The YWCA mourns today for the mother and daughter found dead in a home yesterday in Roselle. While few details have been released, at least one news outlet is reporting that domestic abuse is suspected as having contributed to this tragedy.
Assuming this heartbreaking event was the result of domestic violence, it sadly underscores two different often overlooked aspects of domestic violence – domestic violence does not only impact the abuser and a single victim, it impacts the children in the home and the community at large.
Too often children are exposed to and impacted by the violence in their homes. According to the National Coalition to End Domestic Violence, 1 in 15 children are exposed to intimate partner violence each year, with 90% of these children directly witnessing the violence. Additionally, 20% of victims of intimate partner homicides, as seemingly occurred in this tragedy, are not the intimate partners themselves, but may also include family members, friends, neighbors and others.
Domestic violence does not stop at the door to a home; it has a communitywide impact as exemplified in Roselle yesterday where out of an abundance of caution, schools across Roselle were put in lockdown with students sheltering in place. In addition to the tragic deaths, every school aged child and parent or guardian in the district were impacted in the aftermath of this horrible event.
The YWCA Union County is committed to helping all victims who reach out to us and to help them safety plan and find the resources they need. Our services include shelter, counseling, financial empowerment programs, creative arts therapy for children and court advocacy. All our services can be accessed through our 24-hour hotline at (908) 355-3457 (HELP). The hotline is able to assist speakers of all languages. For more information, visit the YWCA Union County website at www.ywcaunioncounty.org.
Our hearts go out to the family and friends of the two who lost their lives yesterday.
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PO Box 462, Kenilworth, NJ 07033
Phone: (908) 355-1995• Fax: (908) 355-2010
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