One in 10 high school students has been purposefully hit, slapped or physically hurt by a boyfriend or girlfriend.
One in 10 high school students has been physically hurt by a boyfriend or girlfriend.
1 in 3 girls in the US is a victim of physical, emotional or verbal abuse from a dating partner, a figure that far exceeds rates of other types of youth violence.Only 33% of teens who were involved in an abusive relationship ever told anyone about the abuse.
Only 33% of teens who were involved in an abusive relationship ever told anyone about the abuse.
Eighty-one (81) percent of parents believe teen dating violence is not an issue or admit they don’t know if it’s an issue.Nearly half (43%) of dating college women report experiencing violent and abusive dating behaviors.
Nearly half (43%) of dating college women report experiencing violent and abusive dating behaviors.
College students are not equipped to deal with dating abuse – 57% say it is difficult to identify and 58% say they don’t know how to help someone who’s experiencing it.
These statistics are about our children – our daughters, our sons, our nieces,our nephews, our neighbors, our friends, our classmates. It affects all of us in the end.
In the late hours of Sunday, October 17, 1999, our daughter, Maggie Wardle, was murdered by her ex-boyfriend on the campus of Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Our website tells her story and the steps in our journey since losing her.
We were all naive to believe that because we loved her and protected her so much that she was safe from violence. Because this has happened to our Maggie, we know that it can happen to any of us, in any family, in any town, from any background, at any time. It does not mean that we have to live in fear of violence, but that we must do something to decrease violence where we live. Before Maggie died, we felt – like most people do – that this would never happen to us or our family. But now we are connected to others who have lost loved ones to violence and we know we must try and do something about it.
Read, share, learn. Spread the word.
Martha and Rick Omilian
Maggie’s Mother and Stepfather