women") is held by Ted Kennedy. Brooks, Frankel and Pelosi are safe on the streets, now that Ted is finally gone... (The rest of us ignore involvement with politicians as a safety matter of course.)

What does the money pay for, exactly? If someone is abusive (if they have a weak character, if they come from a dysfunctional/abusive past, etc.), nothing may stop them from being abusive. But if there's a chance that funding the VAWA can prevent some people from being abused (especially children), then it's worth the money. Congress provides funding for other things that aren't as important. If children, especially boys, grow up in a dysfunctional environment, they often grow up to be abusive themselves - according to the book: "Are Men the Weaker Sex" by Josette Sona. They often raise boys to be abusers and raise girls to think it's alright to be abused. Any funding that can prevent this vicious cycle from continuing is money well spent.

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