Events

Women In Distress

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February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month (TDVAM)

During the month of February organizations and individuals alike will be raising awareness and having conversations about teen dating violence, promoting prevention, and working together to make a violence free world.  This year’s national theme is “Your love is unique…with consent”, to remind everyone that your love is unique and you deserve to have your boundaries respected. 

Unfortunately, teen dating violence is quite common. Statistics show that 1 in 3 teens (boys and girls, ages 12-18) will experience some form of dating abuse, whether it’s physical, emotional, sexual, financial, and/or digital abuse. Young people are especially vulnerable to dating violence as this is the time many of them are first entering relationships.

Join Women in Distress of Broward County in speaking out against Teen Dating Violence!

Here’s how you can participate this year:

  • Talk to the teens around you about warning signs: breakthecycle.org/warning-signs
  • Donate to Women in Distress at womenindistress.org/ways-to-donate/
  • Follow us on our new Instagram page @WID_Teen for information on teen dating violence
  • Schools can participate by:
    • Doing morning/ afternoon announcements that focus on teen dating violence statistics and healthy relationship tips
    • Creating visual awareness campaigns about healthy relationships or teen dating violence
    • Having tabling events during lunch with information and interactive activities around boundaries and consent

This year, our Education and Prevention Team will be at several schools throughout Broward County talking to students about healthy and unhealthy relationships through the “Imagine… A World Where Love Doesn’t Hurt” Program (Middle School students), B.O.L.D. Program (High School students), and onetime presentations.  The “Imagine” and B.O.L.D. sessions involve in-depth discussion and activities surrounding topics such as red flags and warning signs, gender stereotypes, why victims stay, how to help a friend, boundaries, consent, sexual assault, and social change. Our other onetime presentation consists of a broad overview of Teen Dating Violence to bring awareness to young people.

Awareness activities for schools/community:

  • Prevention Summit – Tentatively Feb. 28th, location TBD – Training for professionals that work with youth on teen dating violence prevention & healthy relationships, and other issues that affect teens. We’ll be working with our Community Action Team members like SunServe, Jewish Family Services, BCPS, and others to participate in this event as well.
  • Social media – The prevention team has different plans for posting things on our @WID_Teen instagram account for TDVAM
  • School awareness campaigns – We are currently reaching out to schools we’ve worked with in Broward County to encourage them to do some type of awareness events:
    • Morning announcements of healthy relationships/TDV information
    • Having a “wear orange” day
    • Having us table at their school lunch
    • Doing a student-led poster campaign where students will make posters about healthy relationships and TDV to post around the school during the month
  • FCADV Youth Summit – Prevention team is doing a presentation session as part of FCADV’s Youth Summit in Sanford on Feb. 1st. The presentation, called “Hear No Evil, See No Evil, Speak No Evil” will help students understand the difference between realistic and unrealistic relationship expectations, and dynamics of a healthy vs. unhealthy or abusive relationship. Facilitators will challenge students to dissect the healthy or unhealthy messages in various popular songs, music videos, and movie clips to talk about social norms about relationships.
  • Youth education programming:
    The primary prevention team will be implementing our teen dating violence and healthy relationships education programs at the following schools in February 2020:

    • Coral Glades High School
    • Coral Springs Charter School
    • Coral Springs High School
    • Hallandale High School
    • Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School
    • Somerset Academy
    • Glades Middle School
    • Stranahan High School

If you are interested in having a WID Prevention Specialist facilitate a onetime presentation, the “Imagine” program, or B.O.L.D. program for your students anytime of the year, please reach out to Emily Janas, Education & Prevention Supervisor at ejanas@womenindistress.org.