Dear Brothers,

Black and old gold are my favorite colors, but starting today through the end of October, I am wearing purple. Why? Because today begins the observance of “Domestic Violence Awareness Month” and PURPLE is the international color for this observance.

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity has always taken the lead on critical issues facing our communities and we expect that every member of our 700 chapters will lead by example on this concern too.

Domestic violence in America is daunting and behind every statistic is a human face. For example, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), on average more than three women a day are murdered by their husbands or boyfriends in the United States. In 2005, 1,181 women were murdered by an intimate partner.

 It is imperative that we—both individually and collectively—bring attention to this issue by conducting at least one project this month that brings awareness to the issue of domestic violence. We should also make a contribution to our partner organizations that work to end domestic violence.

To that end, I have appointed Brother Kevin Powell, an  author and activist to serve as the honorary chairman for this month's observance. Brother Powell, a member of Kappa Xi Lambda Chapter in New York, is the author of the new book Open Letters to America (which includes the essay, “Open Letter to An American Woman,” a meditation on the various forms of violence women and girls confront every single day, and why women’s leadership matters, and is needed more than ever). Brother Powell has offered seven things that all brothers and chapters can do to bring about greater awareness:

1)      Turn your Facebook profile or Twitter avatar PURPLE, and encourage everyone in your social network to do the same, for the entire month of October. October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and PURPLE is the international color for domestic violence. OR wear a PURPLE ribbon or something PURPLE throughout the month of October.

2)      Create a domestic violence awareness forum in your community, at your spiritual/religious institution, at your workplace, or at your school, so that you and others, females and males alike, can talk freely about domestic violence, and ways to end it. If you need literature for your gathering, please visit http://www.ndvh.org/resources/resource-download-center/ to download great material.

3)      Share his two essays with males in your community, be they nonviolent males or former abusers, since men and boys are more likely to abuse women and girls rather than the other way around:

·         “Ending Violence Against Women and Girls”

·         “Men Can Stop Domestic Violence”

Both essays can be found out www.kevinpowell.net.

 Still not convinced, visit this site to get critical statistics about who is most likely to be a victim of domestic violence in America: http://endabuse.org/content/action_center/detail/754.

4)      Contact your local domestic violence agency or battered women’s shelter to see if you can volunteer your time. There may be special events where extra hands are needed during October. But you should consider volunteering at any time of year. Domestic violence happens every single day in America.

 5)      Tweet or retweet a link to an article or blog entry about domestic violence. Use Facebook, Digg, Linked-In, and other social networking sites to help promote articles about Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

6)      If you or someone you know has been the victim of domestic violence, PLEASE ENCOURAGE them to get help in the form of counseling, support groups, reading material, etc. AND PLEASE CALL the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−SAFE (7233) or TTY 1−800−787−3224 if you or someone you know needs assistance or guidance immediately.

7)      If you are still not clear on what domestic violence is, please go to this link to get the basic definition: http://www.ndvh.org/get-educated/what-is-domestic-violence/. 

PLEASE share this definition with others, especially women and girls, since women and girls are the most likely group to be the victims of domestic violence.

In addition to Brother Powell’s ideas, I also encourage you to do one of the following:

1. Download a PDF document file, (to be provided by Men Stopping Violence) that offers the basics of what males can do to prevent violence against women and girls.

2. All chapters commit to conducting one domestic-violence-prevention program between October 2009 (Domestic Violence Awareness Month) and April 2010 (Sexual Assault Awareness Month). 
3. Participate in a live stream of an important anti-domestic-violence lecture and workshop led by Brother Powell to be held this Thursday evening, October 1. Persons interested can register for the session at www.liveamerica.com BEFORE 7pm EST Thursday night.

If you need more information, I suggest you visit the following Web site to get critical statistics about who is most likely to be a victim of domestic violence in America:

http://endabuse.org/content/action_center/detail/754\.

 

If you know someone who has been the victim of domestic violence, PLEASE ENCOURAGE them to get help in the form of counseling, support groups, reading material, etc. AND PLEASE CALL the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or TTY 1-800-787-3224 if you or someone you know needs assistance or guidance immediately.

 

If you are still not clear on what domestic violence is, please go to this link to get the basic definition: http://www.ndvh.org/get-educated/what-is-domestic-violence/.

 

I am asking brothers and chapters in the Eastern and Midwestern Regions to make a minimum donation of $50 to Witney Lights by clicking on the following link: http://www.witneyslights.com/Donate.html

 

I am asking brothers in the Southern, Southwest and Western Regions to make a minimum donation of $50 to Men Stopping Violence by clicking on the following link: http://www.menstoppingviolence.org/GetInvolved/donate/donate.php.

 

Please indicate Alpha Phi Alpha in your donation so that the groups can track our donations.

 

Brothers, I thank you for you for taking up this most important cause. We all know someone in our family and inner circle who has been affected by domestic violence. And as I have said in previous communications, if you are a violator, we urge you to stop and to get help quickly. This behavior is unacceptable for any man and especially for a brother of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.

 

Thanks for leading the way and being a light to the thousands of domestic-violence victims. We look forward to hearing about your various activities and contributions.

 

Fraternally,

 

Herman “Skip” Mason, Jr.
General President

Follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/GeneralPrez

Email me at hmason@apa1906.net

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