Community Corner

Pallone Comes to Hazlet to Show Support for Domestic Violence Act

The Congressman spoke out for renewing the Violence Against Women Act, and learned about challenges facing Monmouth County's 180 - Turning Lives Around.

U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ, 6th District) sat down with the staff members of 180 Turning Lives Around in Hazlet Wednesday, to talk about the challenges facing Monmouth County's lead agency for the protection and care for victims of domestic violence.

180s's Executive Director Anna Diaz-White told the congressman that the 35-year old agency had to lay off three staffers last month. Longtime donors like United Way funding could no longer be counted on, and the Verizon Foundation was signaling it may end funding for domestic violence prevention programs in a year or so.  Dwindling federal aid has shrunk the 180 operating budget from $4.5 million to $3.7 million in just two years.

"It's not getting any easier to fund a program like us," said Diaz-White, who described how the agency has to compete for funding through the state Division of Criminal Justice to serve more than 4,000 victims last year. "The squeeze is coming from both sides. And domestic violence cases are increasing."

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In an informal roundtable conversation which included former clients of 180 in the brightly decorated Amanda's Easel art therapy program studios in West Keansburg, Pallone said he would look into drafting a bill that would specifically fund agencies that focus on helping victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. "Maybe we can put together a bill for new funding sources for groups like this," he said.

In her welcome speech earlier Wednesday before a group of about 20 people, Diaz-White described Pallone as "a staunch supporter of women's health." Pallone had come to give a speech about his concern that the federal Violence Against Women Act, first authorized in 1994 and reauthorized several times since then with improvements, had passed the Senate (S1925) but had been altered in the House version (HR 4970) by politicians who objected to its inclusion of same sex couples and provisions allowing battered immigrants to obtain temporary visas.

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The Act, known as VAWA, has provided funding and provisions to protect immigrant women who are victims of abusive husbands by decoupling their immigrant status to their husband's status, thereby making it easier for them to speak out if they are being victimized, said Pallone. The Act also addresses special situations faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender partners, and those unique to women on Native Indian reservations.

Pallone said a some House members would be meeting again in coming months to iron out their differences, and hopefully reauthorize the old version of the bill.  "If we don't get together on this, there is a possibility nothing will get passed, which is even worse."

"It's not a Democrat or Republican issue as far as we are concerned," said Diaz-White.

Also speaking in support of reauthorizing the bill was Debjani Roy of South Brunswick, a representative of Manavi, the NJ-based women's rights organization that serves South Asian survivors of violence.

"VAWA HR 4970 which passed in the House last week, rolls back protections for immigrant women that have always been included in the Violence Against Women Act. These protections provide a life-line to South Asian survivors of violence who face specific immigration barriers where immigration status can be used as a tool of abuse," she said in her speech.

Mark Ferraz of the Coalition for Battered Women, an umbrella organization of 27 domestic violence organizations, said, "Under HR4970, the long standing U-Visa, which has support from law enforcement and prosecutors nationwide will become weakened in several ways – for example, denying U-Visa holders the ability to apply for residency, which they currently have. This will make immigrant victims of domestic violence and of other serious crimes less likely to come forward to assistant law enforcement in their investigations and prosecutions."


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