DC Coalition Against Domestic Violence
2008 Candidate Questionnaire
Section I Background Information
Candidate’s Name David Schwartzman
Position and District At Large, DC City Council
Mailing Address 1634 Montague St. NW, Washington, DC 20011
Phone 202-829-9063 Fax 202-319-7193
E-Mail dschwartzman@gmail.com
Current Position or Occupation Professor, Howard University
Campaign staff’s name, address and phone number
Renee Bowser, Campaign Chair, 5322 2nd St. NW, D.C., 202-882-1733
Dave Bosserman, Campaign Manager, 1739 Irving St NW, D.C., 202-483-4165
The District of Columbia Coalition Against Domestic Violence (DCCADV) is a “statewide”, non-profit organization serving as the professional association for the District’s domestic violence service providers and is the primary representative of battered women and their children in the public policy arena. Members of DCCADV share the goal of ending domestic violence through community education, public policy development, and services for survivors.
Domestic violence occurs in many District families, regardless of race, socio-economic status, religion, education, and political party affiliation.
Candidate Name: David Schwartzman
Section II Issues
I. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA FUNDING FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SERVICES AND PROGRAMS
Research shows that nearly ¼ of the District’s female population is likely to experience domestic violence during their lifetimes, meaning there may be as many as 75,000 victims in the city. Approximately 10 victims are turned away daily by our member organizations because they do not have the capacity or resources to meet the existing need. The majority of other jurisdictions provide funding for services and programs through a designated line item in their states’ budgets. The District of Columbia is not one of them. In the District, domestic violence victims have been strongly impacted by the lack of locally appropriated funding for critical domestic violence services and programs as well as continued federal funding decreases.
Do you support a domestic violence line item in the DC Budget and would you champion the appropriation of adequate local funding to sustain and create life saving services for domestic violence victims?
x SUPPORT ○ OPPOSE
Comments: I have testified at DC City Council Hearings on numerous occasions for adequate funding for the all of the social service programs necessary for victims of domestic violence (more below).
II. TEEN DATING VIOLENCE
The District of Columbia has one of the highest rates of teen dating violence in the United States. Abused teens are often denied legal protections and services outright, and the legal remedies available to teens vary by judge. Additionally, many teenagers are afraid to seek services because they are concerned that their parents might be notified.
Would you support legislation that protects the rights of teen victims to seek services and legal remedies without mandating parental notification?
x SUPPORT ○ OPPOSE
Comments:
III. EMPLOYMENT
Many domestic violence victims encounter difficulty in maintaining employment because of violence in their homes or relationships. When employers discover that an employee is a domestic violence victim, it is not uncommon for employers to fire the victim because they worry that violence may spill over to the workplace, or batterers may harass victims at work and cause disruptions. One recent study showed that 24% of victims have been late to work or had to take leave from work (to seek emergency medical care for example) because of the violence. Employers may also terminate a victim’s employment solely because the employee is a victim. Recent studies have shown that 25% - 50% of victims have been fired from their jobs because of domestic violence.
Do you support legislation that would outlaw employment discrimination against victims of domestic violence?
X SUPPORT ○ OPPOSE
Comments:
IV. CHILD CUSTODY
When leaving an abusive relationship, domestic violence victims often seek sole custody of their children to ensure the children’s safety from the abusive parent. Studies have shown that approximately 50% of batterers also abuse their children. Additionally, research reveals that batterers frequently use child custody as a vehicle to control and harass their partners, and they are twice as likely as non-batterers to seek sole custody of children. Unfortunately, studies have consistently revealed that adjudicated and accused batterers are awarded joint or sole custody in up to 2/3 of cases, putting the safety of their children and former partners at risk.
Do you support strengthening the Districts custody statute to ensure that domestic violence perpetrators are not awarded sole or joint custody of their children?
X SUPPORT ○ OPPOSE
Comments:
V. IMMIGRANT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VICTIMS
Cultural influences and language can create barriers which prevent immigrant victims of domestic violence from reaching out for help. The District has one of the highest immigration rates in the country. Therefore, ensuring that immigrants can access services in their own languages from government agencies, such as the Metropolitan Police Department, is critical to saving lives. Although government agencies have been mandated to provide language access to immigrants through the DC Language Access Act, the most recent compliance report reveals an alarmingly high rate of partial compliance with the law.
Do you support strengthening the implementation of this law to allow for stricter enforcement and penalties when victims are unable to access language services from government agencies?
X SUPPORT ○ OPPOSE
Comments:
VI. ADDRESS CONFIDENTIALITY
In the District, personal information from voters’ registrations and drivers’ licenses can be accessed through public records, thereby compromising victims’ safety. A batterer can easily obtain the address of a victim, thereby, placing the victim at a greater risk of violence. It is imperative that victims fleeing domestic violence are guaranteed legal safeguards when relocating. The Address Confidentiality Program is designed to protect the confidential location of domestic violence victims. The program provides victims with a legal substitute address. Under the program, a government agency serves as an agent to collect and forward all first class mail to victims, thereby retaining the confidentiality of a victim’s location. The District does not currently have such a program.
Do you support implementing an Address Confidentiality Program for victims of domestic violence?
X SUPPORT ○ OPPOSE
Comments:
Section III Short Answers
1. On a scale of 1 to 5 (5 being the highest), how would you rate domestic violence as a public safety and public policy priority? Please explain your response as it relates to your election platform and/or other campaign priorities.
I would rate it as 4, just behind the shocking and persistent poverty endured by so many of our residents, especially our children (30% poverty rate in the capital of the so-called free world). Domestic violence should be approached as a public health problem. Non-violent conflict resolution should be an educational priority in our schools and communities.
2. Have you proposed legislation relating to domestic violence or taken part in anti-domestic violence campaigns/efforts? Please be specific.
No, not specifically on anti-domestic violence issues, but I certainly plan to once on the Council. My advocacy over the years, representing the DC Statehood Green Party, has focused on increasing the District budget so that it can truly meet the longstanding needs of our low income/working class majority. I am a charter member of the Fair Budget Coalition, and participated in many of their campaigns and demonstrations starting with the imposition of the Control Board with its devastating impacts on the low income community. More recently I became a participant in the Poverty Reduction Coalition, after testifying at Councilmember Barry’s hearing on this issue in January. My extensive testimony on these issues can be found at: http://www.dcstatehoodgreen.org/testimony.
3. What do you think are the most pressing domestic violence issues in D.C.?
While domestic violence surely occurs even among the most affluent, the District’s high and persistent poverty is a critical factor promoting domestic violence. We must address the root causes with a comprehensive poverty reduction strategy. This must entail full funding of substance abuse treatment and of course truly affordable housing for all in need. Long term intervention is imperative, optimally in a residential setting with provision of child care, comprehensive substance abuse and of course if required HIV/AIDS treatment programs, mental health counseling and job training. We can generate the revenue required for these programs by implementing District tax fairness, i.e., making our present regressive District tax structure progressive by reducing the tax rate for the working class majority, raising it for DC millionaires, as well as insuring that potential federal funding is applied for and processed by a competent District administration.
4. If elected or re-elected to the D.C. Council, what steps will you take to ensure that domestic violence victims are provided with legal rights to promote their safety and well being?
My office will be a resource center for both the necessary legislation and organizing effects to insure legal rights are guaranteed and protected by the District government.
