United States HRES 1013: Expressing support for designation of the month of February 2024 as "National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month".

Bill Text

IV
118TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION H. RES. 1013
Expressing support for designation of the month of February 2024 as
‘‘National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month’’.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 14, 2024
Ms. WEXTON (for herself, Ms. DEAN of Pennsylvania, Mrs. HINSON, Mr.
FITZPATRICK, Ms. NORTON, Mr. TRONE, Ms. LOIS FRANKEL of Florida,
Mr. CLEAVER, Mrs. DINGELL, Ms. TOKUDA, Mr. SCHIFF, and Ms. SALI-
NAS) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary
RESOLUTION
Expressing support for designation of the month of February
2024 as ‘‘National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and
Prevention Month’’.
Whereas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (in this resolution referred to as the ‘‘CDC’’),
teen dating violence includes 4 types of behavior, which
are—
(1) physical violence;
(2) sexual violence;
(3) psychological aggression; and
(4) stalking;
Whereas, according to the National Institute of Justice, tech-
nology-facilitated abuse is a growing social malady con-
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•HRES 1013 IH
tributing to increased psychological aggression among
teens;
Whereas technology-facilitated abuse includes, but is not lim-
ited to, cyber extortion, cyberstalking, and doxing;
Whereas, according to the Cyberbullying Research Center,
over one-quarter (28.1 percent) of teens who had been in
a romantic relationship at some point in the previous
year said they had been the victim of at least 1 form of
digital dating abuse;
Whereas, while dating violence, domestic violence, sexual vio-
lence, and stalking affect individuals regardless of age,
teens are especially vulnerable;
Whereas, according to the 2019 Youth Risk Behavior Survey,
almost half (44.3 percent) of teens experienced at least
1 type of violence, and 1 in 7 (15.6 percent) of teens ex-
perienced at least 2 types of violence;
Whereas 1 in 9 female and 1 in 36 male high school students
report having experienced sexual dating violence in the
last year;
Whereas the CDC reported that nearly 1 in 11 female teens
and about 1 in 15 male teens reported experiencing phys-
ical dating violence in the last year;
Whereas teaching teens about the consequences of intimate
partner violence and supporting the development of
healthy, respectful, and nonviolent relationships have the
potential to decrease teen dating violence in future gen-
erations;
Whereas educating middle school students and their parents
about the importance of building healthy relationships
and preventing teen dating violence is key to deterring
abuse before it begins;
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Whereas, according to a National Intimate Partner and Sex-
ual Violence Survey of the CDC, 80 percent of female
rape victims experienced their first rape before the age of
25, and almost half experienced their first rape before
the age of 18;
Whereas, according to the same National Intimate Partner
and Sexual Violence Survey, 26 percent of women and 15
percent of men who were victims of contact sexual vio-
lence, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate part-
ner in their lifetime first experienced these or other forms
of violence by that partner before the age of 18;
Whereas approximately 35 percent of women who were raped
as minors were also raped as adults;
Whereas developing healthy relationship practices and stand-
ards in youth under the age of 18 can be critical to elimi-
nating sexual violence and other forms of intimate part-
ner violence;
Whereas teen dating violence is a preventable public health
crisis that can negatively impact teens and youth in all
parts of the United States;
Whereas teens who have experienced dating violence are more
than twice as likely as others to consider suicide;
Whereas the CDC indicates that there are several community
factors, such as poverty, low capital, lack of institutions,
relationships, and norms that shape a community’s social
interactions, poor neighborhood support and cohesion,
weak community sanctions against intimate partner vio-
lence, and high alcohol outlet density, that place individ-
uals at greater risk for perpetrating intimate partner vio-
lence;
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Whereas the CDC also indicates that community factors,
such as neighborhood collective efficacy, and coordination
of resources and services among community agencies,
may reduce an individual’s risk of perpetrating intimate
partner violence;
Whereas primary prevention programs are a key part of ad-
dressing teen dating violence, and many successful exam-
ples of such programs include education, commu