IVAWA

I'm writing on behalf of women worldwide to urge you to pass the International Violence Against Women Act. As someone who works with survivors of domestic violence every day, I can only highlight the urgency and necessity of taking large scale, politically visible actions, such as the passage of this Act in order to create another layer of prevention and protection for women.

From my full-time job with survivors of domestic violence to the other work I've done over the years with women in developing countries, it is clear that we need to take a firm and unequivocal stand against violence towards women. In all of the countries I've volunteered, worked or traveled in, violence towards women is almost a normal part of existence. When I was working with teenage girls this past summer in southern Sudan, they're hopes were simple and straightforward: to finish school without being forced into a polygamist marriage. Yet for most of these intelligent young women, such enslavement will be their fate.

With global statistic being that 1 in 3 girls and women will experience abuse in their lifetimes, there is simply no reason not to pass IVAWA. The United States, as a global leader, has a responsibility to show that half of the world's population deserve to be respected, valued and allowed to live without fear of violence. It is women's human right.

Thank you for your conscientious consideration.

Danielle Prince, MA
Kenmore, WA, USA

Please join the PulseWire community in speaking out against violence and urging the U.S. government to pass the International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA). Write your letter in your PulseWire journal to share your personal and observed experience in gender-based violence, both in your life and within your community. Tag your journal \"IVAWA\", and World Pulse will send your letter directly to President Obama, along with letters from women around the world. Learn more: http://www.worldpulse.com/pulsewire/programs/international-violence-agai...