Louisiana ranks third in the nation based on the number of women murdered by men. Three domestic abuse arrests were made just on Sunday in Lafayette.
Faith House in Lafayette is working to combat domestic violence around Acadiana.
Louisiana has consistently ranked in the top five over the past 10 years of women being murdered by men.
“That’s not our community. We have the biggest hearts and the most supportive people live in here,” says Billi Lacombe. “A small group of people that hurt their family members but those are the ones that we need to address.”
Lacombe is the director at the Faith House in Lafayette.
The organization provides shelter for victims of domestic violence. “We want to continue to help people but we also want to affect social change, so we actually want to make a difference in this horrible crime that we are fighting against.” LaCombe said. “We have to at some point change our focus and change the purpose of what we’re doing a little bit so that we can start to help prevention, and on the flip-side have to provide our services less.”
The mission is fewer victims at its door.
“Our ultimate mission is to work ourselves out of a job so that we no longer have to provide services. It’s a horrible crime, but there can’t be a stop to it,” the director said.
“It’s Got to Stop” is a new campaign that Lacombe says encourages action. “This gives you some active steps that you can do. We know that domestic violence is an issue, but what can you actually do to help address this problem, and if you’re experiencing the issue how can people better support you so that you can be safe and you can make a better life for yourself and your family. Those are the things that we are looking to do with this new campaign that were working on.”
If you are a victim of domestic abuse or know someone who is, visit here for more information about Faith House and the services they provide.