Each week one to two teens are arrested each week in Longmont due to teen dating violence. To bring awareness to the issue, the Safe Shelter of St. Vrain Valley along with its partners planted 3,395 red flags outside the Longmont Youth Center at 1050 Lashley St.
Each week Safe Shelter, the Longmont Police Department, LEVI and members of Child Protective Services review recent cases concerning domestic violence. The group has noticed a concerning trend in the Longmont area; the incidents of teen dating violence are high and seem to be increasing, said Jackie List, executive director of Safe Shelter of St. Vrain Valley.
“It is disturbing,” List said.
Police officers and school officials have increased their training to better identify teen dating violence, List said, which could account for the increased number of reports support organizations are seeing.
February is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month. Safe Shelter wants everyone to be aware that this is a serious issue facing Longmont teens. National statistics show that one in every three teenagers are victims of teen dating violence. If that rule is applied to the students in the St. Vrain Valley School District it can be assumed that 3,395 students are victims of the crime right now, List said.
Safe Shelter planted a red flag representing each potential victim in the SVVSD district outside the Longmont Youth Center. Among the sea of red flags are posters detailing how to identify teen dating violence and how to seek help.
Teen dating violence can resemble domestic violence. The abuse can include patterns of coercive, intimidating or manipulative behaviors that are used to exert power and control over one partner. This can include the monitoring of social media, phone or email accounts, isolating an individual from friends and family, extreme jealousy and insecurity, any form of physical harm and more. To learn more about signs that teen dating violence could be happening click here.
Safe Shelter can help those who believe they may be a victim of teen dating violence. The nonprofit keeps all information confidential from parents, police and school officials unless permitted by the victim to talk about the issue. Teens can reach Safe Shelter’s teen advocate by calling 303-722-4422 or by texting 720-340-8372.
“No one deserves this kind of behavior. Especially for young people, for most victims, because it is a manipulation on the part of the offender, believe or think it is their fault, think that they are crazy, believe that they are stupid, because they are being told those things,” List said. “We encourage them to call to get a balance to that and remember who they are and the strengths that they have.”
