On Feb. 28, while Albany Law School students were listening to a guest lecture from Rashida Manjoo, the United Nations special rapporteur on Violence Against Women, members of the U.S. House of Representatives (including all but one from New York) reauthorized the Violence Against Women Act.
Just days earlier, Ms. Manjoo urged Congress to do just that. The law contains expanded protections for Native American and Alaskan Native women, LGBT victims and immigrant victims and their children.
Although somewhat coincidental, the presence of Ms. Manjoo in the Capital Region on the day of VAWA's reauthorization is most fitting. After several failed attempts in the last few sessions of Congress, the passage of an inclusive VAWA could only be achieved through a nationwide coordinated campaign of advocates, many of whom are found right here. Just this year, students of Albany Law School worked with community partners led by the Albany County Coalition Against Domestic Abuse to successfully urge the Albany Common Council and the Albany County Legislature to pass statements declaring freedom from domestic violence to be a fundamental human right.
From international efforts at the United Nations, to national efforts through the National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence Against Women, to grass-roots efforts here in Albany — it takes a coordinated effort to overcome partisan posturing in order to strengthen the ability of our federal government to fulfill its duty to prevent and punish domestic violence.
SARAH ROGERSON
Professor
Albany Law School
Director, Family Violence Litigation Clinic & Immigration Project