* WARNING: THIS IS AN UNOFFICIAL, INTRODUCTORY COPY OF THE BILL.
THE OFFICIAL COPY CONSIDERED BY THE CITY COUNCIL IS THE FIRST READER COPY.
INTRODUCTORY*
CITY OF BALTIMORE
COUNCIL BILL R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: Councilmember Curran
A RESOLUTION ENTITLED
A COUNCIL RESOLUTION concerning
title
The Freedom from Domestic Violence is a Fundamental Human Right
FOR the purpose of joining world leaders and leaders within the United States in recognition of domestic violence as a human rights concern and declaring that the freedom from domestic violence is a fundamental human right.
body
Recitals
WHEREAS, more than 1 in 3 women and more than 1 in 4 men in the United States will experience rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner at some point in their
lives, according to the Centers for Disease Control; and
WHEREAS, 44% percent of African American women, 37% of Hispanic women, and 35% of white women have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner; and 39% of African American men, 27% of Hispanic men, and 28% of white men have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner, according to the Centers for Disease Control; and
WHEREAS, 43 Marylanders died as a result of domestic violence between July 2010 and June 2011 according to the Maryland Network Against Domestic Violence; and
WHEREAS, the Women's Law Center of Maryland provided services to over 800 people who experienced domestic violence in 2010, including: Protection Order advocacy for 769 clients, immigration representation and services for 62 clients, and information and referrals on hundreds of Family Law Hotline calls related to domestic violence; and
WHEREAS, the House of Ruth of Maryland provided services to more than 600 women and children at 13 Baltimore locations in 2010, including: shelter to 114 families and 193 additional women, psychotherapy to over 400 women and children through its Domestic Violence Support Center, and childcare at its Kidspace developmental daycare center; and
WHEREAS, 4,265 Protective Order petitions were filed for protection from domestic violence in Baltimore City between July 1, 2009 and June 30, 2010, with a total of 25,091 such petitions in Maryland District Courts during that year, according to the Maryland Administrative Office of the Courts; and
WHEREAS, the petitioner requesting protection from abuse was represented by an attorney in only 23 of 369 proceedings observed at the Baltimore City Eastside District Court by University of Baltimore Family Law Clinic Court Watch Project between September 19, 2011 and October 14, 2011; and
WHEREAS, survivors of domestic violence experience physical injuries, long-term psychological damage, financial instability, and trouble finding safe housing; and
WHEREAS, police and sheriff's departments, courts, cities, social services agencies, and other local government entities constitute the first line of defense against domestic violence; and
WHEREAS, world leaders and leaders within the United States recognize that domestic violence is a human rights concern; and
WHEREAS, the United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women, adopted in 1993, recognizes the urgent need for the universal application to women of the rights and principles with regard to equality, security, liberty, integrity, and dignity of all human beings; and
WHEREAS, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women has urged the United States government to reassess existing mechanisms for protecting domestic violence survivors and for punishing abusers, stating that "violence against women is the most pervasive human rights violation which continues to challenge every country in the world, and the U.S. is not exception"; and
WHEREAS, on August 17, 2011, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights found the United States in violation of Articles I, II, VII, and XVII of the American Declaration for breaching its duty to protect Jessica Lenahan and her children from domestic violence, also determining that the U.S.'s failure to protect women from gender-based violence constitutes discrimination and denies women their right to equality.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF BALTIMORE, this Body joins world leaders and leaders within the United States in recognition of domestic violence as a human rights concern and declares that the freedom from domestic violence is a fundamental human right.
AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that state and local governments should continue to secure this human right on behalf of their citizens.
AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a copy of this Resolution be sent to the Mayor, the
Honorable Chairs and Members of the Baltimore City Senate and House Delegations to the Maryland General Assembly, the Police Commissioner, the Director of the Mayor's Office of Criminal Justice, and the Mayor's Legislative Liaison to the City Council.
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