WHEREAS, domestic violence is the single greatest cause of injury to women in the United States, with an incident occurring every 18 seconds and affecting 1.3 million women per year; and
WHEREAS, 24 percent of adult women and 14 percent of adult men have been physically assaulted by a partner at some point in their lives; and
WHEREAS, domestic violence is an epidemic that knows no barriers, affects men and women, all ages, ethnic and religious backgrounds, people in poverty and of wealth and affluence alike; and
WHEREAS, intimate partner violence costs us in excess of $5.8 billion nationally each year, $4.1 billion of which is for direct medical and mental health services, and has an economic impact from lost productivity amounting to $1.8 billion for American businesses; and
WHEREAS, the Gulf Coast Center for Nonviolence provided emergency shelter and support services for 2,367 victims of violence, and received 15,552 calls to its crisis hotline in 2018, reflecting the severity of this problem within the coastal counties of Mississippi; and
WHEREAS, the crime of domestic violence violates the dignity, security, privacy, and safety of members of our community, in the form of physical, emotional, sexual and economic abuse; and
WHEREAS, advocates, professionals, volunteers, and community members concerned with domestic violence will devote the month of October to raising public awareness of the crisis of domestic abuse, its causes, effects, interventions and prevention;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Supervisors proclaims October 2019 as DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH In Jackson County, and reaffirms its commitment to ending domestic violence within our community.