The National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence — the NTF — has long been recognized as a “front group.” A 2013 article revealed:
The National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence Against Women (NTF), a front group for organizations dependent on the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) grant funding, recently released a highly flawed and misleading review of why the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (S. 47) is an effective piece of legislation. The NTF’s “fact sheet” plays fast and loose with the facts about the effectiveness of the VAWA….Members of Congress should be weary of special interests, like the NTF, that will say anything to continue raiding the federal treasury.
On March 1, 2018, an observance of the 24th Anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act took place in the Capitol Visitors Center in Washington, DC. Co-hosted by Senators Chuck Grassley and Dianne Feinstein, the event was organized by the NTF – see top line in white letters (click on image to enlarge):
Despite its long-standing influence on domestic violence policy, most persons have never heard of the NTF. So what is this group’s mission, who are its leaders, and how does it operate?
Secret Organization
The mission of the National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence is reflected in its website address: www.4vawa.org, “For VAWA.” Its website modestly states, “The NTF was critical in the passage and continues to mobilize for reauthorizations of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).”
But information on its leadership and operations is non-existent. The NTF website is devoid of essential information such as:
- Mailing address
- Telephone number
- Email address
- Legal status
- Names of member organizations
- Membership criteria
- Steering committee members
- Funding sources
More troubling is the difficulty in obtaining legal or financial information about the National Task Force. Searches of the following online databases yield no results regarding the NTF:
- IRS Employer Identification Number search
- IRS Exempt Organizations Select Check
- GuideStar, described as the “most complete, up-to-date nonprofit data available”
Even formal Congressional filings from the NTF are printed on letterhead that bears no name, address, or telephone number:
- Letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee opposing the nomination of Jeff Sessions as Attorney General
- Letter to senators opposing a Department of Homeland Security policy
- Letter to representatives opposing the Enforce the Law for Sanctuary Cities Act
The National Task Force has no public address or telephone number, and its legal existence and status cannot be confirmed. Many Congressional staffers who have dealings with the NTF do not disclose even the name of the group to outside stakeholder organizations.
Renouncing Science
The ideological stance of the NTF is evident by how it characterizes the domestic violence problem. The federal National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence survey reveals rates of intimate partner violence that are nearly identical between men and women (Tables 4.7 and 4.8). But a word search of 18 Action Alerts issued by the NTF since November 17, 2016 reveals the phrase “violence against women” is repeatedly used, while the words “violence against men” do not appear even once.
The Centers for Disease Control recognizes that domestic violence has a broad range of causes and risk factors, including alcohol abuse, marital discord, and mental illness. But on August 17, 2017 the NTF issued an Action Alert revealing its allegiance to the “power and control” model:
“The work of ending domestic violence and sexual assault is, at its core, an effort to end the harm caused when one person exerts dominance over someone else through tactics of abuse and control…”
The Action Alert went on to make a claim that lacks a scientific basis:
“The quest to end domestic violence and sexual assault is inextricably linked with the quest to end racism, homophobia, transphobia, misogyny, xenophobia, religious bigotry toward Jewish and Muslim communities, and other forms of oppression toward marginalized communities, including immigrant and Native American communities.”
These statements reveal a contrast between research findings and the gender ideology of the National Task Force.
NTF’s True Agenda
NTF’s priorities can be discerned from a review of the 18 Action Alerts it issued from November 17, 2016 to March 15, 2018:
|
Topic |
Number of Alerts | Relevance to Reducing Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault | |
| 1 | Immigration | 7 | Controversial |
| 2 | Firearms control | 3 | Relevant |
| 3 | Attorney General nomination | 2 | Not relevant |
| 4 | #MeToo and #TimesUp | 1 | Controversial |
| 5 | Charlottesville rally | 1 | Not relevant |
| 6 | Healthcare legislation | 1 | Not relevant |
| 7 | Tax legislation | 1 | Not relevant |
| 8 | Funding for DV services | 1 | Relevant |
| 9 | Title IX policies | 1 | Controversial |
Of the 18 Alerts, immigration was by far the most common topic with 7 Alerts. These Alerts addressed a variety of open borders issues such as termination of Temporary Protected Status of El Salvadorans, President Trump’s immigration blueprint, Department of Homeland Security policies, Community Trust policies, and the like. The second most common topics were Firearms control (3 Alerts) and Executive Branch nominations (2 Alerts).
The 18 Alerts were analyzed to assess their relevance to reducing domestic violence and sexual assault, classifying each Alert as Relevant, Controversial, or Not relevant.
Only two topics – Firearms control (Table 7) and Funding for DV services – have a plausible relationship to domestic violence reduction.
Alerts on these topics are controversial:
- #MeToo and #TimesUp
- Title IX policies
- Immigration policies
The NTF Alerts on #MeToo/#TimesUp and Title IX policies are deemed to be controversial because they seek to infringe on the fundamental due process rights of accused persons.
NTF Alerts on immigration policies are also controversial because VAWA does not require any proof of being a victim of domestic violence. Such foreign nationals only need to check a box on an immigration form and complete an affidavit. The alleged perpetrator is not allowed to submit evidence that might disprove the claim. As a result, marriage fraud is receiving considerable attention – a Google search on the words “VAWA marriage fraud” yields over 21,000 results.
Alerts on these topics did not offer a well-reasoned argument for their relevance to domestic violence and are classified as Not Relevant:
- Tax policy
- Healthcare reform
- Charlottesville rally
- Attorney General nomination
Out of the 18 Alerts, only four – 22.2% — have clear relevance to reducing domestic violence. The remaining 14 Alerts are consistent with broader political and ideological objectives such as promoting open borders and blocking healthcare and tax reform bills. The NTF’s opposition to an Attorney General nomination is seen as highly inappropriate.
The NTF has not issued any Alerts pertaining to the well-recognized causes of domestic violence such as substance abuse, marital conflict, and psychological distress.
Ideological Cabal
The National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence is the behind-the-scenes ideological power-broker that, more than any other group, controls the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). In the words of one knowledgeable Congressional staffer, the NTF is the “main coalition involved with the VAWA reauthorization.” Groups that have requested to have a “seat at the table” of the VAWA reauthorization process have been informed that their request first must be approved by the NTF.
Despite the fact that the National Task Force exerts enormous power over public policy, it operates as a clandestine entity with no accountability to the public, lawmakers, or domestic violence stakeholders. The CEDV urges the National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence to cease its secret practices and reconsider its allegiance to the discredited “power and control” model.