From Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/k-sujata/violence-against-women-act_b_2457091.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices&ir=Gay%20Voices
K. Sujata
01/11/2013
A new year, a new presidential term, and a new Congress should mean a fresh agenda, but in 2013, that is far from our reality. What started out as “high hopes” for the 113th Congress has transformed into disapproval and disappointment, and we are only into the second week of January. A recent poll shows that Congress is less popular than some of the most detested events and annoyances in American culture.
I couldn’t agree more. The new year started out with the looming fiscal cliff and in the midst of that deal, Congress discussed the impact of the resolution on the economic security of our nation. They argued that averting the fiscal cliff meant securing the long-term economic stability of Americans.
Some important victories for women came out of that agreement but there were some detrimental exclusions such as the lack of any clear next steps for the debt ceiling and additional deficit reduction. The fiscal cliff deal also threatens Head Start programs and protection of the programs that women and families rely on most, including Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act.
While Congress was busy arguing about the fiscal cliff, they also ignored other priorities like the pending expiration of an indispensable bill for women’s economic security: the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). When the House failed to vote and renew VAWA, they sent a clear message to women voters that their safety and security from sexual and domestic violence is not important.
Initially passed in 1994, VAWA has received bipartisan support in every reauthorization until 2012. Problems for VAWA began in April 2012 when the Senate introduced a version of the bill that included three new provisions:
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