AGENDA #1a

 

PROCLAMATION

 

WHEREAS, domestic violence is a pattern of coercion and control in an intimate relationship where one person uses violence to gain power and control over their partner; and

 

WHEREAS, domestic violence includes not only physical abuse, but also mental abuse, emotional abuse, financial abuse, isolation, and sexual violence; and

 

WHEREAS, nearly 25 percent of American women report being raped and/or physically assaulted by a current or former spouse, partner, or date at some time in their lifetime, according to the National Violence Against Women Survey; and

 

WHEREAS, thirty percent of Americans say they know a woman who has been physically abused by her husband or boyfriend in the past year; and

 

WHEREAS, women of all races and socioeconomic backgrounds are vulnerable to violence by an intimate partner; and

 

WHEREAS, in North Carolina, domestic violence programs provide services to over 40, 000 victims each year, according to the Council for Women; and

 

WHEREAS, more than three women are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends every day; and

 

WHEREAS, in North Carolina, over 30 women, men, and children have been murdered as a result of domestic violence this year;

 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Kevin C. Foy, Mayor of the Town of Chapel Hill, do hereby proclaim October 2002 as

 

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH

 

in the Town of Chapel Hill, and call upon citizens to commend this observance.

 

GIVEN UNDER MY HAND AND THE SEAL OF THE TOWN OF CHAPEL HILL ON THIS THE FIRST DAY OF OCTOBER, TWO THOUSAND AND TWO.

 

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Kevin C. Foy, Mayor