In San Antonio, remarkable youths are confronting a grim statistic: 1 in 3 women will encounter intimate partner violence before they reach 18, a figure that stands out in Bexar County compared to national averages. Family Violence Prevention Services, Inc. puts this local crisis into stark relief; and in a troubling report, notes that in Texas, the youngest person to fall victim last year was merely 13 years of age, according to Christina Campos, the nonprofit’s director of community integrated services.
The city's Metropolitan Health District released a strategic plan back in January aiming at tackling this violence, setting goals to prevent and reduce these cycles of abuse. Still, San Antonio notably lacks data on teen dating violence, an oversight that Campos criticizes. "If we really want to address abuse and violence, intimate partner violence and family violence, we have to look back to that root, what’s happening with our kids," Campos told the San Antonio Report. The prevalence of such violence has deep roots, often taking hold in homes where violence is observed and thus normalized for the young residents.
An 18-question survey by Teagan House, a student at Brandeis High School, found that 42% of students experienced controlling behaviors in relationships, such as being told whom they cannot see. They also faced shaming, pressure into sexual activity, and received unjust blame, with two-thirds reporting unsolicited and disturbing communications. The survey, which canvassed 100 youths aged 13 to 25, highlighted a distressing reality that a significant portion of the youth face behavior that falls within the spectrum of abuse.
In response to these sobering trends, a local faith-based youth group nicknamed "Nurturing Hope" took up the mantle by assembling a library at the Battered Women’s and Children’s Shelter, as reported by the San Antonio Report. Omer Emre Tunca and fellow peers from the School of Science and Technology leveraged their initiative to support survivors of domestic violence, collecting over $51,000 in academic supplies and more than 5,000 books. This commendable effort was recently honored by the Alliance for Shared Values with a national civic engagement award.
But the challenges in dealing with teen dating violence extend to educational pathways, with Texas lawmakers making it difficult for schools to present domestic and family violence curriculum without parental consent. Campos highlighted the possible dire outcomes of avoiding these sensitive topics, which include suicide and substance abuse. As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) points out, the impacts are wide-ranging, affecting sufferers' mental health and leading to antisocial behaviors, possibly carrying over into adulthood and perpetuating the cycle of violence.
