Every year, teens and allies gather to raise awareness for Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month. We are naming February as Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month. This annual, month-long push focuses on advocacy and education to stop dating abuse before it starts.

Our goal is to promote awareness about teen dating violence and connect survivors and allies with resources for education and support. Teens will be able to identify TDV and feel more comfortable talking about it or knowing where to get help.

Topics like dating abuse and healthy relationships can be difficult to talk about. That’s why we are sharing information and strategies for addressing teen dating abuse before it happens. We also realized that this issue is ever prevalent and, therefore, we need to focus on connecting survivors of teen dating abuse to resources for recovery and support, as well as perpetrators. Understanding the different ways that trauma impacts survivors can help us better serve and address this issue.

Community Beyond Violence helps and supports teens and we are involved in prevention efforts in our local schools. We are here for teens and friends/family members.

Teens would benefit greatly from learning about building healthy, equitable, and meaningful relationships with their peers and more. Often, teens are learning about relationships through experimentation.

Providing comprehensive education for navigating all types of relationships will ensure that teens are informed to make healthy choices for themselves around sex safety, privacy, consent, healthy communication and more.

To understand the scope of this issue, check out these statistics:

• Girls and young women between the ages of 16 and 24 experience the highest rate of intimate partner violence — almost triple the national average.

• Among female victims of intimate partner violence, 94% of those age 16-19 and 70% of those age 20-24 were victimized by a current or former boyfriend or girlfriend.

• Violent behavior typically begins between the ages of 12 and 18.

• The severity of intimate partner violence is often greater in cases where the pattern of abuse was established in adolescence.

Source: loveisrespect.org/resources/dating-violence-statistics/

Did you know...

• Nearly 1.5 million high school students nationwide experience physical abuse from a dating partner in a single year.

• One in three adolescents in the U.S. is a victim of physical, sexual, emotional or verbal abuse from a dating partner, a figure that far exceeds rates of other types of youth violence.

• One in 10 high school students has been purposefully hit, slapped or physically hurt by a boyfriend or girlfriend.

• Often, teens are learning about relationships through experimentation. Statistically, their first experience of witnessing abuse begins as early as age 12-18.

Source: loveisrespect.org/resources/dating-violence-statistics/

In Nevada County, the majority of teens (80%) have witnessed or know someone closely who has witnessed violence in the home. With this risk factor identified, we recognize that this predisposition can raise the likelihood of the teen participating in or being the victim of dating violence.

It is our job as leaders and educators to bring helpful information, practice healthy relationships skills, and teach bystander intervention to help end the cycle of abuse.

We are asking residents of Nevada County to participate during February as Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month to support our mission towards peace. With awareness, we can end the cycle of abuse.

Dating violence and/or sexual assault is far too common at the college level.

College students are protected by the Cleary Act, Title IX and the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination (SaVE) Act. Click on the links below to learn more.

The Clery Act

Title IX

Campus SaVE Act

• Nearly half (43%) of dating college women report experiencing violent and abusive dating behaviors.

• College students are not equipped to deal with dating abuse – 57% say it is difficult to identify and 58% say they don’t know how to help someone who’s experiencing it.

• One in three (36%) dating college students has given a dating partner their computer, online access, email or social network passwords and these students are more likely to experience digital dating abuse.

• One in six (16%) college women has been sexually abused in a dating relationship. Source: loveisrespect.org/resources/dating-violence-statistics/

If you or a friend/family member may be experiencing dating violence or want to learn more, check out our services. Our advocates are here for you!

Click here to check out our Services

• Violent relationships in adolescence can have serious ramifications by putting the victims at higher risk for substance abuse, eating disorders, risky sexual behavior and further domestic violence.

• Being physically or sexually abused makes teen girls six times more likely to become pregnant and twice as likely to get a STI.

• Half of youth who have been victims of both dating violence and rape attempt suicide, compared to 12.5% of non-abused girls and 5.4% of non-abused boys.

Source: loveisrespect.org/resources/dating-violence-statistics/

Teen ​​​​dating violence can be insidious. But, with awareness and education it can be brought to light. We are here to help you in raising your awareness.

• Red Flags In Relationships

• Cycle of Violence

• All About Teens - Teen Culture & Risk Factors, Developmental Considerations, Legal & Counseling

• Only 33% of teens who were in a violent relationship ever told anyone about the abuse.

• Eighty-one (81) percent of parents believe teen dating violence is not an issue or admit they don’t know if it’s an issue.

• Though 82% of parents feel confident that they could recognize the signs if their child was experiencing dating abuse, a majority of parents (58%) could not correctly identify all the warning signs of abuse.

Our advocates are here for family and friends too!

• How To Help A Family/Friend

• Our Services

Source: loveisrespect.org/resources/dating-violence-statistics/