If you need help right now: in the U.S., call 911 if you are in danger, or reach the National Domestic Violence Hotline 24/7 at 1-800-799-7233, by texting START to 88788, or by chat at TheHotline.org. In Israel, call 118 (24/7, in Hebrew, Arabic, English, Russian and Amharic) or the police at 100. If you think someone checks your phone or computer, use a device they can’t access.
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month in the United States. For NA’AMAT, it is also a chance to say out loud what our sisters in Israel have taught us over decades of work: abuse thrives in silence, and it loses power when women are believed, supported and given somewhere safe to go.
Whether a woman lives in Tel Aviv or Tucson, the questions she faces are the same. Who can I tell? Where will my children sleep tonight? Will anyone believe me? This month, we want every woman reading this to know the answers, and to know that she is not alone.
The scale of it, here at home
More than 1 in 3 women in the United States, nearly 43.5 million, have experienced physical violence, sexual violence or stalking by an intimate partner during their lifetime. About 16 million women say it first happened before they turned 18 (CDC).
It can also be deadly. Over half of female homicide victims in the U.S. are killed by a current or former male partner (CDC).
Help exists, but it is stretched thin. On a single day last year, September 10, 2025, domestic violence programs across the country served 84,146 adults and children. On that same day, 13,018 requests for help went unmet because programs lacked funding or staff, and most of those unmet requests were for shelter and housing (National Network to End Domestic Violence).
What NA’AMAT does in Israel
More than 200,000 women in Israel are exposed to domestic violence each year (NA’AMAT USA). NA’AMAT was among the first to name the problem: it opened Israel’s first center for the prevention and treatment of domestic violence in Tel Aviv in 1983 (NA’AMAT NOW). Today, its work spans shelter, counseling, legal help and prevention.
- A safe place to stay. The NA’AMAT Center for Women and the Family in Tel Aviv was Israel’s first women’s shelter. It can house up to 30 residents and their children, and it runs a crisis hotline (NA’AMAT USA; NA’AMAT NOW).
- A way to stay out. Because a job can be what keeps a woman from returning to an abuser, the shelter helps residents find work, planning for “the day after” from the moment they arrive (NA’AMAT NOW).
- The Abba Program. Abba means “dad.” This program works with fathers who want to become better parents, need grief counseling, or want to stop the cycle of violence in their own families (NA’AMAT USA). Ending violence means working with men, too.
- Meshanot. NA’AMAT’s Center for Gender Equality in Jerusalem opened in 2022 (Histadrut). Through films, games, workshops and humor, it challenges the stereotypes and attitudes that let abuse go unchallenged (Pausa). It has also hosted events in Jerusalem’s campaign to raise awareness of violence against women (Jerusalem Municipality).
- Eyes and ears in the community. NA’AMAT’s “My Sister’s Keeper” program trains customer-service phone operators at Israeli companies to recognize the signs that a caller or coworker may be in danger. Trained volunteers also watch for women online who may be in abusive relationships and point them to NA’AMAT’s crisis hotline (NA’AMAT NOW).
- Legal help and care for children. NA’AMAT’s women’s rights centers help with domestic violence and other legal issues, and its “Daycare Plus” centers serve children who have been abused or traumatized (NA’AMAT USA).
One fight, one sisterhood
The lessons travel in both directions. In Israel, as in the U.S., the hardest gap to close is often a safe bed: in America, most of the help requests that go unmet are for shelter and housing. NA’AMAT’s shelter shows what it looks like to plan beyond the emergency, toward work, independence and a future.
And programs like Abba, Meshanot and My Sister’s Keeper share a simple idea: domestic violence is not only a crisis to respond to. It can be prevented, by changing attitudes, reaching men, and training ordinary people to notice. The CDC says the same thing about the U.S.: intimate partner violence can be prevented by promoting healthy, respectful relationships and communities (CDC).
When NA’AMAT USA members support this work in Israel, they strengthen a model that our own communities can learn from. And when we speak up at home, we honor the women our sisters in Israel help every day.
Where to get help in the United States
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233, text START to 88788, or chat at TheHotline.org. Free, confidential, 24/7.
- loveisrespect (for teens and young adults): 1-866-331-9474 (U.S. Department of Justice list of hotlines).
- StrongHearts Native Helpline (for Native Americans and Alaska Natives): 1-844-762-8483.
- National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673.
- Know your legal rights: WomensLaw.org explains protective orders and other laws state by state.
- Help for Jewish families: Jewish Women International keeps a directory of programs serving Jewish survivors, including the Shalom Task Force hotline at (718) 337-3700.
- Voting safely: survivors who are worried about their address appearing on voter rolls can find guidance in NNEDV’s safe voting tips.
Where to get help in Israel
- Ministry of Welfare domestic violence hotline: 118, toll-free and 24/7 in Hebrew, Arabic, English, Russian, Amharic and French (UNHCR Israel; Ministry of Welfare).
- Police emergency: 100.
- Sexual assault crisis lines: 1202 for women and 1203 for men (UNHCR Israel).
- NA’AMAT’s family services: learn about the shelter, counseling and the Abba Program at NA’AMAT USA.
How you can help this month
- Learn the signs and listen. If someone confides in you, believe her, don’t judge, and share the hotline numbers above.
- Save the numbers. Put 1-800-799-7233 in your phone. You may be the person someone calls.
- Support survivors in Israel. Give to NA’AMAT USA to help keep the shelter, the Abba Program and NA’AMAT’s prevention work going.
- Share this post. Someone in your life may need it and never ask.
Illustration info: “Don’t Wait for This Flower” is a poster placement project featuring warning signs that indicate a violent and dangerous relationship. The project is an initiative of Na’amat Jerusalem, the Jerusalem Municipality – the Mayor’s Office, the Unit for the Treatment of Women and Violence, the Department for the Advancement of Women, the Visual Arts Department, the Pisga Center Jerusalem West, and the National Authority for Community Security. The exhibition was displayed during November 2024 at various locations across the city, including at the “Meshanot” Center of Na’amat Jerusalem, where the exhibition is still on display today. Concept, design, and illustration: Re-Levant Studio, Art Director: Lital Marcus Morin.
Statistics and phone numbers checked October 4, 2026.
