Chicago Says No More | Domestic Abuse Awareness

October 28, 2016

Chicago Says No More: Embrace the conversation

“People I had known for years, who I never suspected were victims, shared their journeys.” By Mary E. Toomey Last year, while organizing an employee awareness event at my company around domestic violence and sexual assault, I learned I did not realize the power silence can have, if we let it. In any setting, including a corporate one like Bank of America, it can be uncomfortable to discuss such a sensitive, serious issue. Yet, creating a safe space for dialogue and simply listening to each other is one of the most important things we as people and as a company can...

October 10, 2016

NEVER TOO YOUNG TO CALL FOR HELP

Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-877-863-6338 By Adela Tobias At 19, I was too young to understand I was in an abusive relationship. I felt lonely and isolated—even though I was in college in Chicago and living with my family and near my friends. One of my classmates who knew my boyfriend mentioned I should think about speaking to a counselor. I knew my parents didn’t like him. My mom saw the signs. I know now even I saw he was controlling. He wasn’t in school with me, but he had to pick me up after every class. If I had known about domestic violence earlier,...

September 30, 2016

WHAT IF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE JUST STOPPED?

By Yesenia Maldonado I was honored to participate in Chicago Says No More: A Call for Hope, sponsored by Verizon, a telethon recently held during the 5 and 6:00pm newscasts on CBS 2 Chicago. As one of 15 trained crisis counselors at this event, I responded to viewers who contacted the Domestic Violence hotline (1-877-863-6338) seeking advice about DV services and resources available to them or to someone they know. As a Steering Committee member of Chicago Says No More, and as Executive Director of Between Friends, an agency preventing and ending domestic violence in Chicago and the northern suburbs, this opportunity...

September 27, 2016

THE LASTING IMPACT OF “A CALL FOR HOPE”

By Gwyn Kaitis CBS 2 Chicago reporter Dana Kozlov hosted Chicago Says No More: A Call for Hope, sponsored by Verizon, on September 19, 2016 during the 5 and 6pm newscasts “Callers are afraid we are going to tell them to leave. We don’t. The decision to leave or stay is up to the individual.” Gwyn Kaitis, MA CDVP, executive director of Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline, 1-877-863-6338 The call volume tripled at the Domestic Violence hotline during the Chicago Says No More telethon on CBS 2 sponsored by Verizon, during the 5 and 6pm newscasts recently. .. …And the phones are still ringing. People in domestic...