Violence Against Women Act

For my action assignment, I chose to address the issue of violence against women by sending a letter to my two senators, Carl Levin (D-MI) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI). I wrote my letter on the topic of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). In the letter, I praised each Senator for their past support and co-sponsorship of the VAWA. I then shared my findings with them from a past policy project I had done on the Violence Against Women Act. First, I discussed the current statistics on the number of women affected by violence and the effect this has had on the United State’s economy. Next, I explained how the VAWA has been both a beneficial and cost-effective program, by discussing the positive effects the VAWA has had on the number of reported cases of violence against women and the amount of government money saved by the VAWA’s implementation. Finally, I reminded the Senators that the VAWA is up for reauthorization in 2010 and reminded them of the importance of their continuing support.

Hopefully by sending this letter, the senators’ offices will read it and learn more about the success of the VAWA. Also, though I know it’s a long shot, I hope that they will push for other senators to continue supporting the VAWA as well.