October is Relationship Violence Awareness Month (RVAM). There are a lot of events and ways to get involved at UNC! The overall theme is love empowers and here are some ways that you can be involved to learn more information about Relationship Violence.
Participate in the Social Media Campaign:
- Post the RVAM image above to your social
media account to spread the word! - Take a photo of your hands in a heart shape and post it to any of your social media accounts. Write “My #loveempowers by *insert your response here* #rvamunc”.
- Example: “My #loveempowers by making my roommates feel heard. #rvamunc”
- Another Example: “My #loveempowers by encouraging my friends to follow their dreams. #rvamunc”
Compass Center DVAM Event
Tuesday, October 4 from 4 pm to 7 pm at the Crunkleton
- All proceeds from this event will be donated to the Compass Center to aid in providing services for women and families. https://www.facebook.com/events/325593027801770/
Dos and Donuts of Healthy relationships
Thursday, October 6 from 11 am to 1 pm in the Pit
- Heels United for a Safe Carolina campaign in partnership with the RVAM committee to hand out information/resource cards and “Love Empowers” buttons!
Ammunitions for Change: Explaining the Surprising Adoption of Domestic Violence and Gun Control Policies Across the United States from 2009 – 2015
Thursday, October 6 from 12 pm to 1 pm in Michael Hooker Research Center, room 3100
- Lecture by Gender-Based Violence Speaker: Sierra Smucker, MSc, PhD Candidate, Duke University
- The availability of firearms continues to threaten the lives of American citizens on a daily basis. However, a persistent political narrative suggests that calls for policy change are futile; that any legislation at the national level will be killed by the powerful gun lobby; and because of our permissive gun laws, the United States will continue to have more gun violence than any other developed country in the world. While this narrative is supported by the failure of federal policies that regulate firearms, a significant number of state legislatures have passed gun reforms that protect women in abusive relationships. Since 2013, 18 states, including historically pro-gun states like Louisiana, Tennessee, and Washington, have passed new laws to protect victims of domestic violence from firearms. In a time of deep political polarization, particularly around the issue of firearms, why are some state legislators passing these policies while rejecting other types of gun control policies? Is the change we are seeing in DV and firearms policy evidence of a transformative change in American politics or is it an outlier? Using an in-depth case study approach, this study begins to unravel the puzzle of DV and firearms policy by investigating the passage of domestic violence and firearm policy at the state level.
Film Screening and Panel Discussion: “Behind Closed Doors”
Thursday, October 13 at 6:30 pm (doors open at 6 pm) at the Varsity Theatre.
- Compass Center for Women and Families is partnering with the Carolina Women’s Center and the Beacon Program to host a screening of the BBC documentary “Behind Closed Doors.” Learn more and view the trailer at http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07472y8.
- The screening will begin at 6:30 pm, with doors opening at 6 pm. A panel discussion will follow.
Safetoberfest
Monday, October 24 from 1 pm to 4 pm at Granville Towers or Thursday October 27 from 1pm – 4pm at SASB Plaza
- Students will “trick-or-treat” their way around to the different stations, picking up candy and other treats as they interact with various organizations and offices.
These are some of the ways that you can get involved, if you would like to know more about these events or want to check out other events, visit the website: http://safe.unc.edu/rvam-2016/.
Olivia Bass is a Program Assistant for Violence Prevention with Student Wellness.
UNC Healthy Heels 