The City of West Hollywood, in recognition of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, will light the globe lanterns above Santa Monica Boulevard and the West Hollywood City Hall building located at 8300 Santa Monica Boulevard in purple from Tuesday, October 15, 2024 through Monday, October 28, 2024.

The City of West Hollywood’s awareness efforts will highlight the impact of domestic violence/intimate partner violence in the LGBTQ+ community and through the lens of Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Expression (SOGIE) as well as the intersection of other dimensions of diversity including age and ability status by sharing information and resources with the community about the various types of intimate partner violence, and where to get help. 

As part of the month’s activities, the City will join national and local organizations in participating in the “Purple Day” campaign, a social media action day to be held on Thursday, October 17, 2024 urging people to flood social media with pictures of themselves wearing purple to raise awareness about domestic violence and work to end it. The City will also host a community-based temporary display of silhouettes symbolizing people killed by domestic violence and intimate partner violence called Silent Witness. The Silent Witness Initiative promotes an end to domestic violence through community-based exhibits and education that started with a small group of volunteers in one state and grew into an international presence, with projects in all 50 States and in 23 countries. The Silent Witness silhouettes will be displayed with anti-violence messaging at various locations in West Hollywood through the month of October.   

According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, in the United States, more than 10 million adults experience domestic violence annually. On average, nearly 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States. On a typical day, domestic violence hotlines receive more than 20,000 calls, an average of close to 15 calls every minute. 

Domestic violence is prevalent in every community and affects all people regardless of age, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, gender, race, religion, or nationality. Domestic violence, also referred to as intimate partner violence, which is abuse or aggression that occurs in a romantic relationship. It occurs in same- and opposite-sex relationships, and among those who are married, in long-term, and short-term relationships.

Domestic violence can take many forms; in addition to physical abuse, it can include sexual abuse, verbal abuse, emotional abuse, intimidation, controlling behaviors, isolating behaviors, and economic abuse. The devastating consequences of domestic violence and intimate partner violence can cross generations and last a lifetime, from adolescence to young adulthood to older age. Approximately 1 in 4 women and 1 in 10 men have experienced sexual violence, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner during their lifetime. Disability affects more than 1 in 4 women and 1 in 5 men in the United States and has been associated with a greater risk of experiencing violence compared to people without a disability.  

According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, domestic violence can occur in LGBTQ relationships at rates equal to or even greater to that of cisgender/heterosexual relationships. Statistics indicate that:

• 44% of lesbians, 61% of bisexual women and 35% of heterosexual women experience rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetimes;

• 26% of gay men, 37% of bisexual men and 29% of heterosexual men experience rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetimes; and

• The 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey found that more than half (54%) of transgender and non-binary respondents experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetimes.

The following resources are provided on the City of West Hollywood’s website at www.weho.org/dvipv. If you or someone you care about has been a victim of domestic violence/intimate partner violence, sexual assault or stalking, there are resources to help:

• The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence website at https://ncadv.org offers comprehensive and inclusive information for all about warning signs of domestic violence and abuse and resources for assistance.

• The National Domestic Violence Hotline website at www.thehotline.org offers immediate help to everyone  24/7/365 via the “chat now” button on the website or by calling 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or texting LOVEIS to 22522, and for people who are Deaf/hard of hearing: 1-855-812-1011 (VP) or 1-800-787-3224 (TTY).

• Immediate help if you are experiencing domestic violence and in need of shelter is also available via the Los Angeles County Domestic Violence 24- hour Support Services by contacting 1-800-978-3600.

• The Los Angeles LGBT Center offers domestic violence/partner abuse counseling services geared toward the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities by contacting (323) 993-7649.  

• The Jewish Family Service - Hope program offers assistance and crisis services for survivors of domestic violence. The confidential 24-hour crisis line is able to assist English, Spanish, Farsi, and Armenian speaking callers, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by contacting (818)505-0900 and  www.jfsla.org/fvp.

• Peace Over Violence provides one-on-one intervention by contacting the 24-hour hotline (310) 392-8381 and provides accessible services for victims of sexual and domestic violence who are deaf, hard of hearing, have a disability and/or elder individuals at (213) 785-2684.

• Love Is Respect National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline provides 24/7 intimate partner violence help and support to young people between the ages of 13 and 26 by contacting 1-866-331-9474; TTY 1-866-331-8453 or text LOVEIS to 22522.

• The National Deaf Domestic Violence Hotline (NDDVH) is available to Deaf callers across the nation 24/7 by phone or videophone by contacting 1-855-812-1001 or email at nationaldeafhotline@adwas.org. Callers using a voice phone will be connected to an interpreter for duration of the phone call. 

• The SPCA-LA Animal Safety Net provides temporary homes for pets of domestic violence survivors by contacting 1-888-527-7722.

Learn how to help end domestic violence and intimate partner violence by contacting the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence (the Partnership), California’s recognized domestic violence coalition, representing over 1,000 advocates, organizations and allied groups throughout the state. For more information, go to www.cpedv.org/get-involved or call (916) 444-7163. 

For more information about Domestic Violence and Intimate Partner Violence Awareness Month, please contact Larissa Fooks, City of West Hollywood Community Programs Coordinator, at (323) 848-6413 or at lfooks@weho.org. For people who are Deaf or hard of hearing, please call TTY (323) 848-6496.

For up-to-date information about City of West Hollywood news and events, follow @wehocity on social media, sign-up for news updates at www.weho.org/email, and visit the City’s calendar of meetings and events at www.weho.org/calendar. West Hollywood City Hall is open for walk-in services at public counters or by appointment by visiting www.weho.org/appointments. City Hall services are accessible by phone at (323) 848-6400 and via website at www.weho.org. Receive text updates by texting “WeHo” to (323) 848-5000.

For reporters and members of the media seeking additional information about the City of West Hollywood, please contact the City of West Hollywood’s Public Information Officer, Sheri A. Lunn, at (323) 848-6391 or slunn@weho.org.