State Senator Jane Nelson visits Creekview High School students during dating violence assembly Friday
Staff writer Caitlyn Jones reports:
“Is texting someone 50 times in one hour ok?”
Brian Pinero, director of digital services for the National Domestic Violence Hotline, got mixed answers Friday morning during an assembly on teen dating violence at Creekview High School in Carrollton.
What if you’re in a long distance relationship? What if it’s your mom?
One in 3 adolescents are victims of physical, verbal or sexual abuse by their partner, exceeding the adult average of 1 in 4, according to the National Council on Crime and Delinquency Focus.
“There are things that occur in your community that shouldn’t be happening,” State Senator Jane Nelson told students Friday morning. “Dating violence happens everywhere, and it’s one of the saddest and most heartbreaking things.”
Nelson, along with representatives from the National Domestic Violence Hotline, Verizon and Mary Kay, spoke at a rally at the high school to educate students on the difference between healthy and unhealthy relationships.
The senator worked to add a section to the Education Code for Texas public schools in 2007 that addresses teenage dating violence. The National Domestic Violence Hotline also sends out tool kits on the issue to schools across the state.
The assembly was organized by Be Project, a club for Creekview students to take a stand against bullying and dating violence. The group partnered with loveisrepect, the National Domestic Violence Hotline project to stop dating violence.
Loveisrespect recently launched Love is Digital, a campaign that allows teenagers to text or chat online with trained peer advisers and counselors about abusive relationships. The program offers mentoring, resources and sometimes even legal services to the teens.
The number of callers on the hotline increases each year, especially when domestic violence is prominent in the media, said Katie Ray-Jones, president of the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
“When you have situations like Chris Brown and Rhianna or Ray Rice and Janay Rice, that definitely contributes heavily to our uptick,” she said. “We’ll see an uptick but I think there’s more awareness about what domestic violence is and what it’s not.”
While cell phones may offer a solution, they are often a tool used in abuse.
“In the 1990’s, cell phones were differentiators between life and death for those in abusive relationships,” said Michelle Miller, president of the central Texas region for Verizon Wireless, a sponsor of the loveisrespect program. “Now, it’s used as a device for unhealthy relationships.”
Common signs of digital abuse include constant texting, social media stalking, looking through texts or calls, and forcing your partner to share their passwords.
While the majority of hotline participants are female, about 5 percent include men who are either being abused or have been an abuser, Ray-Jones said.
Mary Kay Vice President for Corporate Responsibility Crayton Webb said it was his duty as a male to educate and stand up against dating violence.
“Everyone is so afraid to offend our friends but it’s offensive that one in three of you will experience dating violence,” he said at the assembly. “It’s time for men to be part of the solution instead of the problem. Real men don’t hit women.”
Nelson summed up the message of the day, saying no one should ever be afraid of the ones they love.
“Love is not violent. Love is not harmful,” she said. “Love is respect.”