NOW - NEW YORK STATE SUPPORT MEMO
A620 (Rosenthal)/S02963 (Rath)
- Prohibits Compelling Domestic Abuse Victims to Contact
Their Abusers
|
Search Site With  |
|
|
|
The National Organization for Women – New York State,
Inc. supports A620/S2963, a bill which would prohibit any
state officials, employees, and agents from compelling a
domestic abuse victim to contact her abuser. Because domestic
violence, no matter what its variety, is so dependant upon
an abuser’s access to his victim, it is vital that
victims of domestic abuse be shielded from perpetrators and
offered a confidential intermediary to make any necessary
contact.
Domestic violence, most often perpetrated by a man against
a woman, is constituted by domination of one person over
another, whether it is through physical, sexual, psychological,
or economic means. Although the exact tactics, factors, and
results involved in each of these varieties of domestic violence
differ, all rely on contact or the manipulation of contact
between the abuser and the abused party. The American Academy
of Family Physicians suggests, it is vital that a violated
woman remove herself from the abusive situation and end any
contact with her abuser as swiftly and completely as possible
in order to end the relationship effectively. Continuing
contact with an abuser entails the continuation of abuse
and its affects, which may include depression, anxiety, physical
battery, substance abuse, panic attacks, and posttraumatic
stress disorder. Thus, an abused woman has the right to be
protected from anyone who tries to perpetuate her contact
with her abuser.
A woman in an abusive relationship should have the right
to leave that relationship without fear of its continuation
by the demands of any state official, employee, or agent
thereof. In the aftermath of domestic violence, the victim
must be able to completely remove herself from communication
with the perpetrator. The National Organization for Women – New
York State, Inc. strongly supports legislation which will
prevent any state agents from compelling a woman to make
contact with her abuser. Enacting bill A620/S2963 is in the
interest of protecting New York State’s women, especially
those who have experienced domestic abuse.
Marcia A. Pappas, President, NOW-NYS, Inc.
|
