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On December 3, United States Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan discussed the impact of dating violence and the kinds of prevention strategies that are needed with teen leaders, parents and program directors from Start Strong: Building Healthy Teen Relationships, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) administered by the Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF).

The discussion included youth representing four Start Strong east coast sites: Boston Public Health Commission, Boston, Massachusetts; Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center, Bronx, New York; RYASAP, Bridgeport, Connecticut; and Sojourner House; Providence, Rhode Island. They spoke eloquently about the impact of violence on their peers, families and schools.

Attorney General Holder hosted the event. He began by telling the youth and parents that the Administration has a commitment to stopping teen dating violence. “We have to engage community partners to end violence against women and we have to work with young people in that effort,” he said.

“For too long we’ve been unwilling to face the reality that teen dating violence occurs,” Secretary Duncan said. “It’s been a taboo subject folks would simply not talk about. But we can’t afford to do that any more: too many young people are getting hurt. We must all do our part to break the silence and work toward eliminating teen dating violence.”

“Talking about teen dating violence is a challenge, and it’s never easy,” Duncan said in thanking the Start Strong youth for their courage in talking about teen dating violence in their communities.

“This was a historic event,” said FVPF President Esta Soler. “Never before have two cabinet members come together to address teen dating violence. Attorney General Holder and Secretary Duncan did a tremendous amount to draw attention to this pervasive and preventable problem. As we heard from Start Strong’s remarkable teen leaders, violence affects every school and every community. We urgently need – and our youth deserve – a comprehensive response from schools, parents, teens themselves, and the government.”

Start Strong is the largest initiative ever funded to target 11-to-14-year-olds to promote healthy relationships as the way to prevent teen dating violence and abuse. RWJF and Blue Shield of California Foundation are investing $18 million in 11 communities across the country to identify and evaluate the most promising pathways to stop dating violence and abuse before it starts. RWJF is funding 10 sites and Blue Shield of California Foundation is funding one site in California. The Family Violence Prevention Fund is the National Program Office for Start Strong.

Each Start Strong community is working to create innovative prevention models that can be replicated across the country. Each community also has developed a comprehensive plan that focuses on four core strategies involving education, policy change, community outreach and cutting-edge social marketing campaigns to empower teens to develop healthier relationships throughout their lives.

Youth Share Their Views

“Learning about healthy relationships at Start Strong Bronx has helped me realize that it’s okay to have disagreements, but you still have to have respect,” 16-year-old Bianca Ortiz told the Attorney General and Secretary of Education. “By learning more about dating violence, I’m able to let my friends in bad relationships know I am there for them. And I know how to help. That really matters.”

Sixteen year-old Senior Rick Rodriguez from Start Strong Providence discussed the impact of witnessing violence on children and teens. “I think it’s extremely important to recognize that violence affects not just the two people in a relationship, but also kids and whole families,” he said.

Start Strong Bridgeport teen Quentin Pugh added, “Although it’s easy to think that guys just don’t care about dating violence, but [you] do. It’s important that we work hard to understand that relationships matter.”

“We must engage the broadest spectrum of community partners in order to stem youth violence, and a cornerstone of that partnership is young people themselves,” Holder said. “The Department of Justice is committed to working with young people to develop innovative solutions to help prevent teen dating abuse.”

The event was part of the Justice Department’s year-long commemoration of the 15th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act, and part of its work to: raise public awareness about issues relating to violence against women; reinforce and build coalitions among federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement and victim services communities; and reinforce the goal of ending domestic and dating violence, sexual assault and stalking for men, women and children across the country.

The other teens who participated in the roundtable were: Elly Almeida, Boston; Jaylin Green, Boston; Katie O’Neil, Bridgeport; Xavier McGarrity, Bronx; and Amber Johnson, Providence. Start Strong Program Directors who participated were: Casey Corcoran, Start Strong Boston: Boston Public Health Commission; Paige Nelson, Start Strong Bridgeport: RYASAP; Christina Alex, Start Strong Bronx: Bronx-Lebanon Hospital; and Kate Reilly, Start Strong Providence: Sojourner House. Four parents also participated. 

The roundtable was held in conjunction with the 6th It's Time to Talk Day, organized by Liz Claiborne Inc. to draw attention to the importance of talking about domestic violence, teen dating violence and intimate partner abuse.

For more information on Start Strong, click here. To get more facts on teen dating violence, click here.  For more information regarding the event, click here.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan listening to youth, parents and Start Strong program leaders.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan accepting That's Not Cool t-shirts from Start Strong Bridgeport's Katie O'Neil.

FVPF President Esta Soler, U.S. Office on Violence Against Women Acting Director Catherine Pierce and U.S. Associate Attorney General Tom Perrelli before the roundtable.