Why VAWA matters to AVLF and what you can do to help

By: Lindsey Siegel,
Staff Attorney, Skadden Fellow

This past Thursday, March 7, 2013, was a historic day for our country, as President Obama signed the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), and it became law. AVLF applauds the reauthorization of VAWA, especially those parts that expand housing protections to survivors. 

As one of the focuses of my fellowship, I have a particular interest in this aspect of the law, having represented numerous survivors whose housing stability was at risk because of their partners’ violence. Now, because of VAWA's changes, even more of those clients will be protected from unfair evictions.

If you aren't familiar with VAWA's history, Vice President Biden forged the original version back in the mid-90s, which helped create much-needed protections for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault (later it was expanded to include victims of stalking and dating violence), as well as new sources of funding for local communities trying to fight and respond to these crimes. Advocates on behalf of victims championed its passage and subsequent reauthorizations, but they also recognized that after nearly two decades certain provisions needed to be updated.

Although VAWA enjoyed bipartisan support for most of its history, the version that passed last Thursday endured a long, hard fought battle in both chambers of Congress. Despite pressure on congressional leaders to narrow the scope of the law, the new version of VAWA extends protections and improves access for LGBT individuals, Native American women living on tribal lands, those in need of stable housing, immigrant women, and students on college campuses.

VAWA Signing. Picture accessed from AAUW.org

We recognize that having laws on the books is only the first step, but it is critical to AVLF’s goal of supporting safe and stable families and it makes a measurable difference in our clients’ lives. As a next step, we should call on our national leaders to fully fund VAWA.

In the coming weeks and months, my goal is to call on our leaders in Georgia to adopt and implement these new protections in local laws and policies, to further improve safety for the most vulnerable individuals in our communities.

What you can do:

1. Call or write your member of Congress and ask them to support increased funding. Votesmart.org has a great tool to help you find your members of Congress and their contact information.
2. Volunteer with AVLF's Domestic Violence Project.
3. Give a gift to AVLF to support our ongoing efforts to help domestic violence survivors in Atlanta.