Welcome to The Center Against Domestic Violence Blog!
We need your help!
RAPP, our Teen Relationship Relationship Abuse Prevention Program is in jeopardy because it's funding has been removed entirely from Mayor Bloomberg's preliminary budget!
RAPP serves over 50,000 teens in 5 middle schools and 57 high schools all acrosee New York City. It teaches teens how to have healthy relationships, how to recognize abuse in a relationship, and how to help themselves as well as others that they may know who are already involved in an abusive relationship.
RAPP accomplishes this objective through the use of Social Workers and Peer Leaders to reach out to teenagers through education and open discussion. This model program has received nationwide recognition and has shown itself over and over to be working!
Don't take my word for it; read a little bit about Jeanette and decide for yourself!
The Bronx Theatre High School social worker referred Jeanette to RAPP in April 2008. Beautiful and sad, Jeanette’s troubled relationship was affecting all the aspects of her life. She was cutting school, her health was suffering and she dropped out of her play. This is Jeanette’s story.
My boyfriend and I were so happy and in love until I cheated. After he found out, he was angry. I felt so guilty that I let him treat me badly. I felt worse and worse. I used to be a good student. Then it was all I could do to come to school.
I started to see Ms. Lauren, the RAPP Coordinator at my school, for counseling. We talked about teen relationship abuse. I saw that what Jamal was doing was abuse, and even if I made a big mistake, I deserved to be treated with respect.
Toward the end of my junior year, I applied to be in the RAPP Summer Program to become a Peer Leader. I loved it. Being a Peer Leader was my best summer job. I felt like a new person. I felt like a leader. My old self confidence was coming back. The end of the summer was also the end of Jamal and me. I entered my senior year and I needed to focus on taking care of myself. RAPP totally saved me from that unhealthy relationship.
I still see Ms. Lauren every week for individual counseling. She wrote me a recommendation for Howard University where I hope to be accepted to study psychology so I can help other people the way RAPP helped me.
Ready to help? This is what we need you to do!
Contact Mayor Bloomberg by clicking here and urge him to restore Teen RAPP to the Executive Budget! !!!!
Please get the word out to as many people as you can through you Twitter, Facebook, or MySpace accounts!
You can also assist us by donating whatever amount you can to assist us in stopping relationship violence by clicking here for our online donation page or mail your donation to:
Development Office
Center Against Domestic Violence
25 Chapel Street, Suite 904
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Any amount is appreciated!!
