Hirschauer Highlights October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month

WEST CHICAGO, Ill. – To raise awareness of domestic violence and support survivors, state Rep. Maura Hirschauer, D-Batavia, is highlighting Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

“A huge part of prevention is education, and October provides us the opportunity to learn how to recognize signs of a domestic abuse situation,” Hirschauer said. “Domestic violence can happen to anyone, regardless of their age, race or gender.”

According to the Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence, one in three women and one in seven men are victims of domestic violence. Warning signs of an abusive relationship could be possessiveness, verbal abuse, controlling behavior, controlling finances and abuse of animals. Hirschauer was a sponsor on legislation to create the Domestic Violence Task Force to establish a consistent, uniform statewide system to protect the victims and survivors of domestic violence and hold offenders accountable. 

“Everyone is deserving of relationships that are free from abuse,” Hirschauer said. “At the state level, we are working towards a system that provides the resources people need to escape abusive situations and hold abusers accountable.”