In Washington,
many Senators are struggling whether or not they should add a final law to the
Violence against Women-Act for Indian authorities having the right to prosecute
non-Indians in domestic abuse cases. When the act expired in 2011, the Democratic-led
Senate delayed the decision to renew it because they wanted to “extend new
protections for gays, lesbians, immigrants, and Native American women, while
the Republicans thought that they were “going too far” with their decision.
Sen. Chuck Grassley thought that “forcing non-Indians to Indian courts would
raise a great amount of problems in the constitution, so he decided that it
would be better to have federal prosecutors and magistrates be placed in Indian
country for domestic violence and sexual assault cases. This bill, would gain
authority to prosecute non-Indians who commit domestic violence against their
Indian spouse. In Indian and Alaska Native women, 39 percent are victims to
violence with an intimate partner in their lifetimes, which is way more than
the other races. The federal government has issued grants for states to provide
services such as transitional housing, legal assistance and law enforcement
training to help increase rates of prosecution and conviction of offenders. The
more and more Republicans hold off on the decision, 24 Americans becomes
victims of domestic violence.
Every day, women
in the United States are victims of domestic violence, and I am sure we have
plenty of law and organizations that help those women get out of those harsh
situations and began a new life. Why can’t we do the same thing for other women
in different countries who are being abused by their partner? Although,
Republicans think that this situation is “going too far,” I believe that it is
not going far enough. It is all about saving lives and helping people the best
you can. Sometimes I put myself in the shoes of others and I know that if I
would be abused by my partner, I would want somebody, anybody to come and help
me. Indian and Native Americans also need to fight on their own to get out of
those situations, especially if they know that it could possibly kill them.
Hopefully, the Republicans come to the right decision and do what is best for
women across the world.
Sheila Floyd
February 8, 2013
1:04p.m.
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