The Link of Violence
National Resource Center on The Link
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The Link of ViolenceNetworking: Links About the LinkThe Link® ProgramsThe Childhood Trust: Communities Networking for People and Animal WelfareThe Childhood Trust is a joint effort of concerned citizens, Children's Hospital Medical Center, and the University of Cincinnati dedicated to stopping the pain of abuse through innovative professional education, evaluation, and treatment. This organization evolved as a result of a meeting held in 1997 of the advisory committee for the Family Violence Project. At this meeting, Dr. Barbara Boat, an associate professor and director for the Childhood Trust, spoke about the link between violence to animals, children, and domestic violence. Members of the committee decided that this was a topic of significance and should be explored further. The Communities Networking for People and Animal Welfare (CN-PAW) is the result of this decision. CN-PAW provides many areas of service focusing on the Link. They regularly have information exchange meetings where participants bring any items to meetings that they think might be of interest. These include videos, pamphlets and publications, articles, and resources. In addition, CN-PAW is dedicated to gathering data relevant to each participating agency and thus both encourages and collaborates on projects that fill this need. Most important, CN-PAW networks to build strong collaborations between members who would not have thought to work together otherwise to address the issue of the Link. The program helps these members see the significance of addressing the issue of violence toward both the human and animal populations together to help fight violence in general. Anyone who cares to join CN-PAW is welcome. It has grown, strictly by word of mouth, to 40 participants. Members meet every six weeks. Agencies and professions represented include battered women's shelters, adult and child protective services, law enforcement, prosecutors, school psychologists, mental health clinicians, child advocacy centers, residential schools and treatment settings, and the courts. For more information on CN-PAW, please contact: The Greenhill Humane Society Domestic Violence Assistance Program: Protecting Women and Their PetsRecent statistics show that animals are abused in 88% of the families where violence is an issue. There is an undeniable connection between domestic violence and animal abuse. In recognizing this connection, the Greenhill Humane Society, established in Lane County, OR, in 1944, and in community partnership with Womanspace, Lane County Domestic Violence Council, Lane County Victim Services, and Sacred Heart Medical Center, offers emergency shelter for companion animals of women at risk. Greenhill will house any companion animal in its confidential network of foster homes, free of charge. The foster care provider will feed and house the animal at the provider's expense until the family can accommodate their pet's safety and care. As a result of this program and other activities, including helping local prosecutors and other groups with cruelty cases, providing information on the Link through literature and presentation, and teaching aspects of humane education, Greenhill has become the leading provider of animal welfare protection services in its region, and the third largest in the state of Oregon. They believe that violence is violence. Abuse is abuse. It does not matter who is the victim of that abuse. All vulnerable populations should be protected. For more information on Greenhill Humane Society and its programs, please contact: The Arizona Humane Society: Saddle UpThe Arizona Humane Society (AHS) was founded to assist those who cannot speak for themselves. AHS is committed to providing programs designed to help both animals and people, and firmly believes the human/animal bond is a healthy and important relationship. AHS has developed many programs that support this commitment and belief, including the Saddle Up program. Saddle Up is a state-licensed equine therapy program where troubled youth work hands-on with horses. The program assists children and teens through the positive structure of individual and group counseling in conjunction with equine care and horseback riding lessons. This creates a feeling of concern, first for the animal and ultimately for other people. Furthermore, this relationship of care, responsibility, and equine skills assists youth in gaining trust in a positive and supportive environment. It is hoped that through this program, troubled children will learn some of the necessary skills needed to become responsible adults. In addition to Saddle Up, AHS offers many other programs that help both humans and animals. These include P.A.L.S., designed to make matches between animals and people over age 60; the Society's Animal Assisted Therapy Program; the Society's Legislative Program; the Pet Food Bank, designed to distribute pet food to families in need; Project Reach Out, designed to provide a solution for the crisis of companion animal overpopulation on the Navajo Nation; and Project SafeHouse, designed to provide shelter for pets of families leaving an abusive situation. For more Information on the Arizona Humane Society and its programs, please contact: The Animal Legal Defense FundAnimal abuse is a crime punishable by law in every state. Intentional cruelty to animals is generally not an isolated incident. Studies conducted during the last 25 years have substantiated the connection between violent behavior directed toward animals and violent crimes against humans and property. A recent Massachusetts study tracked the criminal records of intentional animal abusers and compared them to a control group. It concluded that the people who intentionally abused animals were five times more likely to commit violent crimes against people, four times more likely to commit property crimes, and three times more likely to have a record for drug abuse or disorderly conduct. These statistics, in addition to a myriad of other findings obtained from studies performed in past years, indicate that intentional cruelty to animals is a serious crime and should be treated as aggressively as any other form of violence. The Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) is a national nonprofit organization of attorneys, law students, law professors, and other legal professionals who work to ensure the enforcement of state and federal animal protection laws. To counter the growing problem of cruelty to animals, ALDF regularly provides legal assistance to prosecutors handling cruelty cases and works to strengthen state anti-cruelty legislation. Other pro bono services the ALDF provides include:
For more information about ALDF and its services, please contact: |
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