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Biden places burden on men

‘It’s never the woman’s fault’
Vice President Joseph Biden participates in a roundtable discussion about domestic violence Friday at SafeHouse Denver. Also attending are Rose Andom, center, of the Rose Andom Center and Dr. Kathryn Wells of Denver Health.

DENVER – Vice President Joe Biden joined a roundtable discussion in Denver on Friday during which he highlighted the role men should play in changing the conversation around domestic violence.

The vice president – speaking at SafeHouse Denver, a domestic violence assistance center – repeatedly emphasized domestic violence is never the fault of a woman, and that men need to step up to curb such senseless incidents.

“We will have won when every young woman in America knows it is never, never appropriate to ask, ‘What did I do,’” Biden said. “It is never, never, never the woman’s fault.”

His remarks came just a short while after NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell acknowledged he “got it wrong” when it came to the recent Ray Rice incident. Video of Rice shows the Baltimore Ravens running back punching his then-girlfriend in an elevator. The woman is now his wife.

The incident has gotten worldwide attention, amplifying the conversation around domestic violence.

Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson also is accused of abusing his child, which has added to the dialogue, but in a different light.

Biden pointed to a new White House campaign – announced Friday – that aims to engage men in the conversation. The “It’s on Us” campaign asks men especially to sign a pledge to fight domestic violence. It also includes messaging around curbing violence against women on college campuses.

“That’s manhood,” Biden said. “That’s being a man. Turning away when you see a fraternity brother take an obviously completely thoroughly drunk woman and head to his room, you have a moral obligation, you are a coward if you do not stop him.”

The vice president was invited to the roundtable discussion by Denver Mayor Michael Hancock. Hancock wanted to thank Biden for pushing the Violence Against Women Act when he was a U.S. senator. The act became law in 1994.

Hancock is no stranger to domestic violence, and he has a horrific story to go with the conversation. His sister, Karen Hancock, was a victim of domestic violence in 2002 after she was fatally shot by her boyfriend.

“Our goal here today is to shed light on the issue of domestic violence in our community,” Hancock said. “It is absolutely not tolerated.”

Denver is in the process of building a one-stop center for domestic-violence victims. The $13 million Rose Andom Center is being built with donations from the community. The center is expected to open this fall after a jump start from Rose Andom, a longtime domestic violence services advocate who attended the roundtable.

Also attending the roundtable were domestic violence victims, their advocates, prosecutors and law enforcement.

Hancock said there are at least 4,000 cases of domestic violence per year in Denver. He said many more are not reported.

“This senseless violence is devastating to our communities, devastating to our children,” Hancock said.

The media was only allowed to report on remarks by Biden and Hancock because of the sensitive nature of the stories told by victims.

Biden acknowledged that with the recent NFL stories, it might seem like little progress is being made. But he said the stories force Americans to “look this god awful virulent form of violence in the eye.”

“People say, ‘Joe, isn’t this evidence that things haven’t gotten better,’” Biden said. “No. It’s evidence that the public is saying, ‘We’re not going to put up with this.’”

pmarcus@durangoherald.com



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