Biden marks 30th anniversary of pivotal bill to protect women

President Joe Biden hosted nearly 1,000 survivors and women’s advocates at the White House Thursday to mark the 30th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act. The legislation, originally written by Biden in 1990 when he was a member of the Senate and signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1994, “improved the criminal justice response to violence against women” and “ensured that victims and their families have access to the services they need to achieve safety and rebuild their lives,” according to a fact sheet provided by the White House.

Introducing himself as “Jill Biden’s husband and Ashley Biden’s dad,” Biden talked about VAWA’s successes, saying it “broke the dam of congressional and cultural resistance, brought this hidden epidemic out of the shadows, and began to shift the legal and social burdens away from the survivors onto the perpetrators where they belonged.”

The Biden administration released its U.S. National Plan To End Gender-Based Violence in 2023 with the aim of providing an accessible federal plan that can be used by local municipalities as well as private entities. 

“Today, I am proud to announce a new significant action,” Biden said. “A record of nearly $700 million in grants this year alone to more than 40 VAWA-funded programs in states and tribal communities across the country.”