WASHINGTON — Every day in the U.S., nearly 20 people per minute are abused by an intimate partner, the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence reports. That’s about a million women and men each year, and that’s why October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
On a typical day, about 21,000 phone calls are placed to domestic violence hotlines across the U.S.
Arlington County police vehicles will display purple ribbons this month in an effort to raise awareness about domestic violence. The nonprofit group Doorways for Women and Families is donating the purple ribbons to police. It provides temporary shelter and resources for those escaping domestic violence and homelessness in Northern Virginia.
The Domestic Violence Safehouse sheltered 42 adults and 38 children escaping violence last year, and its hotline got more than 1,300 calls.
“Eliminating domestic violence requires collaborative prevention and response efforts and the Police Department believes the partnership with Doorways is a step in that direction,” Police Chief M. Jay Farr said in a statement.
Last year, the Arlington County police say, they responded to more than 2,000 calls regarding domestic violence, making 214 domestic-assault arrests.
In 2012, 117 Virginians were killed in domestic violence-related homicides — 34 percent of homicides for that year.
DoSomething.org says that 85 percent of domestic violence victims are women, and that the costs of domestic violence is more than $37 billion a year.
Domestic Violence Awareness Month evolved from 1981’s Day of Unity, which was held to connect advocates nationwide to work to end violence against women and children.
