Declare Teen Dating Violence Month

Senate Resolution No. 2460 BY: Senator PARKER MEMORIALIZING Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim February 2020, as Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month in the State of New York WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to recognize official months that are set aside to increase awareness of serious issues that affect the lives of our teens and young adults from the State of New York; and WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and fully in accord with its long-standing traditions, it is the sense of this Legislative Body to memorialize Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim February 2020, as Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month in the State of New York, in conjunction with National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month; and WHEREAS, Domestic violence is a serious problem, and not just an adult problem; teens also experience abuse in their relationships; in fact, according to a report in 2006 by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly 1.5 million high school students nationwide experience physical abuse from a dating partner every year; and WHEREAS, Dating violence refers to a pattern of actual or threatened acts of physical and/or emotional abuse perpetrated by an adolescent against a current or former dating partner; and WHEREAS, Abuse may include insults, coercion, social sabotage, threats, and/or acts of physical abuse; the abusive teen uses this pattern of violent and coercive behavior in order to gain power and maintain control over the dating partner; and WHEREAS, The National Resource Center on Domestic Violence found that girls and young women between the ages of 16 and 24 experience the highest rate of intimate partner violence, almost triple the national average; and WHEREAS, Nearly 1.5 million high school students in the United States are physically abused by dating partners every year; and WHEREAS, Females are more likely to be the victims; 1 in 4 women have been assaulted by a partner; men are also at risk: 1 in 14 men report being victims; and WHEREAS, Regardless of sex, it is likely that abusive relationships are underreported due to the nature of the problem; and WHEREAS, 1 in 3 female teenagers in a dating relationship has feared for her physical safety; and WHEREAS, 1 in 2 teenagers in a serious relationship has compromised personal beliefs to please a partner; and WHEREAS, 1 in 5 teenagers in a serious relationship reports having been hit, slapped, or pushed by a partner; and WHEREAS, 27 percent of teenagers have been in dating relationships in which their partners called them names or put them down; and WHEREAS, Approximately 70% of college students say they have been sexually coerced; and WHEREAS, Unfortunately, only 33% of teenagers who were in a violent relationship ever told anyone about the abuse; and WHEREAS, Technologies such as cell phones and the Internet have made dating abuse both more pervasive and more hidden; and WHEREAS, 30 percent of teenagers who have been in a dating relationship say they have been text-messaged between 10 and 30 times per hour by a partner seeking to find out where they are, what they are doing, or who they are with; and WHEREAS, 72 percent of teenagers who reported they had been checked up on by a boyfriend or girlfriend 10 times per hour by email or text messaging did not tell their parents; and WHEREAS, Parents are largely unaware of the cell phone and Internet harassment experienced by teenagers; and WHEREAS, Violent relationships in adolescence can have serious ramifications for victims, putting them at higher risk for substance abuse, eating disorders, suicide, and adult revictimization; and WHEREAS, The severity of violence among dating partners has been shown to be greater in cases where the pattern of violence has been established in adolescence; and WHEREAS, The establishment of Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month will benefit schools, communities, and families regardless of socio-economic status, race, or gender; and WHEREAS, This Legislative Body recognizes the efforts of all those who raise awareness and educate others about the very real dangers of teen dating violence, thereby improving the quality of life for our youth, our most precious resource; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to memorialize Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim February 2020, as Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month in the State of New York; and be it further RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted to The Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of the State of New York.