Domestic Violence Month 10/02/2008

I very rarely keep up with what "month" it is, but I think that this is a very important one. It is a month that raises awareness about a very real and very important problem occurring all over the world. Take a few moments to visit the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. It is an organization dedicated to raising awareness about domestic violence, and lists many things that you can do this month to help the cause. They accept monetary donations, car and cell phone donations, and have resources for setting up a special awareness program in your own community. It could even be something as simple as wearing a purple ribbon (purple is the color for the month's activities) and telling people about the importance of this issue in our daily lives. And this is not the only organization dedicated to this cause. For more info, simply type "domestic violence" into your favorite search engine. This month is an important one to me. I personally am not a victim of domestic violence, but I am deeply concerned about this issue. And while it is true that most violence is against women and children, men can be victims of abuse also. I guess I became really aware of the problem about 8 years ago. I can't remember the exact year, but it was a bad one in south Alabama. Every week there was another story about someone being killed due to domestic violence. I believe in helping the victims get away and start new lives, but I also believe we have an even greater obligation to try and figure out the causes. To figure out a way to help abusers stop the cycle of violence and start new, violence-free lives themselves. I say this about every societal problem that I run across - education is key. Not just educating the public about these issues (although that is a big part of finding a solution), but education in general. Give our kids a better education from the start so they have the tools to fight this. Go into prisons and juvenile detention centers and educate the inmates, give them a reason to hold their heads up high and start over when they leave prison. Find a way to make abusers the teachers in our efforts to stop the abuse. And recognize that even though this is a worldwide problem, the solutions must begin in our own homes and communities.