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SRES 710 IS

Designating the week of February 2 through February 6, 2009, as `National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week'.

November 20, 2008

Mr. CRAPO (for himself, Mrs. CLINTON, Mr. LIEBERMAN, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Mr. SCHUMER, and Mr. BAYH) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

Designating the week of February 2 through February 6, 2009, as `National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week'.

Whereas 1 in 11 adolescents reports being a victim of physical dating violence;

Whereas dating violence occurs more frequently among black students (13.9 percent) than among Hispanic (9.3 percent) or white (7 percent) students;

Whereas 1 in 5 teenagers in a serious relationship reports having been hit, slapped, or pushed by a partner;

Whereas more than 1 in 4 teenagers have been in a relationship where a partner is verbally abusive;

Whereas 30 percent of teenagers in a dating relationship have been text messaged 10, 20, or 30 times per hour by a partner attempting to find out where they are, what they are doing, or who they are with;

Whereas 40 percent of the youngest `tweens', those between the ages of 11 and 12, report that their friends are victims of verbal abuse in dating relationships;

Whereas nearly 3 in 4 tweens say that dating relationships usually begin at age 14 or younger;

Whereas 29 percent of girls who have been in a relationship said that they have been pressured to have sex or to engage in sexual activities that they did not want;

Whereas 69 percent of all teenagers who had sex by age 14 said they have experienced 1 or more types of abuse in a dating relationship;

Whereas 1 in 5 teenagers (20 percent) between the ages of 13 and 14 say their friends are victims of dating violence;

Whereas in 2003, in a national survey of over 14,000 high school students conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, just over 8 percent of boys and girls reported physical dating violence victimization and were more likely to engage in risky behaviors including sexual intercourse, attempted suicide, episodic heavy drinking, and physical fighting;

Whereas Native American women experience higher rates of interpersonal violence than any other population group;

Whereas violent relationships in adolescence can have serious ramifications for victims, putting them at higher risk for substance abuse, eating disorders, risky sexual behavior, suicide, and adult revictimization;

Whereas the severity of violence among intimate partners has been shown to be greater in cases where the pattern of violence has been established in adolescence;

Whereas more than 3 times as many tweens (20 percent) as parents of tweens (6 percent) admit that parents know little or nothing about the tweens' dating relationships;

Whereas a majority of parents surveyed either believe dating violence is not an issue or admit they do not know if it is an issue; and

Whereas the establishment of National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week will benefit schools, communities, and families regardless of socio-economic status, race, or sex: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Senate--

(1) designates the week of February 2 through February 6, 2009, as `National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week'; and

(2) calls upon the people of the United States, high schools, law enforcement, State and local officials, and interested groups to observe National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week with appropriate programs and activities that promote awareness and prevention of the crime of teen dating violence in their communities.

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