By: Conor Gearin and Mike Majchrowicz

The role of journalists is to seek out the truth and report it; Lauren Taylor, a volunteer at Middle Way House, reminded the students at the High School Journalism Institute at Indiana University Bloomington that their pursuit of the truth extends to their personal lives as well—that they should never overlook injustice in any situation.  

Taylor presented on teen dating abuse, the injustice her organization fights against. Though many of the students have heard presentations about unhealthy relationships, the presentation deepened their understanding of the issue, giving them ways of identifying abusive relationships among their friends and family and a firsthand account of dating abuse.

Taylor, who graduated from Indiana University Bloomington in 2005, majored in History and Political Science. She believes her major allowed her to focus on social movements and change, which she can now help to bring about through her work as a youth advocate at Middle Way House.

For Taylor, her work at Middle Way House is not merely a job, but a vocation. Though she was not personally involved in an abusive relationship, Taylor witnessed friends suffering from controlling partners. This experience motivated her to work for victims of abuse and led her to Middle Way House, an organization that provides services to victims of abuse and aims to prevent abuse by educating young people about the issue, as in Taylor’s presentation.

In addition to education programs, Middle Way House, based in Bloomington, Ind., runs a 24/7 hotline for anyone in need of counseling or immediate assistance for matters of relationship health. Middle Way House also runs a domestic violence crisis center, a rape crisis center, and transitional facilities for victims and their families who are not financially ready to handle the crisis; the center keeps advocates on staff who specialize in law practice for victims in need of legal services.

Taylor wanted to debunk the myth that dating abuse is always physical abuse—mental and emotional abuse can be just as scarring, though less visible to others. People often do not realize that their friends are victims.

“Even if they do recognize that it’s abuse, they may not recognize that it’s as serious as it is,” said Taylor.

According to Taylor, one in five girls in a serious relationship worries about being physically abused by their partner. However, not all abuse takes this form—one in four teens say that their boyfriend or girlfriend has kept them from spending time with friends or family and instead pressured their partner to stay with them.

The presentation included a video of a girl named Anya, who was abused as a young teenager by two boyfriends. Taylor used the video to illustrate that, as in Anya’s case, abuse often takes the form of possessive jealousy and isolating the victim from others, even when physical abuse does not occur.

Taylor explained that while healthy relationships are based on equality and good communication, unhealthy relationships are based on power and control.  A common way to tell if someone is being abused is if he or she seems depressed, ashamed to talk about his or her relationship, or denies that he or she is being mistreated, Taylor said. Abusive partners often behave with extreme jealousy, constantly demanding to know where their boyfriends or girlfriends are or keeping them from seeing other people their age or even the victim’s own family.

Taylor said the most important thing to do if one thinks a friend or family member is being abused is to talk to the victim about the problem.

 “A lot of times people haven’t had the chance to explain or talk about what they’re going through,” said Taylor. However, while it is important for a friend to express concern, the friend must also allow the victim to make his or her own choices, empowering rather than controlling him or her—only if the victim’s physical safety is in danger should one break confidentiality with the victim and tell an authority, according to Taylor.

 “You may think that your friend needs to leave the relationship right now. But even though those are your beliefs, it’s really important, instead of taking control, when someone else is trying to control them, to let them regain control over their own lives and make those choices for themselves,” Taylor said.

Taylor said that her audience has a responsibility to fight against dating abuse.

“We think that there’s a lot of ways that you and me as people in general, in the community and schools, as journalists who might be covering these kinds of issues, can stand up and speak out about this, and call attention to an issue that we think is really important,” said Taylor.

Students said that the presentation included many things they had heard before but also provided valuable new perspectives on the issue.

“I’ve heard of Middle Way before and I’ve gotten the presentation,” said Ellie Fuqua of Bloomington High School South. However, she said that the video of Anya, which she had not seen before, had a big impact on her due to its personal story. “My opinions haven’t changed, but I think I know more information,” Fuqua said.

Brad Morrison of Jennings County High School agreed with Taylor that mental and emotional abuse is just as real as physical abuse, but he believes that physical abuse is still more damaging than other forms. “I think that if you are physically abused, then … you get the mental abuse,” he said. However, Morrison said that the presentation prepared him to see the signs of all forms of dating abuse.

“I feel like all the warning signs that she gave us can definitely help,” said Alex Schwent of Avon High School. Schwent echoed Taylor, saying that friends “may not realize that they are in abusive relationships,” but knowing the warning signs, one is able to recognize abuse and help the victim.

I came to HSJI in desperate need of information. Quite frankly, I had no idea what I needed to do to create a successful newspaper. So I sat through lectures, took notes, and exchanged ideas. HSJI focused a large amount of time on multimedia news reporting: Web sites, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube. Soon, I began to realize that my position was the perfect opportunity to propel the Viking Press into the future of journalism. So, one of my staff members and I worked together this week to set up a Web site and create Viking Press accounts on all the major social networking sites. 

I have begun to see how I can create an impressive news reporting system with a limited number of people. Therefore, I’m leaving HSJI with restored hope and new determination, and for that, I can’t praise this program enough. 

Relationship abuse is not just physical violence or sexual assaults; in fact it covers a wider span of problems including fear for ones safety or emotional trauma.

According Liz Claiborne Inc., 81 percent of parents believe teen dating violence is not an issue; however issues in teen relationships should not be dismissed. Some may be surprised to learn that one in three teens report to know someone who has been physically injured in a relationship, yet only 33 percent of teens in abusive relationships have told someone about their situation.

We, the Western Union staff, believe numbers and statistics like those prove society’s need to wake up and start searching abusive symptoms in their communities. Overly jealous partners, isolation from friends and feeling depressed are possible indicators of unhealthy courtship. Power and control struggles often lead to the breakdown of functioning relationships, which may lead to different levels of emotional, physical or even sexual oppression.

Once a few of the tell-tale warnings have been noticed, offering help, advice and friendship to the target of abuse is critical. We know that it is crucial to let those in detrimental relationships know that they have people around them who want to listen, make aid available and remind them that they have done nothing to deserve such poor treatment. Additionally, seeking professional aid for survivors of abuse through organizations such as the Middle Way House is an exceptional way to make assistance attainable and effective.

Overall, teen relationship violence should not be taken lightly; everyone should learn the warning signs, watch for indications of mistreatment and lend a hand to teens with abusive partners.

Be creative and ready to launch your newspaper into the word on online communication.

Students browse for creative feature ideas that will be transferred to their school web sites.

Photo by M. C. Moore