On Sunday, Americans' love for television binge-watching will end up helping fight domestic abuse -- at least, that's what Vice President Joe Biden and actress Mariska Hargitay are hoping for.
Biden will appear alongside Hargitay in a PSA addressing domestic violence scheduled to air during a "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit" marathon on USA Network, The Washington Post reported. Maile Zambuto, who is the chief executive of Hargitay’s foundation for survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence and child abuse, Joyful Heart, told the outlet that episodes set to air during the marathon will focus on different aspects of the issue, including "teen dating violence, campus sexual assault, male sexual abuse [and] the cycle of violence.”
The duo, who are supporting the No More campaign, aim to provide victims and their loved ones with the resources to access help.
In one of three spots that will air on Sunday, Biden and Margitay point out the difference between how domestic violence is treated on-screen and off.
"On Law and Order: SVU, witnesses frequently come forward to help detectives track down offenders," Hargitay said in the PSA.
"But in real life, too often, people look the other way," Biden continued, noting that "domestic violence is never the victim's fault."
About 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men have been the victim of severe physical violence by an intimate partner in the U.S., according to a 2010 survey by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Biden, who spearheaded the Violence Against Women Act as a senator in 1994, teamed up with Hargitay last year at a news conference in Maryland. The event addressed the need to reduce domestic violence deaths in the U.S. Each year, 1,300 people die from intimate partner victimizations, according to the CDC.
View the full PSA on The Washington Post's website.
Need help? In the U.S., call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) for the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
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