skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, July 26, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Arson attacks paralyze French high-speed rail network hours before start of Olympics, the Obamas endorse Harris for President; A NY county creates facial recognition, privacy protections; Art breathes new life into pollution-ravaged MI community; 34 Years of the ADA.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Harris meets with Israeli PM Netanyahu and calls for a ceasefire. MI Rep. Rashida Tlaib faces backlash for a protest during Netanyahu's speech. And VA Sen. Mark Warner advocates for student debt relief.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

There's a gap between how rural and urban folks feel about the economy, Colorado's 'Rural is Rad' aims to connect outdoor businesses, more than a dozen of Maine's infrastructure sites face repeated flooding, and chocolate chip cookies rock August.

Domestic Violence Awareness Month: Help available in every NE county

play audio
Play

Monday, October 16, 2023   

It is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, calling attention to an issue affecting up to 12 million men, women and children in the nation every year.

In Nebraska, almost 34% of women and 28% of men experience some form of intimate-partner violence or stalking over their lifetime.

Lee Heflebower, domestic violence and economic justice specialist for the Nebraska Coalition to End Sexual and Domestic Violence, said rates of domestic abuse and sexual violence in Nebraska have changed very little over the past decade. One exception was during the COVID lockdown, when there was a spike. Although people tend to equate domestic abuse with physical abuse, Heflebower pointed out it can take a variety of forms.

"It could also include emotional abuse, financial abuse, technological abuse; we see that a lot now, with folks using tech to stalk people," Heflebower observed. "It's all to maintain power and control over their intimate partner."

During 2022, 24-hour crisis lines at domestic-violence programs across the state received 36,000 calls, and Heflebower noted direct support was provided to nearly 12,000 survivors, of which 94% were women and children. The coalition's 20 programs and four tribal programs cover every county in the state. The 24-hour National Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).

Heflebower emphasized when survivors decide to leave an abusive situation, they often lose both their housing and their financial support, adding economic abuse is one of the ways abusers try to keep their partner from leaving.

"They might interfere with or control a survivor's employment, might interfere with their ability to establish good credit," Heflebower outlined. "For example, (they) might take out loans with the survivor's name, and the survivor's not aware of that."

Survivors may struggle to regain financial stability, Heflebower stressed, and she pointed out domestic violence is a leading cause of homelessness.

Heflebower reported rates are similar in urban and rural Nebraska, but leaving an abusive relationship in a rural community can present the extra challenge of having to relocate to a different town. She encouraged even people who are not sure if what they are experiencing is abuse to call, even if they are not ready to leave their situation.

"They can always reach out to one of the network programs," Heflebower advised. "Talk to somebody, get some assistance, talk about safety planning, or attend a support group. There's also programs available for their children. Our programs do a great job of getting survivors connected with anything that can help meet their needs."


get more stories like this via email
more stories
According to the Tax Policy Center, for higher-income earners, sales taxes consume a lower share of their income than for other households. (Vitalii Vodolazskyi/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

As Nebraska state lawmakers convene for a special session on property tax reform called by Gov. Jim Pillen, groups are weighing in on the details …


play sound

Traveling around rural Minnesota can be difficult but in more than half the state, nonprofit transit systems are helping people get where they need …

Social Issues

play sound

Student loan forgiveness took center stage on Thursday at the American Federation of Teachers conference. The Biden administration has canceled more …


Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has introduced legislation to codify the Chevron Deference into law. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Recent Supreme Court rulings on air pollution are affecting Virginia and the nation. Climate advocates said the court overstepped its bounds in …

Health and Wellness

play sound

World Hepatitis Day is this Sunday, and for the Oregon Health Authority, it's an opportunity to promote its plan to eliminate hepatitis across the …

The Gender Shades project revealed facial recognition performed poorest for darker-skinned women, and performed best for lighter-skinned men. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Columbia County, New York, is implementing new facial recognition and privacy policies, following new upgrades to the county's surveillance cameras…

Health and Wellness

play sound

New York disability-rights advocates are celebrating the 34th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The 1990 …

Social Issues

play sound

As summer winds down and North Carolina students prepare to return to school, the focus shifts to the urgent need for better public education funding…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021