Every nine seconds, a woman in the U.S. is injured or assaulted by a current or ex-partner. These bleak statistics led to National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, a time when education, empathy and, in some cases, exit strategies are essential.
National Domestic Violence Awareness Month begins with Light Up the Lakefront (Oct. 1) hosted by Between Friends at Ohio Street Beach, where community members are encouraged to light candles in a visual tribute to those affected by domestic violence.
Near the month’s end, Chicagoans are invited to wear purple on Purple Thursday (Oct. 22) to ignite conversations about domestic violence prevention. But not before Universal Family Connection coordinates its annual Domestic Violence Awareness Walk & Run (Oct. 10) to promote advocacy, encourage education, remember victims, honor survivors, and foster healing.
On that note, survivor stories are shared in person, in award-winning movies, and in bestselling memoirs throughout October.
Performance
At the National Museum of Mexican Art, the TZINELAS dance premiere (Oct.1) explores cultural resistance against domestic violence of Latin migrant women.
Kaeli Meno directs What the Constitution Means to Me at the American Legion Tattler Post 973 (Oct. 1-25). Penned by Pulitzer finalist Heidi Schreck, the 90-minute show traces four generations of women in Schreck’s family who discuss domestic violence, sexual assault of a minor, and abortion. As such, it is not recommended for children younger than 12 years.
What the Constitution Means to Me is produced by Ways & Means Theatre, and is presented with the League of Women Voters Chicago, The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence, and the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights.
Streaming
Emerald Fennell and Sarah Polley received Academy Awards for their survival-themed screenplays Promising Young Woman (2020) and Women Talking (2022), respectively.
Domestic abuse is covered in Gaslight (1944). The film was nominated for seven Oscars—with wins for Best Actress (Ingrid Bergman) and Art Direction.
Additional pictures that cover domestic abuse include: The Burning Bed (1984), The Color Purple (1985), Not Without My Daughter (1991), Sleeping With the Enemy (1991), What’s Love Got to Do With It (1993), Dolores Claiborne (1995), Enough (2002), Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005), Madea’s Family Reunion (2006), and Waitress (2007).
Publications
Because October is also National Book Month, Penguin Random House offers the poetic memoirs on sexual abuse and survival: SHOUT (2019) by activist Laurie Halse Anderson and Suffer a Witch (2026) by YA author Joy McCullough.
Additional memoirs on the topic include Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), Sarafina Bianco’s The House on Sunset (2014), Tara Westover’s Educated: A Memoir (2018), Carmen Maria Machado’s In the Dream House (2019), and Tanya Selvaratnam’s Assume Nothing: A Story of Intimate Violence (2021).
To connect with the National Domestic Violence Hotline, call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or click here.