Biden’s Plan for Stopping Violence against Women

“It is a massive step backwards. We have literally gone back to the 70s,” Holly Taylor-Dunn, a senior lecturer and domestic and sexual violence and course leader, said in response to the Trump administration making the definitions of domestic abuse and sexual assault significantly less expansive in 2019.

Under the Obama administration, harassment was defined as “unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature” that creates a hostile environment if it is “sufficiently serious.” The new definition argued to be harmful to victims, has to be “severe, pervasive and objectively offensive.”

Another Joe’s Journal article, “How Trump is a Trainwreck for Women’s Rights and Why Biden is Better,” dives deeper into the specifics of Trump and affiliated politicians’ misogynistic and anti-Me Too movement sentiment.

Like many other fundamental rights and laws that should not be partisan issues, the Trump administration has chosen party loyalty over human rights. The fight to end violence against women has, in general, not been a conservative versus liberal issue, as the landmark Violence Against Women Act signed into law by Bill Clinton in 1994 previously garnered support regardless of party affiliation. However, VAWA lapsed in February of 2019 due to disputes between House Democrats and Republicans in the Senate.

The Violence Against Women Act sought to advance legal and community responses to sexual assault and domestic violence by funding rape crisis centers, legal services for victims, and education about these problems, according to the National Domestic Violence Hotline. The legislation reportedly decreased domestic violence in the United States by sixty percent.

Without a renewal, its programs have been placed in danger.

Amendments to the bill, proposed by House Democrats, would tighten gun restrictions for domestic abuse offenders. This led to disputes and the eventual lapse of VAWA as the modifications prompted opposition from the National Rifle Association (NRA). According to Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), leader of Republican negotiations, the House provisions are a “non-starter.” Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence reports that victims of domestic violence are five times more likely to be killed if their abusers have access to guns. Previously, domestic abusers were only barred from purchasing firearms under specific restrictions, including if they were married to, share a child, or live with their victim. Many wanted to eliminate the “boyfriend loophole” this led too, as dating or intimate relationships were not covered, yet victims were still placed under immense risk.

VAWA expiring under the Trump Administration is in stark contrast to the policies of Joe Biden, who champions any action to end violence against women and fight back against physical and economic abuses of power. If elected, he promises to make the reauthorization of VAWA one of his top first 100 day policies. Biden even calls the fight to end violence against women one of the “driving forces” throughout his career on his website. He further explains his dedication and passion for the cause and expresses his pride for his introduction of the 1990 Violence Against Women Act, in his opinion piece written for Time Magazine.

Despite the success of VAWA, there is still much to be done in accomplishing the act’s goals of making women safer and protecting their civil rights. Biden intends on “expanding the safety net for survivors” by providing financial assistance and guaranteeing paid domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking safe leave. His plan also focuses on “empowering and protecting young people” through expanding education on college campuses, training college staff on how to support victims, and strengthening Title IX and Clery Act enforcement. Another initiative is ensuring justice for survivors by providing legal support. Look here to read the many more initiatives and specifics described on his website.

Biden “remains hopeful” in this fight and believes that the “true character of our country is measured when violence against women is no longer accepted as society’s secret and where we all understand that even one case is too many.” Unfortunately, America has regressed under the authority of Trump, expressing an overall anti-women sentiment. But the 2020 election presents new hope, as Biden takes domestic violence seriously, and, as president, will propel the country forward with meaningful legislation.