Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act

http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2020458945_vawapassesxml.html http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/28/politics/violence-against-women The unbelievably long 16 month stand off in the U.S. House is finally over, and the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act has been passed. The only thing word that comes to mind is "finally." So why did it take over a year to re-enact this law that has been in place since 1994? Well let's look at some of the changes (or rather improvements) that have been made that made it such a big issue. Firstly, the same protections guaranteed in the original act have now been extended to gays and lesbians. This is wonderful. No person should be denied protection from violence because of their sexual orientation. According to statistics from the CNN article, approximately 45% of LGBT victims are turned away from domestic violence shelters, 55% were denied protection orders, and thats only from the people who reported violence. These stats need to change, and this law should help to catalyze that. Secondly, the act has given tribes the right to try non-indians in court for assaults committed on their land. In the past, this has lead to many people who assaulted a native american woman being given a free pass. The commonality of native american woman being assaulted is ridiculously high, as in 1 in every 3 will be assaulted in their life time. This needs to change, and again, this law will facilitate that. Thirdly, the act increases funding for existing programs that help with transitional housing, law enforcement training, and much more. These services are very important for women who have been assaulted and are trying to get back onto their feet. These women have gone through unimaginable pain and suffering, and any program that helps them recover is a good one and is necessary for reducing violence against women because if you know you have help and resources, you are more likely to remove yourself from an abusive situation. The list of improvements goes on. I feel like the reauthorization of this act is good, but marred by its slow approval and the opposition it faced. To me, its a no-brainer that violence against woman is still a huge issue and needs to be combatted legally. I am happy that women now are legally protected again from violence in a way that has positively improved many aspects of this issue, including decreasing the number of lives lost in past years to assault and domestic violence. I am relieved, but the delay concerns me. It indicates that this issue might not mean as much to everyone in the political circuit as it should. Do they not have mothers, wives, daughters, and friends that they want to protect? This issue isn't just an issue for women. This is an issue for everyone in our society to stand up and say that we will no longer condone violence against anyone because of their gender, size, color, age, or any other reason. Its time to realize that if you hurt one of us, you hurt all of us in many ways. The Violence agains Women Reauthorization Act is like a beacon of hope in a stormy see, telling us that we will get through all this struggle and pain and we will make things better. We just need all hands on deck for this one.