To recognize Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, local agency Sarah’s Inn is taking steps to increase awareness surrounding the issue. 

In her visits to local high schools, Sarah’s Inn Prevention Director Tara Crawford realized teens were “struggling with the concept of love.” She noticed many teens had learned a false definition of love from the media they consumed. “We felt it necessary to provide a safe space for youth to break down what love actually is, and how learning what love is can aid them in navigating healthy relationships,” she said.

To reach that goal, Sarah’s Inn’s Youth Committee and Prevention Team is sponsoring two events during the month of February. In 2006, President Obama declared the first week in February National Teen Dating Violence Action Week. Four years later, in 2010, Congress extended that to the entire month of February, which became Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month. 

The first event, Wear Orange Day, will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 7. Orange is the national color of teen dating violence prevention, and schools and organizations around the country join in to spread the message. If you would like to take it a step further, post your orange outfit on social media with the hashtag #orange4love.

The Youth Committee is also hosting a teens-only forum from 6 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 16 at Sarah’s Inn, 1547 Circle Ave. in Forest Park. The theme of the event is “Love Is Learned.” This event will take the form of a structured social gathering, with games, refreshments and group discussions. 

The intent of the evening is to break down what love is and learn how to practice it in a healthy way. There will be conversations about the definitions of love, ways to stay safe, setting boundaries and many other related topics. Members of the Youth Committee will work with facilitators to generate a safe space for teens to discuss their thoughts about love and reflect on their own ideas. 

To participate, see the information at the end of this article about becoming part of the Youth Committee.

As teen dating violence percentages rise, events such as this are absolutely essential. Many teens struggle with their perception of love, which ultimately can lead to devastating, lifelong effects. If teens are educated in the languages of healthy love, intimate partner violence will most likely decrease. 

Teen dating violence is significantly more common than one would expect. In fact, according to DoSomething, a nonprofit focused on youth and social change, 33 percent of adolescents experience some form of abuse in a romantic relationship. Out of that number, many of those teens are unaware they are undergoing abuse, and out of the ones that do, many have no clue what to do about it. 

Awareness on the topic of teen dating violence is scarce, but awareness on action and prevention is even lower. Although there are programs for teens to reach out if they feel they are being abused, many are uninformed about early signs of abuse and unconscious of steps they can take to stay safe. Learning how to love and be loved in a healthy, nourishing way is a privilege a lot of teens are unable to experience. 

Due to the heavy influence of negative media in today’s society, many children witness unhealthy relationship dynamics from a very young age. Television and social media often display love in a way that is destructive to impressionable youths looking to formulate their own ideas about the world. They show relationships with imbalanced power dynamics, abusive language and even occasionally physical violence. 

Since these messages can be found in so many different places, they have become somewhat normalized. Most of present society is familiar with unhealthy love. However, only a small minority has become acquainted with healthy, fulfilling love. This is in part due to lack of information on how to create a truly loving environment in a romantic relationship. 

While education on domestic violence is present in Oak Park schools, learning how to love is not a part of that curriculum. Teens are unsure of their identities and how they connect to the behaviors they wish to display, and this along with relationship anxieties and lack of knowledge on how to be in a healthy romantic relationship can lead to unhealthy and even unsafe circumstances. Fortunately, organizations around the country and within the local community are working to change this. 

The Sarah’s Inn Youth Committee meets every other Thursday to discuss topics such as gender violence, gender gaps and domestic abuse. Community service hours are available if needed. In order to join the committee, go to  https://sarahsinn.org/youth-committee/ and fill out the Google Form embedded in the webpage. Stay informed with the organization’s newsletter by clicking the link directly below the Google Form.