Honoring Domestic Violence Awareness Month with the Advocacy Center

A student at one of the events observing Domestic Violence Awareness Month in 2016.

ALBANY, N.Y. (Oct 13, 2020) – October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and the Sexual Violence Prevention Ambassador Program (SVPA) within the University’s Advocacy Center for Sexual Violence is moving full steam ahead with virtual events to commemorate the national initiative.

According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV), 10 million people are physically abused each year by an intimate partner and on a typical day, more than 20,000 calls are placed to domestic violence crisis hotlines. Intimate partner violence accounts for 15 percent of all violent crime, and one in four women and one in nine men experience severe intimate partner physical violence, sexual violence or stalking.

NCADV launched Domestic Violence Awareness Month almost 40 years ago as a way to connect advocates working across the country to end violence against women and their children, and has since grown into a national observance designed to raise awareness, celebrate those who have survived, and connect those who work to end violence.

At UAlbany, the Advocacy Center provides a safe and welcoming environment for students to receive support in the aftermath of violence. The center also leads SVPA, a student peer education group that has trained 17 students to assist in the delivery of programs across campus. Though Domestic Violence Awareness Month is different this year because of the pandemic, there are still virtual events hosted by the Advocacy Center (some are in partnership with the One Love Foundation, an organization created to honor domestic violence victim Yeardley Love and aids in training peer educators) that are free to attend:

• Tuesday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m. Consent 101
• Wednesday, Oct. 14 at 7:30 p.m. Love Labyrinth, One Love Foundation
• Monday, Oct. 19 at 7 p.m. – It’s not me, it’s you (a program about stalking awareness and prevention)
• Tuesday, Oct. 20 at 7:30 p.m. – Behind the Post, One Love Foundation
• Wednesday, Oct. 21 at 6 p.m. – Healthy Relationships
• Thursday, Oct 22 at 7 p.m. – That’s Not Love, One Love Foundation
• Monday, Oct. 26 at 7:30 p.m. – Love Labyrinth, One Love Foundation
• Tuesday, Oct. 27 at 7:30 p.m. – Myths & Facts of Law & Order SVU (with NYS Police Senior Investigator Michael Castle)

More information about these events and more can be found on Instagram at @ualbanyadvocacycentersvpa and on MyInvolvement.

“This year’s Relationship Series has allowed our student peer educators to take a leadership role in the delivery of our programming and education surrounding intimate partner violence,” said Mary McCarthy, assistant director at the Advocacy Center. “With the help of the One Love Foundation, we have been able to train our peer educators to educate their peers on the warning signs of unhealthy relationships, how to help themselves or a friend who is impacted by relationship violence, and the importance of connecting to professional advocacy and support resources on campus.”

Any student seeking the support of the Advocacy Center should call (518) 442-CARE (2273) or email [email protected].

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