FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? VAWO
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2001??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? 202/307-0703
NEW WEB-BASED RESOURCE LAUNCHED TO FIGHT
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
DEVELOPED BY DEPARTMENTS OF JUSTICE & HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
WASHINGTON, DC ? The Department of Justice
(DOJ), in collaboration with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),
announced today the launch of a new Web-based resource, Toolkit to End
Violence Against Women, aimed to strengthen prevention efforts and improve
services to victims of domestic violence.
?Violence against women crosses all economic,
educational, cultural, racial and religious lines,? said Attorney General John
Ashcroft.? ?This invaluable tool was
developed to aid in the effort to eradicate such violence from our society.?
?It is far better to prevent violence against
women than to deal with its devastating consequences for individual women,
their children and their families,? Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy
G. Thompson said.? ?This Toolkit will
help communities around the country design and implement effective programs to
prevent violence.?
The Toolkit, developed by experts in
the areas of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking, was designed to
assist individuals, policy leaders and community efforts to end violence
against women.? Comprised of 16
chapters, the Toolkit offers best practices and other recommendations to
assist localities in an easily accessible, user-friendly format to help readers
pinpoint topics of interest.? The Toolkit
is intended to be a valuable resource for communities, organizations and
individuals who deal with these issues on a daily basis.? For example, chapters cover areas such as
the criminal justice system, health, sports, faith, the media, the military and
entertainment.?
?The Toolkit is a? living document that will continually evolve
as new practices and resources arise in the effort to eliminate violence
against women,? said Attorney General Ashcroft.
The Toolkit was developed by the
National Advisory Council on Violence Against Women, which is co-chaired by DOJ
and HHS.? To access the Web-based Toolkit,
go to toolkit.ncjrs.org.
Information about this and other initiatives involving violence against women
is available on the Violence Against Women Office?s Website at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/vawo
or the Office of Justice Program?s Website at www.ojp.usdoj.gov,
or by calling the National Criminal Justice Reference Service toll-free at
1-800/851-3420.
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VAWO1218
After hours
contacts:
DOJ Contact:?? Angela
Harless on 202/616-3266 or pager #1-888/763-8943
HHS Contact:?? Bill
Pierce on 202/690-6885