On February 21, 1996, the National Domestic Violence Hotline answered its very first call.

In the past 30 years of The Hotline, we have worked tirelessly to shift power back to those affected by relationship abuse. We have answered more than 7 million calls, chats, and texts from survivors and their loved ones during that time. We also advocated for policy change, forged lasting and meaningful partnerships, and shifted our advocacy to best meet the evolving needs of survivors. Our services have expanded to include digital chat and text. In 2007, we launched our healthy relationships and prevention services through love is respect, the first national 24/7 resource and live advocate service specifically for teens and young people.

This significant milestone in our history is not a celebration. The need for our services continues to increase; in fact, our contact volume has increased by 43% in the last five years. Needing a national hotline to serve domestic violence survivors is a somber reminder of just how pervasive this issue is. Millions of survivors needing our support due to the abuse they are experiencing is not a celebration.

But the courage of survivors is something to celebrate. We are honored to witness the strength and bravery of survivors every day. Survivors speak up and reach out for support, regardless of barriers, and at the risk of not being believed by their communities and by those they love.

We could not do this work without our donors and partners who have been on this journey with us, and we hope you will too. We’ll be sharing more information about how you can get involved as the year goes on.

Learn more about the history of The Hotline.