September 28, 2018
As you know, New York State annually joins the nation to mark October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month. We hope you will continue to turn the state purple in creative ways and consider ways that you can turn awareness into action by becoming an ally for victims and survivors.
Allies are service providers, law enforcement professionals, friends and loved ones who lend support in myriad ways: they call the state’s Domestic and Sexual Violence Hotline for a friend in need; listen to without judgment to a loved one who isn’t sure what to do next; encourage their workplace to adopt a policy to improve protections for victims and survivors; donate to their local domestic violence service provider; and wear purple on Thursday, Oct. 18, to name a few.
For more information, check out our Domestic Violence Awareness Month Toolkit, which features graphics customized for Facebook, Instagram and Twitter; facts and figures for Tweets and posts; and an electronic banner for posting to websites or incorporating into an email signature, among other resources.
Whether you post photos, share our graphics or write about ways in which your community, organization or workplace is making a difference this October, be sure to tag @NYSOPDV and #NYGoesPurple4DV so we can find you online. We’ll be sharing and retweeting throughout the month and hope you will follow us and do the same.
You also can send your photos directly to [email protected]; be sure to include the names of any groups or individuals you’d like to see included when we post the photos to our 2018 Facebook album.
And finally, service providers and law enforcement professionals are invited to attend our first-ever Domestic Violence Risk Reduction Summit from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 23 in Albany. The summit will feature presentations detailing how communities and organizations across New York State are identifying and responding to victims of domestic violence who are at high risk of being killed or seriously injured by an intimate partner. The event also will feature keynote remarks by Nicole Sharpe, an author, advocate, and founder of the Heather Hurley Foundation, named in memory of her mother. Seating is limited.
Register here by Monday, Oct. 15.
Thank you in advance for being an ally this October!
P.S. Don’t forget to mark your calendar for #PurpleThursday, Oct. 18 and wear purple that day.