BATON ROUGE, LA - The National Association of Social Workers, Louisiana Chapter, extends our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones affected by the recent tragedy in Shreveport. We grieve with the community and stand with those who have lost so much.
Children are not bystanders in homes where domestic violence occurs. They are witnesses, victims, and survivors alongside their mothers. Louisiana ranks fifth in the nation for female homicide rates, 85 percent higher than the national average. Two out of three women murdered by men in this state are killed with firearms.
When a gun is present in a domestic violence situation, a woman's risk of being killed rises by 500 percent. Most women who lose their lives to men know their killers. More than half of women killed by gun violence are killed by intimate partners. Nearly one in three women in Louisiana (about 565,000) have experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetime.
This violence does not happen in isolation. Each year, 15.5 million children in the United States live in homes where intimate partner violence has occurred. One in four children under age five lives with a mother who is a victim of intimate partner violence. In 60 to 75 percent of families where women are abused, children are also directly abused. Children exposed to domestic violence are two to four times more likely to develop significant emotional and behavioral problems than children from non-violent homes. They face higher risks of anxiety, depression, PTSD, and aggression. The effects last. These children are more likely to struggle with mental health and substance use as adults, and they face a greater risk of becoming victims or perpetrators of violence themselves.
These numbers are not just statistics. They are a call to action. Social workers are trained to recognize the warning signs of domestic violence and intervene before a crisis turns deadly. Yet, our state faces a severe shortage of licensed social workers and mental health professionals. More than 3.2 million Louisianans live in areas with too few mental health providers. Only 29 percent of our state’s mental health workforce need is being met. Nearly 60 percent of Louisiana children who needed mental health services could not get care. People wait weeks or months for help, if they can get it at all.
We need more licensed social workers in every parish. We need better access to mental health supports for survivors, families, and communities. We need investment in prevention and intervention, not just response after tragedy.
NASW continues to advocate for solutions. We support the Improving Access to Mental Health Act to expand the reach of clinical social workers. We back the social work licensure interstate compact to help professionals serve where they’re needed most. We advocate for permanent telehealth flexibilities so rural and underserved communities are not left behind. NASW-LA remains steadfast in its advocacy for stricter universal background checks and the implementation of Red Flag laws (Extreme Risk Protection Orders).
These measures are vital tools for preventing individuals in crisis from accessing firearms and protecting the public from foreseeable harm. We encourage our members and all social work professionals to visit the NASW Gun Violence Resource Page. This page provides essential tools, advocacy materials, and resources to help social workers support survivors, navigate the trauma of mass shootings, and advocate for systemic change.
We urge lawmakers, health systems, and community leaders to act. The cycle of violence will not break itself. Social workers are ready to do the work, but we need the tools, the workforce, and the policies to make real change.