October 16-22 CAF Family Violence Prevention and Awareness Campaign

To shed light on family violence, and the serious ramifications it has on not only those affected but society as a whole, the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) has designated the week of Oct. 16-22 to launch the CAF Family Violence Prevention and Awareness Campaign.

Family violence is a serious crime that impacts many Canadians and leads its victims to long and arduous paths of recovery.

In 2015, some sort of act of family violence accounted for a quarter of all victims of police-reported violent crime, according to Statistics Canada. Just under half of the victims were victimized by a spouse or ex-spouse, while nearly one in five were victimized by a parent.

Family violence is defined as an abuse of power within a relationship of family, trust or dependency. It encompasses a wide range of abusive behavior including physical abuse, sexual abuse, social abuse and emotional abuse.

The CAF Family Violence Prevention and Awareness Campaign will provide an opportunity for all members of the military community to have an open dialogue on family violence and honest discussions on how to prevent this horrific crime. The hope for this campaign is that the “need for pro-active responses to family violence issues will be established and responsibilities conveyed.”

The week will also highlight the various resources families have available to them including on-base support like the base crisis team, military police, chaplains, social workers and the Family Information Line, as well as resources in the local community.

Check out the Fall edition of the CMF Magazine which features an extended version of the article.