Domestic Violence Awareness Month Arrives Amid Rising Cases In Tarrant County

Press release from the City of Arlington:

October 02, 2020

Every October, women's and family advocates across the country mark National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. And this year, in the midst of a global pandemic, awareness and resources have never been more important.

SafeHaven of Tarrant County is the largest agency in the county providing free services to domestic violence victims. The nonprofit has an Arlington resource center. According to a spokesperson, cases are on the rise.

• Since the beginning of the pandemic in mid-March, Tarrant County has seen 16 intimate partner homicides. To put this in perspective, there were eight similar cases in all of 2019.
• Since the beginning of May, the SafeHaven hotline (the only domestic violence hotline in Tarrant County) has averaged 93 calls per day. In normal times that number is 63. As of Oct. 2, 2020, SafeHaven is housing 109 women and children in its two emergency shelters. 62 of those are staying in the Arlington shelter.

Resources

Help is available to anyone who needs it. SafeHaven has compiled a list of resources, including warning signs of an abuser. They include:

• Extreme jealousy
• Possessiveness
• Unpredictability
• Bad temper
• Cruelty to animals
• Verbal Abuse
• Controlling behavior
• Antiquated beliefs of gender roles
• Forced sex
• Sabotage of birth control methods
• Blaming the victim for everything
• Controls finances
• Abuse of other family members or pets
• Control of victims appearance
• Humiliating the victim
• Harassment of the victim at work

If you need help, do not hesitate to ask. Call the SafeHaven hotline at 1-877-701-7233. You can also learn more about the signs of domestic abuse by clicking here.

Click here to learn more about donating to SafeHaven of Tarrant County.

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This press release was produced by the City of Arlington. The views expressed here are the author’s own.