Since the election, I’ve spent unreasonable amounts of time on various social media. Here, Facebook, Twitter… entirely too much time. But I’m still finding more news I’d likely miss otherwise. Here is my biggest discovery of today: a remarkable “Twitter Storm” by user @RVAwonk, who describes herself as
#Feminist Scientist & Statistics Prof. Health Equity & Racial Justice Advocate. Liberal in my politics & my use of snark.
The thread starts with
Since it’s a long thread, I’ve copied out its section. The spelling, shorted because Twitter forces you to do this (140 chars ain’t much):
If you aren't familiar w/govt grant programs, there are a few important things you should know to understand the repercussions of this... 1/
The grants are supplied by govt., but they go to all sorts of agencies: Non-profits, DV shelters, universities, legal aid providers, etc. 2/
So this is not just cutting a govt agency. This is cutting funds for research on violence prevention. This is closing DV shelters. 3/
This is ending programs to prevent DV, to provide legal aid for victims, to help children exposed to violence, and so much more. 4/
This also ends programs designed to improve criminal justice- and court-responses to victims of DV, SV, & stalking. 5/
These grants fund some of the most impt research that exists on viol. prevention. When you end research, you end the quest for solutions. 6/
My own research has been funded through these grants. Although private funding exists, it cannot take the place of these grants. 7/
Govt-funded grants require much greater accountability & oversight, which leads to better science. Private funding can't do this. 8/
Govt-funded programs also specifically target marginalized women to ensure that they their needs are met - e.g., in rural areas. 9/
These programs also ensure that local jurisdictions are held accountable to a higher body, which promotes justice & transparency. 10/
So this will not just shut down a govt office. This will affect states, counties, towns, families, & women nationwide. In your own backyard.
On average, 20 people/min are physically abused by a partner in the US. That's more than 10 million/yr. They're your friends; your family.
I haven’t seen this elsewhere, but this is just about as clear a description of what these programs do, and what it would mean to lose them.
Update: Patrick Caldwell of Mother Jones is on this story as well.