Domestic violence is the number one cause of injury to women between the ages of 15 and 44. Every year agencies receive thousands of calls for help that cannot adequately be answered. Because the field is so new and complex — with medical, criminal, cultural, psychological, educational, juvenile, employment, and other aspects of the problem that need attention — philanthropic, governmental, and corporate responses lag behind its explosive growth. So the field continues to both broaden and integrate. In 1998 the two main fields of domestic violence and sexual abuse, each represented by a coalition of institutional members, merged to become Jane Doe, Inc. (JDI), an umbrella group working toward a holistic, comprehensive response. With now over 60 institutional members, JDI is leading a collaborative effort to develop a comprehensive strategic plan for the field as a whole.

Broad public-private coalitions and task forces — representing criminal justice, substance abuse, poverty, homelessness, mental and physical health care, women's rights, public and private education, legislative protections, and corporate interests — are forming across the country to develop broadly collaborative, innovative strategies in which each constituency develops a strategic response in coordination with those of the other interest groups. Here in Massachusetts, Jane Doe is the natural catalyst for a comprehensive, systematic, assault on the problem, because philanthropy can play an unfettered role in bringing together highly constrained agencies and institutions. JDI will convene the various constituencies, help them develop their sectoral strategic plans, and work with them individually and together to coordinate what each does best. This is your opportunity to do something significant to help solve this grave public issue.