According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, nearly 20 people per minute are abused by a domestic partner, there are more than 20,000 calls to domestic violence hotlines on a given day and between 21 and 60 percent of victims of domestic violence lose their jobs due to reasons stemming from the abuse.

Women between the ages of 18 and 24 experience the highest rate of domestic violence, but 24 percent of domestic violence victims are men, and one in four same-sex relationships have experienced domestic violence. 

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and the Ames and ISU communities are coming together to bring awareness to the topic.

Domestic violence can be more than physical: it can be sexual, emotional, economical and psychological as well, and can involve incidents ranging from a significant other’s text messages to being sexually assaulted by a partner. 

In the Ames community, Assault Care Center Extending Shelter and Support, or ACCESS, is bringing attention to domestic violence in the month of October. ACCESS provides free, confidential care and is open 24 hours, working with survivors of domestic abuse, sexual abuse and other heinous crimes.

Anasia Sturdivant works for ACCESS and said it is important to pay attention to the warning signs in a relationship.

“I want people to not ignore the red flags,” said Sturdivant. “I feel like, as a general population around here and in the United States, we tend to brush it off unless it’s like ‘oh they hit me’, then you’re like ‘now I know to get out,’  and we ignore all the little things that add up to that moment.”

Red flags are warning signs in a relationship that show that a relationship may be unhealthy. To raise awareness about red flags in relationships, ACCESS held their red flag event at the Agora, using physical red flags to represent red flags in an unhealthy relationship. People at the event could write on things they see as warning signs on the flags.

“For example…one person wrote ‘emotional abuse’ and one person wrote ‘going through my phone,’” Sturdivant said. “These little things are the warning signs that, in this relationship, you don’t have as much power and control as the other person.”

Besides the red flag event, ACCESS has other activities going on in October. On Oct. 16, Alpha Chi Omega sorority held their “Desserts After Dark,” philanthropy, which supports ACCESS. On Oct. 24, Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority is holding a candlelight vigil for lives lost to domestic violence at 7 p.m. in the Memorial Union.

Sturdivant spoke about how both many males and female are at risk of domestic violence.

“It’s one in four and and one in six for females to males that will be in an unhealthy relationship,” Sturdivant said. “Over 80 percent of people that come to us that didn’t report to police is usually because they felt that it wasn’t strong enough or important enough.”

Often times, people continue to stay in abusive relationships because it is what they think a normal relationship is supposed to be.

“I feel like a lot of the red flags on campus are the ones that people think of because this is what is normalized in our culture or media,” Sturdivant said.  “Most people don’t communicate; they just text each other and stuff gets lost in translation.”

The problem many face when technology is involved is that laws have not caught up with technology yet.

“We work hand in hand with the ISU PD and Ames PD and try to help them figure out better ways to show that the offender has broken a protective order because usually it’s just a text,” Sturdivant said. “With social media there’s no law that shows everything clearly. It’s so grey still right now.”

A message for those who want to spread awareness for domestic violence: start a conversation.

“Helping people realize themselves that something doesn’t feel right. If those hairs on the side of your arm are popping up…acknowledge those feelings, follow those,” Sturdivant said.

Students can contact ACCESS via the phone or social media. Their number is 515-292-0519 for the domestic abuse crisis line and 515-292-5378 for sexual assault crisis line. All social media can be found through the name Assault Care Center.

ACCESS is also accessible on Thursdays from 10 a.m. to noon at the Margaret Sloss Women’s Center. The Women’s Center is another resource for students who feel they are victims of domestic violence, or any student who just wants to talk. The Women’s Center is located on campus next to Curtiss Hall and it aims to promote social change at Iowa State.

“If anyone would have a personal issue, or they just want to talk, or an academic  issue, we are a great first step directing where you need to go,” said Hannah Robinson, the Women’s Center’s programming intern.

Even if one is not directly a victim of domestic violence, the Women’s Center is a place to go to get information for someone else who may be a victim. They offer resources and make sure whoever has a problem comes up with a mapped plan to find a solution.

“We’re not telling you what to do in any situation, but we’re here to listen and say ‘Well, we have these resources on campus, we have these resources off campus,’ and if you need any help at all we can take it in any direction you want to go,” Robinson said.

According to Robinson, the best thing ISU students and faculty can do is be aware that domestic violence happens. While social media generates a certain amount of awareness, the Green Dot program through Student Wellness focuses on creating an atmosphere that does not accept violence.

Robsinson’s advice for those who are scared  they are a victim of domestic violence is to tell someone who you are comfortable sharing things with, and make sure you are safe. The Women’s Center is open to students 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, or their emails can be found on their website.

A new organization on campus, the YWCA, is kicking off this week. The club’s slogan is “eliminating racism empowering women,” and the club is celebrating a ‘Week Without Violence’ this week.

Sarah Holliday has been a YWCA board member since last November, and is in charge of starting the student-run club.

“Anyone who shows up that is interested in being part of the club, we’d like to get ideas on what they’d like to go to and see and hear and what kind of club meetings they would like to hold because it’s really supposed to be run by the students,” Holliday said.

Learning to to talk about domestic violence is one of the things Holliday hopes the club teaches students. They also hope to get involved with activism, whether it be hosting or attending events.

For more information on YWCA, contact Sarah Holliday at [email protected].