The Erie County Coalition Against Family Violence is a member-driven organization which engages in social change activism to dismantle the root causes of domestic violence at the individual, organizational, and institutional level. Our goal is to end domestic violence.

Domestic Violence is a manifestation of sexism, racism and other oppressions, inherent in the social, historical and political context of the United States of America. Those who benefit from oppression systematically silence those with less power. Therefore, with the goal of establishing and maintaining power and control, any act of domestic violence is a violation of basic human rights.

We believe:

All persons should be free from fear and intimidation and that exerting power and control over another is unacceptable.

Victim's safety must be paramount in all domestic violence efforts.

Victim empowerment and self-determination is essential in all domestic violence efforts.

Perpetrators of domestic violence use coercive tactics to gain and maintain power and control regardless of their gender or type of intimate relationship.

Our culture must hold offenders accountable for their acts of domestic violence.

Systems responsibility is necessary to all domestic violence coordination efforts.

To eradicate domestic violence, we must

Take our leadership and be accountable to those who are battered and oppressed.

Build our change strategies based on their experiences and needs.

Challenge ourselves to reflect on and apply their reality and truths to our understanding of oppressions and how they intersect.

Embrace efforts to alter the culture of oppression found within the United States of America in order to realize comprehensive social change.