Abuse Isn’t Just Physical

A group of students at the University of Maryland recently created a PSA to raise awareness about teen dating violence. The PSA, titled Abuse Isn’t Just Physical, informs viewers of the different types of abuse and provides statistics on how dating abuse affects college students. The spot also does a great job of highlighting that anyone can be a victim, regardless of their race, gender or sexual orientation.

When sharing her reasons for making the PSA, student Isabela Lessa said, “I’ve seen close friends experience abusive relationships and so I’ve seen first-hand how damaging they can be. Anything we can do to create and spread awareness helps.” Nadia Saleem, another member of the PSA team added, “Since coming to college I’ve met a couple of people who are in abusive relationships and I think that it’s really important that they understand about the abuse before they get trapped by marriage or kids.” Check out their PSA here!

There are many reasons why raising awareness is important. Whether big or small, the bottom line is to speak out to make a difference. At Break the Cycle, we encourage, support and recognize the work of youth who take action to stop dating abuse. Our hats off to these inspiring young activists who created this great PSA:

Isabela Lessa
Ashraf Anum
Chelsea Fonden
Ashley Jones
Arielle Lowe
Nadia Saleem
Lisa Scott
Talia Tossone
Stephanie Von Numers
Courtney Ward