Governor's Commission on the Status of Women in Illinois Violence Reduction Commissioner Kaethe Morris Hoffer. It is estimated that there are over 300,000 abused women in the State of Illinois. More than 43,000 individuals in Illinois require domestic violence services each year. A total of 16,570 women and children were turned away from domestic violence shelters in 1997 due to lack of space. There is an epidemic of violence in the state of Illinois and throughout the rest of the United States.
Family violence is the most common and least reported crime in America.
An estimated 300,000 Illinois women are battered every year, more than are raped, mugged and involved in car accidents combined. Illinois women cannot succeed if they are afraid for their physical safety. The Violence Reduction Working Groups seeks to eliminate the brutality that takes women out of the workforce and keeps them in a cycle of violence. Our goal is to stop the violence that pervades our society by advocating for legislative initiatives and program implementation to stop the violence that makes victims of our mothers, sisters, daughters and friends. The following are some of the priorities, accomplishments, initiatives and community outreach established by the Women's Health Issues Working Group.